My Role As A Senior Compliance Officer.

Meet Helen Siegieda.

Compliance plays a key role in how we operate, and Helen, our senior compliance officer, is at the centre of it. Working across all the offices and departments, she helps ensure we meet regulatory requirements, manage risk effectively, and maintain high standards in everything we do.

We asked Helen more about her role, her journey into compliance, and what she enjoys most about working at Lanyon Bowdler:

I’ve been with Lanyon Bowdler since August 2025, and I lead our Compliance Team which is made up of myself, a compliance officer and compliance assistant. My role is to ensure we meet our regulatory requirements relating to anti-money laundering regulations, data protection and the SRA Code of Conduct.

A typical day includes scheduled work such as investigating complaints, responding to data breaches, completing file reviews, and making risk-based decisions relating to incoming transactions. I also undertake project work to improve our policies, processes and staff awareness. Compliance by nature is a reactive role, so I plan my weeks in advance but naturally have to prioritise urgent enquiries from across the firm, and I balance this alongside our planned work.

I started my career as a fraud investigator, which evolved into a regulatory investigator for the Gambling Commission, then I taught financial crime prevention and investigation skills to compliance professionals around the world at the International Compliance Association. I loved facilitating classes and hearing the diverse experiences from people working in compliance roles across all sectors and in various countries, and I thought, I want to use my experience in investigation and understanding and applying regulations, and do what they do! I enjoy the theory of compliance but my passion is in its application, which is what I get to do in this role. I always had an interest in the legal sector and I am getting immersed in it in this role.

The things I enjoy most about this role is the variety; I learn something new every day, whether that is the intricacy of a particular legal matter we are dealing with, or how to manage a situation where we may be conflicted in some of our duties. I love the problem solving the role involves. I am extremely lucky and my team is excellent, so I draw on their knowledge and experience of the firm and together we are an excellent compliance function.

Outside the office: CrossFit in Malta.

Outside of work, Helen is currently preparing for a CrossFit competition in Malta this May. Training for a competition like this takes commitment, focus and consistency – something that sit alongside the demands of her role.

Helen says:

The competition involves my team of four, two men and two women, competing in two workouts per day, over the course of three days, on a beach in Malta! The exercises will involve everything from Olympic weightlifting with a barbell, to gymnastics such as pull-ups, toes to bar and hand stand push-ups, to cardio such as running, bike/ski/row erg, burpees and swimming. The workouts will involve completing as many repetitions as possible/lifting the heaviest weight within a set time frame, racing against the other teams which will be from across Europe and beyond.

CrossFit is my passion outside of compliance! I train every day at SY1 in Shrewsbury, and the competitions are a really fun way to test your progress, push your boundaries and have fun with likeminded people.

I am very goal oriented, so I am motivated by making progress in a specific movement of CrossFit, whether that be lifting 5kg heavier with the barbell, completing another pull-up rep, or being able to row or run faster. The progression is addictive and everyone in the CrossFit community hits their goals, we celebrate each other’s achievements, then we make new goals. The goalpost is always moving which keeps it fun and engaging.

I believe CrossFit has helped me obtain my role and achieve within it! It has increased my confidence, and provides me with a daily challenge which I prove to myself every day that I can overcome and achieve. It provides me with a physical challenge and stress relief, which enables me to take on the intellectual and time management challenges of my compliance role.

A closer look at Compliance.

Compliance might sit behind the scenes, but it plays a big part in how Lanyon Bowdler runs day to day. Compliance may come with a bit of a reputation – detail focused, rule driven and always keeping a close eye on things.

But in reality, it’s also a role that is all about collaboration, communication and working with people across the different departments to get things right.  

We asked Helen to share what compliance really looks like from her perspective and how she brings her own approach to it:

Sometimes people think compliance is boring as it involves teaching people to follow rules. Compliance is much broader than this, and is very people-focused. My team advise the business on a daily basis as to how they can best fulfil their roles of providing services to clients, and we give them the knowledge and confidence to do this compliantly, in accordance with the standards and regulations. We deliver training and communicate the requirements across the business so everyone understands what their roles and responsibilities are.

I thoroughly enjoy working with others and I get to work with everyone; solicitors, heads of department, legal support assistants, the managing partner, the finance director, IT, and more. It’s a great role to have if you enjoy networking and getting to know lots of people across the business.

Something I enjoy most about working with different departments is learning how they do things. What kind of challenges they have, what are some of their barriers to compliance, and how can we work together to achieve compliance.

Something that might surprise people about me is I taught English in Italy for a year, and in Turkey for a year after university. This not only developed me personally but gave me exposure to teaching and facilitating classes, and I use these skills in my role today.