The Legal 500

Stephens Scown is a leading law firm in the South West. This year (May 2011) the firm converted to a limited liability partnership (LLP). With 30 partners and 75 fee-earners, the firm operates across three offices: Exeter, St Austell and Truro.

Stephens Scown is consistently ranked as one of the top corporate firm in Devon and Cornwall and features in both The Lawyer’s Rising 50 law firms and The Lawyer Top 200. The firm also enjoys a continued association with the Dragons Den television programme, representing the Dragons on a number of the deals brokered on the show. Clients range from individuals through to SMEs and FTSE and international companies.

The firm: Stephens Scown LLP enjoys a national and, in some cases, international reputation in key market sectors within B2B including: mining and minerals, rural and estate management; tourism and holiday parks, and immigration.

Bespoke services for the SME market, that characterises the SW region, include a debt recovery programme and a business review programme to help struggling firms. Within B2C specialisations, the firm has strong core teams covering family, dispute resolution, property, corporate and private client.

Types of work undertaken: Corporate/commercial: The team has particular strengths in acquisitions, funds, disposals and restructuring, and continues to act for most of the Dragons appearing in the popular BBC Dragons’ Den programme. Other areas of expertise include: mineral extraction, insolvency and recovery, employment and public and local authority work.

Property: The firm’s strong commercial and residential property teams represent many major developers and house-builders across the South West. It is also on the panel for three high street banks. The property team is supported by specialist planning and environment teams. Stephens Scown also enjoys a national reputation for minerals work, and acts for leading national and international operators in the sector. The team also enjoys a growing reputation for its work within the social housing sector and acts for two of the largest social housing associations in the region.

Agriculture: Stephens Scown LLP has a large specialist team of eight partners and a fellow of the Agricultural Law Association which provides a full service to clients. Advice covers agricultural property including farm sale, development and purchases; administration of estates; restructuring; farming divorces; and rural land use. The team has a growing reputation for its work in the renewables sector, in particular advising landowners on anaerobic digestion, wind power and solar energy projects. In addition, the team is one of few to have expertise in the Agricultural Holdings Act 1986. Stephens Scown also acts for some of the largest estates in Cornwall.

Litigation and dispute resolution: The firm provides clients with a range of contractual and construction litigation, professional negligence, landlord and tenant, public law, intellectual property issues and international commercial litigation. The team has the capability to act on national and international matters through to the highest-courts where necessary.

Family: Independently recognised as one of the leading family teams in the South West and the top ranked family team in Devon and Cornwall. Clients value the firm’s full-service package, especially for divorce and separation cases and related financial, business and pension matters. The team has particular expertise in agricultural divorces. Issues involving children, including care proceedings, contractual arrangements, domestic abuse, adoption and abduction, form the core of publicly funded work. The team also acts on an increasing amount of international matters and has recently acted on a number of multi-million pound divorces. Stephen Scown’s family team has also acted on pre-nuptial agreements, many of which involve millions of pounds; as well as several multi-million pound pension sharing orders.

Private client: The firm is a regional leader in the provision of services to private clients, including wills, tax, trust and probate advice, particularly contentious probate and inheritance tax planning and large estate succession. This is a growing and large team and is adept at dealing with high-value estates, often with an international dimension; and complex cutting edge matters such as a groundbreaking High Court case in 2009 regarding the Court of Protection.

Breakdown of work %
Corporate/commercial 10
Family 21
Litigation and PI 22
Private client 12
Property 35

Number of UK partners 30
Number of other UK fee-earners 75