Anne Harrison was called to the Bar in 1992 and is a Legal Director (Barrister) in the Real Estate Department of DAC Beachcroft's Bristol office. She is a member of the firm's national Safety Health and Environment team and specialises in regulatory compliance and environmental law matters and planning.

Previously, Anne was in-house Counsel at the Environment Agency, advising on the statutory powers, duties and responsibilities of the agency as regulator, environmental regulation, waste management, the contaminated land regime, land drainage/flood defence and water law, habitats and conservation, town and country planning, environmental impact assessment, and other UK and EU environmental legislation.

Anne also spent 2 years as an Environment Manager in the Environment Agency, responsible for five operational teams covering waste management, environmental permitting and COMAH regulation, pollution incident response and site inspections, pollution control and radioactive substances regulation, water quality, water level monitoring, and a special enforcement team.

Anne now advises both private and public sector clients - including residential developers and the healthcare sector - on regulatory environmental and planning law matters in both an operational and transactional/due diligence context.

Areas of specialism include:

• Waste management regulation;
• Environmental permitting;
• Contaminated land, environmental and planning prosecutions;
• Enforcement and appeals;
• Section 106 and related infrastructure agreements;
• Environmental impact assessment;
• Floodplain issues, habitats and conservation;
• Pollution offences;
• Producer responsibility regimes;
• Hazardous substances and COMAH regulation;
• Planning and environmental related judicial review;
• Landowner/occupier liabilities;
• Waste and energy infrastructure procurement projects.

Endorsements  

"A brilliant, very incisive lawyer with complete grasp of the detail. A great people manager who is totally on top of her case, and her background as counsel in the Environment Agency is a unique skill set to bring to a constantly changing field. I haven’t been able to find expertise like that elsewhere." Chambers UK 2021, Environment - South West

"Anne Harrison is ‘an outstanding lawyer'." Legal 500, 2020 Edition, Planning, South West

"Anne Harrison...is ‘excellent at dealing with regulatory bodies’." Legal 500, 2017 Edition, Environment, Bristol

"Rated for her ‘well-thought-out advice on a range of planning matters’ and for her ability to ‘understand and appreciate the commercial context." Legal 500, 2017 Edition, Planning, Bristol

"Sources say: "She is an impressive lawyer and gives practical advice," and "she knows the EA like the back of her hand"." Chambers and Partners UK 2014 Edition, Environment, South West

"Anne Harrison...is ‘particularly strong on the planning side of environment’." Legal 500 UK 2013 Edition, Real Estate, Environment, Bristol

"An 'accomplished planning lawyer'." Chambers and Partners UK, Planning, 2013 Edition, Bristol

"'...efficient, cost effective and aware of the needs of her clients'." Chambers and Partners UK, Environment, 2013 Edition, Bristol and surrounds