Agriculture and estates
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- BIRCHAM DYSON BELL LLP
- BOODLE HATFIELD
- BURGES SALMON LLP Bristol
- FORSTERS LLP
- HUNTERS
- MACFARLANES LLP
- MILLS & REEVE LLP Cambridge, Norwich
- WITHERS LLP
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Farrer & Co’s ‘exceptional and excellent’ team is led by Simon Pring, who ‘demonstrates a pragmatic approach to problems backed by a real understanding of the practical implications of the law’. Henry Goulding, who advises clients on new wind farm ventures, is ‘approachable and provides unequivocal advice at very short notice when required’. Edmund Fetherston-Dilke is recommended for sales and purchases of country houses and estates, and Paul Krafft and James Maxwell are also recommended. Clients include the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster.
Bircham Dyson Bell LLP was appointed to the National Farmers Union legal panel in 2008. The group, which is led by Christopher Findley, has assisted with high-value sales and the drafting of farm business tenancies. The six-partner team also handles landlord and tenant and farming partnership disputes.
Boodle Hatfield is recommended by clients in ‘all areas of agricultural lettings, disputes and sales’, and practice head Sue Laing enjoys a good reputation in the market. The group is highly rated by peers and includes Saskia Arthur, who offers ‘in-depth knowledge’. The team includes the ‘forward-thinking’ Tim Manning. Grosvenor Estates and Bedford Estate are clients.
Burges Salmon LLP enjoys an enviable market profile, and ‘delivers an outstandingly high level of service, with an expertise that is second to none’. The team is highly rated for its litigation expertise; practice head Peter Williams ‘one of the best property litigation solicitors in the country’, and ‘is a superb tactician and negotiator, often achieving settlements that are far in excess of what anyone else could achieve’. Associate Ben Sharples is a ‘huge talent, and phenomenally bright’, and Vivienne Williams is also recommended. Clients include The Crown Estate and The National Trust.
Forsters LLP recently took on much of Withers LLP’s agriculture and estates practice, including well-known and highly respected group head Penny Elliott and the ‘focused’ Andrew Lane. Recent highlights include some high-value sales and complex tax restructuring advice.
Patricia Sykes heads Hunters’ landed estates group, which assists clients on the sale and purchase of landed estate property and farms, and advises on inheritance tax and other tax planning, diversification, and heritage property and maintenance funds. Jonathan Godwin-Austen offers ‘clear, well-thought-through solutions that are easy for the client to understand’. Joe Richardson and Edward Martineau are also recommended.
Macfarlanes LLP’s ‘first-class’ three-partner team is led by John Hornby, who enjoys an exceptional reputation in the field. The practice focuses on the sale and purchase of estates, and benefits from the strength of the firm’s excellent wider private client practice. Tristan Ward is ‘personable and understanding’.
Mills & Reeve LLP’s practice head Michael Aubrey is ‘commercially aware and offers clear advice’, and James Falkner is ‘a rare breed as a contentious agricultural expert’. The team recently assisted a leading international university, a FTSE-listed institutional landowner, and a foreign investment vehicle. The group benefits from the strength of the firm’s offices in Cambridge and Norwich. Sally Graham was promoted to partner in 2008.
Withers LLP offers an ‘excellent level of service and first-class business acumen and industry knowledge’. Bertie Hoskyns-Abrahall, who was promoted to partner in 2008, heads the practice, while Tony Thompson and Stephen Cooke (noted for his ‘valuable experience’) are recommended by clients. Penny Elliott and Andrew Lane left the practice to join Forsters LLP in 2009.
Charles Russell LLP benefits from the strength of the firm’s private client practice, and handles estate and tax planning for over 50 landed estates. Recent highlights include acting for a new client on the purchase of a country house and buildings for over £3m. Practice head Christopher Page is recommended.
Currey & Co has a first-class reputation for high-quality, discreet work. The team acts for a number of traditional landed estates.
Lincoln’s Inn firm May, May & Merrimans advises on agricultural holdings legislation, farm tenancies and partnership agreements. Sandy Schofield is the lead partner.
Alastair Murdie leads Payne Hicks Beach’s agricultural property practice, which advises a number of landed estate clients. Recent highlights include acting in HMRC v Trustees of the Nelson Dance Family Settlement.
Speechly Bircham LLP’s client portfolio includes three of the largest estates in the Cotswolds, and The Estate of the Fifth Marquis Camden. The group recently assisted with the purchase of a very large estate. Head of private client Richard Kirby is recommended by his peers, and Mark Musgrave is also recommended.
Taylor Wessing LLP ‘provides an excellent level of service, with a first-class understanding of the agricultural industry’. Recent highlights include sales, acquisitions and disputes. Jonathan Redmayne is recommended for ‘landlord, tenant and conveyancy issues’, and Malcolm Ring and Andrew Goodman are also recommended.
Anita Symington heads Thring Townsend Lee & Pembertons’ large agriculture practice, which benefits from the firm’s network of offices across the UK. Karen Jones, a barrister and previous chief legal adviser at the Country Land Business Association (CLA), is recommended.
Trowers & Hamlins LLP acts for numerous landed estate clients, and recently assisted with the sale of an estate for over £10m. Robert Brodrick is the partner contact.