Tributes are being paid following the announcement of the death of Sue Stapely, a well-known former solicitor and PR consultant, regarded as a pioneer of modern PR and crisis management.

Stapely, who died aged 79 following a period of illness, was head of public relations at the Law Society of England and Wales between 1990 and 1995, before moving into consultancy work, as a director of Fishburn Hedges, the London communications and design consultancy. 

Of that time, Vanessa Montero, head of public relations at Hogan Lovells, said Stapely was “a true force – a powerful, talented, glamorous, generous, always classy and wonderful lady”.

She later moved into reputation management and ran her own independent consultancy. She also worked with PR consultants Edge International and Quiller Consultants. Edge’s founder, Gerry Rivkin, said of her: “Her wisdom, intelligence, humanity and guidance enhanced what I do and how I do it both personally and professionally.”

Among an extensive CV of voluntary activities, she was an active contributor and supporter of the arts, which included positions at the Royal Shakespeare Company, chair of Playground Proms, which supports classical music in schools in deprived areas, and the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art, among many other roles, including public appointments. A resident of Moreton-in-Marsh, in the Cotswolds, she was an active member of her local community.

Media law specialist and Howard Kennedy partner Mark Stephens CBE, a close friend of Stapely, said she was “a ray of light lighting the way for lawyers from the stuffy and pompous mired in legalese to the accessible, user-friendly profession we have today”.

He added that former Law Society President, Tony Girling once said to him, of Stapely: “She was the only person who could go into an (intellectual) revolving door behind you, and come out in front of you.”

He recalled the conservative media climate of the legal profession in the 1980s: “No law firm had a PR firm let alone in-house PR. Crisis management wasn’t even ‘a thing’. Sue, in her unique farsighted way, invented all those things.”

Recalling her appointment by the Law Society to run its public relations, given such cultural resistance, her tenure in the role was “groundbreaking”, he said, adding: “The level of institutional resistance is difficult to convey in the modern era”.

That tribute was echoed by Law Society director of public affairs David McNeill, who said Stapely would be remembered for her energy and creativity and her whirlwind personal impact.

“Only Sue could have put a Law Society president in a Lycra superhero suit for a PR stunt. But she should also be remembered for her professionalism both as a lawyer and in PR. She set the standard for litigation PR and literally wrote the book on media relations for lawyers. She will be missed.”

The distinguished journalist, Joshua Rozenberg KC (Hon), said: “She gave every impression of running [the Law Society] single-handedly from the press office. Certainly, no officeholders would dare utter a word unless Sue had told them what to say. She was glamorous and dashing in the days when I was ignorant and cautious.”

Originally a producer with the BBC, whose credits included episodes of Doctor Who, featuring the late Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee, as the Second and Third Doctors respectively, Z Cars, and other popular shows, she changed careers to qualify as a solicitor, gaining experience with various Citizens Advice Bureaus, before becoming a partner in national firm, Heald Nickinson, from 1990-1995.

Stapely is survived by her husband, David Fitt, and two sons. Writing on LinkedIn, Fitt said, simply: “The subsequent tributes to her family, professional and cultural life have overwhelmed us. I feel privileged to have been the partner of a remarkable woman.”