About Francesca Cociani
Francesca joined Hodge Jones & Allen in 2021 after qualifying as a solicitor in August 2020. Francesca has been promoted to Senior Associate in May 2024. She specialises in criminal defence and has obtained Higher Rights of audience, allowing her to appear for clients in the Crown Court.
She has represented clients at police station interviews conducted by the police, as well as HMRC, the DWP or other departments. She regularly attends the Magistrates Court for all types of hearings including trials. She is a fierce advocate who always strives to obtain the best results for her clients.
She has gained considerable experience in representing youths, victims of modern slavery and defendants with mental health issues or learning difficulties. She always endeavours that the utmost level of care and attention is paid to the needs of all her clients.
She has dealt with numerous Crown Court cases ranging from white collar crime to drugs and violence offences, where her meticulous preparation and astute application of the law have led to excellent results for her clients.
Client Comments
- “I have recently been involved in two Just Stop Oil criminal prosecutions and cannot praise the help I received from Hodge Jones & Allen (HJA) highly enough. Their legal expertise was exemplary and the team clearly demonstrated a thorough understanding of law and clearly and professionally advised how best to present the two cases I was involved with. The communication with HJA staff was considerate, clear and unambiguous. This was particularly impressive given the extreme workload HJA were clearly under. The end result was as good as I could have hoped for and owe much to HJA for this results.”
- “HJA definitely helped, Laura and Francesca were great in particular especially considering my inexperience with legal cases.”
- “A group of us were assisted in a human rights matter by paralegal Shelby Keppel and solicitor Francesca Cociani. Shelby efficiently arranged legal aid for those of us entitled to it. Francesca represented us in the Magistrates Court where the Metropolitan Police were attempting to prosecute us under coronavirus regulations for being outside our homes to attend a protest on 28 November 2020. The CPS eventually dropped the matter due to ‘lack of evidence’.”
- “Shelby and Fran have been massively helpful defending a group on a coach trip against a charge of breaching coronavirus requirements from the Metropolitan Police. Both have been courteous, helpful, and supportive in gaining a positive outcome for us all. We would not hesitate in contacting Hodge Jones & Allen again should the need arise, many thanks to all involved.”
- “HJA have been so so helpful with my case. Freya and Fran could not have been more considerate and lovely as well as doing a wonderful job creating arguments and in court. They were both very open to any questions I had and made me feel included and knowledgable to make important decisions about my case.”
I found Hodge Jones & Allen's Francesca Cociani to be an excellent solicitor who helped me with my case tremendously.
- “I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who was involved in my case. There will never be enough words to thank you. It was really important to me to feel that I was being listened to and not judged instantly, and I greatly appreciated the time, availability and empathy you treated me. Mine was a very complicated case with little defence, I think, making things a little difficult. However, thanks you have your advice the worst option was not applied to me and today I am back to my life and my life plans. I have found Hodge Jones & Allen professional and credible, and would recommend it to every person I know in need.”
Memberships
- Defence Extradition Lawyers Forum
- The Haldane Society
- Young Legal Aid
Career & Languages
Career
- Senior Associate, Hodge Jones & Allen, 2024 – Present
- Associate, Hodge Jones & Allen, 2023 – 2024
- Solicitor, Hodge Jones & Allen, 2021 – 2023
- Lloyds PR Solicitors, 2018 – 2021
Education
- University of Law, LPC, 2017 – 2018
- BPP, Law conversion, 2016 – 2017
- School of Oriental and African Studies, BA in Economics & Politics, 2013 – 2016
Languages
Francesca speaks fluent Italian, Spanish and has basic skills in Chinese Mandarin
Blog
Blog
Opinion
