What can I do for you
Jacqueline Cook is a senior finance lawyer with over 30 years’ experience in a variety of sectors including structured finance, syndicated lending, real estate finance, leveraged finance, trade and export finance, derivatives and general banking.
She is the senior finance knowledge lawyer for the finance and restructuring practice at Mills & Reeve LLP, covering horizon scanning for the team on legal, regulatory and practice developments, training and legal opinions, as well as promoting client facing knowledge projects. Jacqueline is one of the original members of the Finance Knowledge Lawyers Network. She is qualified in English law and Scots law.
She advises on changes in law and practice, such as the Electronic Trade Document Act 2023, digital assets, IBOR transition, sanctions, Brexit and legal opinions. Having been involved in consultations with the Law Commission on digital assets and electronic trade documents, she is keen to continue to work on similar law reform projects with regulators and law makers. She is often found analysing legal issues and structures. Jacqueline delivers training on a number of core and specialist banking and finance topics.
Supporting your ambitions
Jacqueline’s interest in law reform, and especially making the law workable, has led her to advise on some of the recent key changes in the financial markets. She is keen to tackle a legal issue with a practical approach to create solutions in documentation and structures to meet the needs of the transaction and the client while keeping track of proposed changes within the markets. She has worked with the Law Commission on the proposals around changes to the Bills of Exchange Act 1882 and headed submissions on the Property (Digital Assets etc) Bill (now Act). Her writing and enthusiasm led her to be invited to present to the University of Aberdeen Digital Assets project in September 2024 attended by the UN, The Hague Conference on Private International Law, and academics from across Europe. Her interest in law and legal developments has also led her to be appointed to the firm's Opinions Committee.
What do others say
"Jacqueline has been an invaluable contributor to Law Commission roundtables and consultation events in relation to digital assets and electronic trade documents. Her wealth of practical knowledge, combined with her impressive analytical skills, mean that hers is a definitely a voice worth listening to." - Professor Sarah Green, Head of Digital Assets and Trade Finance, D2 Legal Technology and former Law Commissioner for Commercial and Common Law
"Jacqueline is capable of adding value where many others aren't, combining a personal style driven by a genuine care for clients' needs and a great sense of integrity, with a level of professional knowledge and expertise which are second to none. A true professional and a pleasure to work with." - Duarte Pedreira, Global Head of Trade & Working Capital Finance
Financial Markets and Banking, Crown Agents Bank
“Jacqueline is a valued and enthusiastic member of the LexisNexis Banking & Finance board, where she demonstrates her keen interest in the law and keeping up to date with all changes and developments in the banking and finance world. Through this work, Jacqueline helps to ensure that the law is accessible to businesses and lawyers alike.” - Emma Millington Solicitor, Head of Lexis + Finance Group
“Before, and since Jacqueline joined the editorial board she has been a great sounding board on many areas of law and practice in banking and financial law. She has written a number of articles for JIBFL on a variety of topics including LIBOR reform, sanctions and electronic trade documents and it is clear in her comments and writing that she is keen to make the law practical for financial institutions and businesses alike.” - Amanda Cohen, editor of JIBFL
What else should you know
Jacqueline is on the editorial board of the Journal of International Banking and Financial Law and has had a number of articles published in it, eg "Planes, trains and... tractors: a new route to financing high value equipment in the mining, agriculture and construction sectors" in the January 2026 edition. She spoke at TF COP 2025 Summit in London and attended the UNIDROIT meetings on the MAC Protocol in autumn 2025.
She is on the Consulting Editorial Board of Lexis+ Practical Guidance Banking & Finance.
She acted as in-house editor and contributor to "A Practitioner's Guide to Trade and Commodity Finance" (December 2021), covering all areas of trade and commodity finance. Jacqueline also featured on Merge Events with an article sharing her experiences of working for a city law firm - "Jackets on Chairs!".
Jacqueline is a speaker and ambassador for Mary's Meals a charity which fights poverty by providing a nutritious meal for children in schools in 16 of the poorest countries in the world bringing children who are out of education back to the classroom and helping children attain and achieve. She also participated in the INTO University workshops through Mills & Reeve earlier this year.