The Legal 500

Within Corporate and commercial: Nottingham and Derby, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

Shoosmiths’ team ‘epitomises professionalism’. ‘They are just what in-house counsel requires – very experienced; intelligent; commercially minded; and supreme negotiators.’ ‘Sensible and straightforward’ plc specialist Chris Garnett is active in supporting British Gas on a string of acquisitions; ‘transaction specialist’ Crispin Bridges Webb acted for SAI Global in its acquisition of Foodcheck; and Michelle Sherwood and ‘outstanding client contact manager’ Andrew Pickin led on various business-critical contracts and outsourcing agreements for multinationals. Peter Andrews is ‘recommended for competition law and anti-trust matters’, and has ‘a good sense for European legislation’.

Within Licensing, Shoosmiths is a third tier firm,

Shoosmiths assists major national retail and food and drink clients with applications for new and renewed premises licences and on appeals. Solicitor Caroline Steel is ‘knowledgeable, helpful and prompt to respond’.

Within Debt recovery , Shoosmiths is a first tier firm,

Gateley’s experience includes high-value and complex cases, often involving intricately planned frauds with cross-border aspects. James Baird leads the team in providing legal advice and strategic guidance to prominent clients in the asset finance and leasing sector. Melanie Chell has moved to Shoosmiths.

Within Banking and finance, Shoosmiths is a third tier firm,

Shoosmiths’ pan-Midlands team advises banks, such as Alliance & Leicester, RBS and HSBC, and corporates on refinancings, acquisitions and MBOs, and also investment and development funding across the residential, retail and commercial sectors.

Within Employment, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

With Peter Duff’s promotion to national head of commercial, associate Helen Burgess now leads Shoosmiths’ practice, which provides employment advice and training to clients such as British Gypsum, Thomas Cook and BP.

Within Health and safety, Shoosmiths is a first tier firm,

Shoosmiths won a number of major new national clients, and was appointed to the Midlands HSE prosecution panel in 2010. The team, now led by Ron Reid and includes Malcolm Upfold, and assists on fatality cases in the food, fuel and retail sectors among others, and provides occupational safety training and compliance audits. Assistant Caroline Steel and associate Hayley Saunders are praised for their ‘approachability, professional support and knowledge’.

Within Personal injury and clinical negligence: claimant, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

Paul Morrison and the ‘extremely approachable and knowledgeable’ Chris McKinney at Shoosmiths lead on mixed liability and catastrophic injury claims, ranging from spinal cord and brain injury to post-traumatic stress cases. Clinical negligence specialist Andrea Rusbridge is ‘a very passionate lawyer and no pushover’. The firm is endorsed as ‘one of the key players in the area’.

Within Regional review, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

Shoosmiths maintains premium services for its corporate and commercial clients in the region, and has rolled out a comprehensive service for individuals in preparation for the reform of legal services provision.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

Shoosmiths is a ‘blue-chip firm’ for private client issues: a ‘very professional set-up but highly focused on clients’ needs’. Trevor George is ‘very knowledgeable’ and ‘very good’ with high-net-worth clients.

Within Commercial property: Nottingham and Derby, Shoosmiths is a first tier firm,

Shoosmiths has a strong and growing list of retail clients; it maintains a heavy transactional workload for Alliance Boots, completing £80m of disposals in 2010, and also acts for IKEA and WH Smith. The ‘excellent, very responsive, proactive and extremely commercial’ team includes ‘clear and personable’ practice head David Morley and Deborah Gordon Brown. Helen Parrott is ‘definitely one to watch – she is excellent’.

Within Property litigation, Shoosmiths is a first tier firm,

Shoosmiths regularly handles over 500 lease renewal claims annually for clients such as Alliance Boots, WH Smith and HMV. A highlight of 2010 was acting for the developer in HXRUK II (CHC) Ltd v Heaney, involving alleged breach of a right to light. Guy Willetts heads the team. Libby Shirtcliffe left the firm in 2010.

Within IT and telecoms, Shoosmiths is a second tier firm,

With a strong grasp of cutting-edge technological developments, Michelle Sherwood heads Shoosmiths’ national IT team, and advises national clients on the documentation of infrastructure programmes, licences, and outsourcing agreements. The firm assisted Indesit with a review of website terms and conditions, and also handles data protection audits.