Dame Fiona Woolf DBE, JP, DL |
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Alderman Dame Fiona Woolf
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Lord Mayor of London | |
In office 8 November 2013 – 7 November 2014 |
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Metropolitan Mayor | Boris Johnson |
Preceded by | Sir Roger Gifford |
Succeeded by | Sir Alan Yarrow |
Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse | |
In office 5 September 2014 – 31 October 2014 |
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Appointed by |
Theresa May (as Home Secretary) |
Preceded by | Baroness Butler-Sloss |
Succeeded by | Dame Lowell Goddard |
Personal details | |
Born |
Catherine Fiona Swain 11 May 1948 Edinburgh, United Kingdom |
Nationality | British |
Spouse(s) | Nicholas Woolf FCA |
Residence | London |
Profession | Solicitor |
Religion | Church of England |
Website | www.fionawoolf.com |
Dame Catherine Fiona Woolf, DBE, JP, DL (née Swain; born 11 May 1948) is a British corporate lawyer. She served as the Lord Mayor of London (2013-14), acting as global ambassador for UK-based financial and business services. She has held and still holds many other significant positions in the City of London.
Catherine Fiona Swain was born in Edinburgh, and was educated there at St Denis School (subsequently part of St Margaret's School), before going up to Keele University where she graduated in Law and Psychology (BA). She completed her Master's studies at the University of Strasbourg graduating with a Diploma in Comparative Law (QLD).
Woolf qualified as a solicitor in 1973 and worked as an assistant at Clifford Chance until 1978. She then moved to CMS Cameron McKenna where she became the firm's first female partner in 1981; she remained a partner until 2004.
A specialist legal advisor on major infrastructure developments, particularly with regard to infrastructure legislation and energy markets, Woolf played a role in the 1985 treaty agreements between the British and French governments concerning the Channel Tunnel. She subsequently went on to work with almost 30 governments around the world. She now acts as a consultant to CMS Cameron McKenna and is a Senior Adviser to London Economics International LLC.