Johanna Rhys-Davies is a former barrister and is Iolanthe's Legal Trustee. Johanna graduated from Oxford University with a degree in jurisprudence and spent around nine years as a full time barrister in Chambers in Leeds. Johanna had a mixed practice in common law eventually specialising in family law, as well as immigration, asylum and human rights law.
In 2009 Johanna gave birth to her son and was profoundly affected by giving birth, becoming a mother and by the maternity care she received. Johanna took some time away from legal practice in order to raise her son full time, but became involved in local maternity advocacy issues for both midwives and families on a voluntary basis. In 2010 Johanna co-founded a local grassroots advocacy group to improve maternity care for her community in Yorkshire, and in 2013 she joined the UK charity: Birthrights as a speaker and trainer on Human Rights in Maternity care. Johanna is passionate about making Human Rights Law accessible to those whom it affects the most, both practitioners and right holders.
Johanna have previously qualified and volunteered as a breastfeeding counsellor with La Leche League Great Britain and served on the board of LLLGB as a trustee.
Johanna was absolutely thrilled to join Iolanthe Midwifery trust as the legal trustee in March 2016, a role that combines her shared passions for supporting midwifery, charity governance and law. Johanna lives in Wales with her son and they are regular visitors to Australia and New Zealand. When she is not working on charity and legal projects, Johanna loves Yorkshire tea, yoga and walking by the sea wherever she is in the world.
