The Legal 500

Hempsons is a leading national law firm in health and social care, professional services, real estate, and the third sector.

The firm: Hempsons is committed to understanding its clients’ legal and business requirements. The firm provides top quality advice, outstanding service delivery and excellent value for money. The company’s national teams offer specialist expertise working across its London, Harrogate, Manchester and Newcastle offices. They are Lexcel and Investors in People accredited.

Types of work undertaken: Health: Hempsons is a leader in the health and social care sector. Clients are public, private and third sector organisations who plan, commission, regulate or provide health and social care services, or operate within the supply chain. Its strong client base in the NHS includes the Department of Health, SHAs, special health authorities, Foundation Trusts, PCTs and other emerging commissioning organisations and NHS trusts.

In 2011 the firm was appointed to every health and social care legal service panel across England, and continues to develop a reputation for advising on highly complex and innovative projects and cases. These include health service reconfigurations, major outsourcings, establishment of clinical commissioning groups, mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures.

Third sector: Hempsons has an established reputation for its work with national charities and social enterprises; ranked 7th nationally in the Top 3,000 Charities Legal Advisors 2011/12. The firm works with many large and well-known national charities such as The Ramblers Association, The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Zoological Society of London, and Arthritis Research UK. Charities can have complex operating needs which Hempsons support through their Charities Team; incorporating specialists from across the firm.

Hempsons continues to support social enterprises that are being spun out of the public sector under the Government’s Right to Provide programme. It also works with umbrella groups, to assist in maximising opportunities as the Government opens up the delivery of public services to the sector.

Real estate: the team’s client base spans the public, private and third sectors. The team deals with every aspect of the healthcare real estate market and has been involved in a number of high profile and innovative transactions, including the property aspects of NHS Trust acquisitions, and mergers and joint ventures between the NHS and the private sector. Hempsons is at the forefront of developments in the rapidly evolving healthcare real estate sector, and many of its members have written widely on these changes in the property and healthcare media. They maintain a very high profile and reputation in the office occupier place, and have been involved in large lettings for insurance companies, professional organisations and international clients.

Professional services: Hempsons has one of the largest practices in the country, advising professionals across a number of sectors (healthcare professionals, lawyers, accountants, architects and quantity surveyors) acting for both practices and the individual. The group supports clients with advice ranging from ownership structures, mergers and takeovers, disputes, premise redevelopments/relocations and staff issues, to advice provided to the individual practitioner. This includes regulatory (conduct/health/performance issues before the GMC/GDC and other regulatory bodies), performers list proceedings, conduct and disciplinary issues, and private client advice.

Much of the firm’s work is with practitioners working within the public sector. The ongoing and potential future changes in the healthcare system will require practitioners to constantly reinvent themselves to fit the new organisational structures, manage their practices, and meet the needs of their patients and the ever-increasing burden of commercial and regulatory pressures.

Number of UK Partners 50

Number of other UK fee-earners 73