The Legal 500

Within Corporate and commercial: Leeds, West Yorkshire, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

The corporate team at Walker Morris enjoys huge respect, with a client list that includes Drax, Evans Property and Leeds Building Society. 2010 saw the team act on the major £778m takeover of Netto by Asda, in which the firm advised Dansk Supermarked. Other key mandates included advising Lloyds TSB and Svenska Handelsbanken on the balance sheet restructuring of Dyson. John Hamer has taken over as head of department from Peter Smart.

Within Corporate tax Corporate tax

Within EU and competition, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Walker Morris’ practice is led by Jeremy Scholes. Highlights included advising Dansk Supermarked on the competition aspects of its merger with Asda.

Within Licensing, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Walker Morris’ two-partner team handles betting, gaming and e-gaming, and liquor/entertainment licensing matters across the country, for private and public sector clients. Paddy Whur and Andrew Woods lead the team.

Within Banking litigation, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Walker Morris’ practice was recently realigned to sit within the firm’s wider real estate and banking litigation group, and focuses on recovery work for lenders. As well as developing existing relationships with major players such as Lloyds Banking Group and National Australia Group, the firm saw new client wins including Ocean Money. Andrew Beck heads the department.

Within Commercial litigation: Leeds, West Yorkshire, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Gwendoline Davies heads the team at Walker Morris, which has been very active of late, particularly following the addition of David Williams from Squire Sanders Hammonds. Highlights included acting for Montpellier Estates in a deceit claim against Leeds City Council arising from a competition undertaken by Leeds to procure a new £70m arena for the city. Malcom Simpson is highly recommended.

Within Banking and finance, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Michael Taylor heads the practice at Walker Morris, which works closely with the firm’s cross-departmental property finance team. Alongside a number of refinancings, restructurings and reorganisations, the team advised Crédit Agricole Commercial Finance in structuring and providing substantial facilities to support the acquisition of WaverleyTBS from Heineken by Manfield Partners. Other clients include Lloyds and Dyson.

Within Insolvency and corporate recovery, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

A ‘top performer’, Walker Morris in 2010 acted for the syndicate of banks in connection with the £52m debt-for-equity swap and debt restructuring of Dyson. Philip Mudd heads the department, which includes David Hinchliffe, who has ‘excellent knowledge of football insolvency’; and Duncan Lole, who is noted for ‘commercial decision making’. The team is also valued for the strength of its personal insolvency practice.

Within Employment: West Yorkshire, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Walker Morris’ employment team has a large private sector client base, and continues to handle instructions for major household names including Footlocker and Netto. The ‘approachable and very practical’ David Smedley heads the team, which provides a ‘first-rate service’.

Within Health and safety, Walker Morris is a third tier firm,

Walker Morris advises West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Services, Damart and Anchor Trust. In 2010, it co-ordinated various internal accident investigations and advised on product safety.

Within Pensions, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Walker Morris’ department is led by chairman Andrew Turnbull, who is ‘clear, concise and practical’. The firm is the sole pensions adviser for Capita Group, and in 2010 advised the company on outsourcing contracts valued at over £800m. Other key clients include the trustees of the pension schemes of Russell Hobbs and Accent Group.

Within Clinical negligence: claimant Clinical negligence: claimant

Within Personal injury: claimant , Walker Morris is a third tier firm,

Walker Morris’ department focuses on road traffic accident claims, and in 2010 also handled a significant amount of employers’ liability work. Clients include Allianz, Claims Direct and Amicus Legal.

Within Professional negligence: defendant, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Spread across the firm's real estate, banking and construction departments, the five-partner professional negligence team at Walker Morris benefited from the arrival of David Williams from Squire Sanders Hammonds in 2011. Clients include Persimmon Homes, Leeds Building Society and York City Council.

Within Regional review, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Unlike the other leading heavyweights, Walker Morris operates out of a single office in Leeds. Areas of strength include commercial litigation and insolvency, both on the personal and corporate side; it recently acted for the syndicate of banks in connection with the £52m debt-for-equity swap and debt restructuring of Dyson. It counts GHD and Drax among its key clients.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate Personal tax, trusts and probate

Within Project finance and PFI, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

David Kilduff leads Walker Morris’ practice, which is renowned for its waste and energy work. Its national reputation has attracted a number of new local authority clients, including London boroughs. Private sector clients include Drax, National Grid and Quinn Group.

Within Education, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Simon Anderson leads an ‘impressively knowledgeable’ team at Walker Morris, which has recently assisted a number of university in employment tribunal and unfair dismissal cases.

Within Health, Walker Morris is a third tier firm,

Walker Morris advises clients on a wide range of matters including regulatory issues, dispute resolution, and contractual and PFI matters. Clients include Anchor Trust, and Hull and East Riding Community Health NHS Trust.

Within Local government, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

David Kilduff heads the team at Walker Morris, which is a part of the firm's commercial group. It continues to act for local authorities nationwide on issues ranging from asset acquisitions to restructuring and governance matters. Recent matters include advising Hull City Council on code of conduct matters, and acting on a major waste project for North Lincolnshire Council. New clients include Birmingham City Council and the Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire county councils.

Within Commercial property: Leeds and West Yorkshire, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Walker Morris’ clients include Land Securities’ Trinity Scheme, which instructs the firm on all property-related matters. The team is currently advising it in the negotiation of compromise agreements with several adjoining owners and occupiers. Other highlights included acting for Thornfield Properties in relation to the sale of Thornaby Town Centre to BAW Systems Pensions Funds Trustees. Jeremy Moore heads the practice.

Within Construction, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Led by Martin Scott, Walker Morris is regularly instructed on high-profile contentious and non-contentious matters. It acted for Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council in its purchase of the £20m Gateway Plaza scheme, while on the contentious side it is instructed by Turkish contractor Gulermak in connection with major disputes arising from the Marmany Project, involving the construction of a railway tunnel under the Bosphorous Strait.

Within Environment Environment

Within Planning, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Walker Morris’ flourishing practice is headed by Andrew Williamson. Recent highlights including acting for a range of housebuilder clients in pursuing major planning appeals against Leeds City Council, and it also advised Broadland Properties on the planning application and appeal for airport offsite long-stay parking. The team includes Richard Sagar and Chris Slater.

Within Property litigation, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Walker Morris is known for its experience in mortgage fraud, solicitors’ and surveyors’ negligence, insolvency and housing litigation. It also has a growing reputation in ‘green’ law matters. Recent highlights include acting for a major high street lender in relation to a multimillion-pound professional negligence case. Clients include Netto, Hyde Housing and Specsavers. Practice head Andrew Beck is a highly respected figure in the market.

Within Social housing, Walker Morris is a second tier firm,

Chris Woodthorpe and Paul Walker lead the practice at Walker Morris, which was recently appointed to the Homes and Communities Agency’s Northern panel.

Within Intellectual property , Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Highlights for Walker Morris’ team included representing Cartridge World in a patent dispute, and advising AstraZeneca on parallel imports issues. It has also recently advised Medea International and boot manufacturer UGG.

Within IT and telecoms, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Walker Morris’ ‘very good’ team advises on IT and e-commerce matters, and in 2010 handled a significant amount of work in the public sector. Clients include the NHS Business Services Authority, Monsoon and Capita. The team includes a number of specialists advising on IT and BPO outsourcing. Michael Stevens heads the practice, and associate Robert Goldstone is also recommended.

Within Sport, Walker Morris is a first tier firm,

Chris Caisley leads the team at Walker Morris, which acts for various high-profile clients in football and rugby union, such as Bradford City FC, Leeds United FC, and Newcastle Falcons. The practice includes contract negotiations and endorsement matters.