The Legal 500

B P Collins LLP is a consistently successful full-service law firm that delivers robust legal solutions for both commercial and private clients.

The firm: The firm specialises in tailored, innovative and effective legal advice for all clients, ranging from business start-ups to multinationals and successful entrepreneurs to retired professionals. For more than 40 years, the firm has developed an enviable reputation for competence and quality. It has a solid track record of winning cases, solving clients’ problems and safeguarding clients’ interests. B P Collins continues to hold the Law Society’s Practice Management Standard (Lexcel).

Types of work undertaken: Corporate and commercial: the firm covers the full range of clients’ needs, including acquisitions and disposals, shareholder issues and complex commercial contracts. The team provides solutions to successful entrepreneurs, growing businesses, inward investors and mid-tier corporates. It takes a genuine interest in building long-term relationships based on an understanding of clients’ businesses, their aims and aspirations, and the challenges that they face.

Employment: the established and dedicated team is able to specialise across a diverse case load, acting for employers and senior employees. The team is well known for tackling difficult and sensitive employment issues. The size of the practice allows for individual specialisms in its core areas of corporate support, employment rights and benefits, contracts, executive terminations, discrimination and dismissal claims, protection of confidentiality and business transfers.

Litigation and dispute resolution: the firm has a sizable litigation team, which includes several experts in their respective fields and two qualified mediators. Its continuing growth and diversity of expertise ensures that its solid track record of winning cases before courts of all levels is maintained. The team offers rapid, clear and practical advice on all commercial contract disputes, construction, partnership and shareholder disputes, IP and IT disputes, factoring and trade finance, fraud and insolvency to large and successful businesses across the UK. The burgeoning expertise of the property litigation team enables the firm to handle landlord and tenant disputes for a growing number of clients.

Commercial and residential property: a key strength of the team is its ability to field lawyers with longstanding experience in commercial and residential development; the waste and gravel industries; the retail sector; secured lending; sales and leasebacks; joint ventures; development agreements; industrial, commercial and residential investment; agriculture; and trust-related work. The team includes recognised leaders in the field, who advise on the increasing impact of environmental law on property ownership and transactions. Support is also provided to the corporate practice in undertaking acquisitions, refinancing and disposals, and the team provides residential property services to individuals with significant assets.

Family: this skilled and respected team comprises members of Resolution. Their breadth of experience covers advising high-net-worth clients on their foreign assets, pensions and pre-nuptial agreements, and attracts a variety of high-profile cases. The team specialises in matrimonial cases for professionals requiring expert advice on matters ranging from pension arrangements to the valuation of business shares, as well as the more common aspects of contact and maintenance.

Private client: legal directories continue to regard the team as one of the best in the Thames Valley. It provides a dedicated trust administration service and legal services specifically for not-for-profit organisations, and advises on issues affecting the elderly, an area that traditional practices rarely cover. Lauded by clients and peers, the team has strength in estate planning and administration, and trusts, including offshore trusts. It increasingly handles international tax and domicile issues for a diverse range of wealthy clients.

Number of UK partners 16
Number of other UK fee-earners 40