Nikolaus Grubeck

Profile

Before joining Doughty Street Chambers, Nikolaus worked for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC). He specialized in the issue of civilian casualties, dealing with a range of incidents including international forces opening fire on civilian bystanders following a suicide attack, the targeted killing of non-combatants by insurgents and the shooting of unarmed protesters by Afghan Government forces.

Nikolaus also previously worked as Special Assistant to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Sudan and on various consultancy and academic assignments in countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Iraq, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Russia (Chechnya).

Nikolaus holds a BA in law from Oxford University and an LLM from Harvard Law School. He was awarded the Inner Temple’s prize for outstanding achievement on the BVC, the Harvard Henigson Human Rights Fellowship, and numerous prizes and awards for his research on legal structures in Somalia and on conflict mapping in Central Africa and Central Asia. Nikolaus is a qualified mediator under Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Rules.

Civil Practice

Nikolaus has a broad domestic and international practice, covering public, civil and criminal law cases. He focuses on human rights issues and has particular expertise in matters relating to armed conflict and civilian protection as well as claims against the police and public authorities.

Before coming to the bar, Nikolaus worked for the United Nations in Afghanistan and the Sudan. He holds law degrees from Oxford University and Harvard Law School and is a former judicial assistant to Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury, the Master of the Rolls.

Criminal Practice

Nikolaus represents defendants in the Crown Court, Youth Court and Magistrates Court. He has conducted trials for offences such as armed robbery, sexual offences, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and fraud.

He has also assisted on a range of serious and high profile cases including conspiracy to murder (R v Stabler, Reading CC), causing multiple deaths by dangerous driving (R v Afzal, ~~Wood Green CC~~), a CCRC referral (R v Heibner, ~~Court of Appeal~~), large-scale VAT fraud (R v McFarnon and Ors, ~~Kingston CC~~), and false accounting in relation to Parliamentary expenses (R v Jim Devine, ~~Southwark CC~~).

Nikolaus has a particular interest in money laundering and confiscation proceedings. He has worked on a range of cases involving issues such as the determination of hidden assets (e.g. R v Iktilat & Ors, ~~Woolwich CC~~) and the enforcement of confiscation orders.

He is a contributing author to the 2^nd edition of Taylor on Criminal Appeals and advises on appeals against both conviction and sentence.

Publications

Taylor on Criminal Appeals 2^nd edition (contributing author), Oxford University Press, 2012.
Civilian Harm in Somalia: Creating an Appropriate Response Mechanism (author), CIVIC, 2011.
Annual Report on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict in Afghanistan (contributing author), UNAMA, 2009.
Insurgent Abuses Against Afghan Civilians (editor), AIHRC, 2008.
From Hope to Fear: An Afghan Perspective on Operations of Pro-Government Forces (editor), AIHRC, 2008.
Armed Conflict and Civilian Casualties in Afghanistan (co-author), OHCHR, 2008.
Investigation into the Shooting of Demonstrators in Sheberghan on 28 May 2007 (author), AIHRC, 2007.
Investigation into the suicide bombing and shootings in Shinwar district on 4 March 2007 (author), AIHRC, 2007.
We Are Now Hoping For Death: Grave Human Rights Abuses in Gambella, Ethiopia (co-author), HIHRC, 2006.
Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in Failed States: The Case of Somalia (author), Harvard Law School, 2006.

International Law

Nikolaus acts in a wide range of international matters, both in an advisory or consultancy capacity and in cases before domestic and international courts. He draws on his specialist legal knowledge as well as his extensive field experience in Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan, Iraq, Ethiopia, the Great Lakes Region and the Caucasus.

Recent and ongoing projects include:

Representing Afghan and Iraqi detainees and civilian victims of armed conflict in civil and public proceedings in the UK courts;
Advising the African Union Mission in Somalia on the establishment of a Civilian Casualties Tracking, Analysis and Response Cell pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 2036 (2012);
Researching and writing an in-depth report for CIVIC and UNHCR on the impact of the armed conflict in Somalia on the civilian population;
Investigating incidents of alleged severe human rights violations in Afghanistan and Yemen;
Training for military forces (US, Afghanistan, NATO), Governments (Afghanistan and Somalia), NGOs, journalists and human rights activists on human rights, international humanitarian law, civilian protection and responding to civilian harm;
Representing NGOs on advocacy missions, including to the UN, NATO, national governments and NGO consortia;
Advising torture victims on potential remedies;
Providing legal assistance in a challenge to a death penalty conviction in Singapore.

Corporate Governance and Policy

Nikolaus advises on compliance with international and bilateral sanctions regimes and accepts instructions from individuals affected by them. Further, he provides advice to corporate entities regarding compliance with international human rights standards and operations in conflict-affected areas.

Actions Against the Police and Public Authorities

Nikolaus represents clients in claims against the police or the military for assault, false imprisonment and other torts as well as violations of the Human Rights Act 1998. He is also instructed in tort-claims against local authorities and Government departments.

Recent cases include the unlawful removal and destruction of a vehicle by a local authority; assaults by the police involving the use of dogs, tasers and batons; the action brought by members of the rock band The Thirst against Staffordshire police; and costs disputes.

Administrative and Public Law

Nikolaus is currently acting in a number of public law challenges regarding the lawfulness of certain UK Government policies in Afghanistan and East Africa, including the ongoing handover of detainees in UK custody to the Afghan authorities (Serdar Mohammed v SSD & Maya Evans (No. 3) v SSD).

Other recent public law cases include applications for judicial review against the Crown Prosecution Service (unlawful discontinuance of a prosecution), the Independent Police Complaints Commission (irrational decision on appeal) and local authorities (unfair ‘best interests’ assessment; provision of community care services). He was also involved in legal action in the course of the charity Reprieve’s ‘Death Penalty: Stop Lethal Injection’ project (R (Edmund Zagorski) v SSBIS and Archimedes Pharma).

Freedom of Information and Data Protection

Nikolaus worked on the Supreme Court case GC and C v Metropolitan Police Commissioner ~~[2011] UKSC 21~~ regarding data retention by the police. He is currently involved in a case challenging the HRA-compatibility of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (JB v SSHD & AW v SSHD).