The Legal 500

CHEAPSIDE HOUSE, 138 CHEAPSIDE, LONDON, EC2V 6BJ, ENGLAND

What we say about the firm's legal practice in London

Corporate and commercial

Within Commercial contracts, tier 4

Kemp Little LLP combines ‘cutting-edge IT and outsourcing expertise with reasonable prices’, and acts for a broad customer and supply-side client base that includes a number of FTSE 100 clients, notably Prudential plc. Headed up by outsourcing specialist Paul O’Hare, the team acted for Smiths Group on a number of strategic outsourcing projects, including the outsourcing of the hosting of its business-critical SAP application to AT&T; and advised Target Group on its agreement with Morgan Stanley to provide outsourced services for one of its retail structured investment portfolios.

Within M&A: smaller deals up to £50m, Kemp Little LLP is a second tier firm,

Kemp Little LLP stands out for its commitment to the TMT sector, and is ‘always up to date with industry trends’. The team has seen a number of instructions from high-profile clients, including a string of deals from Thomson Reutuers. A team advised TripAdvisor on the acquisition of Holiday Lettings from Rightmove.

Within Venture capital, tier 5

Kemp Little LLP continues to handle a raft of work in the area, mainly for investees in the technology, telecoms and digital media sectors such as Wonga.com, Spotify and Autoquake. Siobhan McElhinney ‘really understands the legal issues and has the unique ability to apply these to commercial risks’.

Human resources

Within Employment, tier 7

Kemp Little LLP’s ‘very responsive, practical, decisive, and flexible’ team has a wealth of experience in restructurings, outsourcing and claims, across a wide range of sectors. David Williams is ‘extremely commercial and has a great grasp of the relevant law’.

TMT (technology, media and telecoms)

Within Intellectual property, tier 5

Kemp Little LLP’s team is led by the ‘practical, commercial’ Paul Garland, whose ‘advice is sound and easy to follow’. The arrival of Paul Hinton from Barlow Lyde & Gilbert LLP enhanced the team’s commercial IP capabilities. The firm is particularly strong in the technology and financial services sectors, with clients including SITA, LOVEFiLM International and new clients Sumitomo Corporation and Chi-X Europe.

Within IT and telecoms, Kemp Little LLP is a second tier firm,

Kemp Little LLPunderstands the industry and gives practical, commercial advice’. It advises both customers and suppliers, and is respected by clients and peers for its expertise in complex technologies. Clients include Which?, VMware, T-Mobile and Expedia. Richard Kemp is ‘widely admired in the market’, and team head Calum Murray is an ‘excellent communicator, with a strong commercial view’. Outsourcing practice head Paul O’Hare, Paul Hinton and Andrew Joint are also recommended. Mike Conradi joined DLA Piper UK LLP.

Within Media and entertainment, Kemp Little LLP is a third tier firm,

Kemp Little LLP continues to advise online computer games giant Gamesys, and attracted new clients including Youview, Spotify and Random House. Callum Murray and Paul Garland recently represented LOVEFiLM, and are recommended, along with Richard Kemp and Andrew Moseby. The specialist digital media team includes Paul O’Hare, Paul Hinton and Andrew Joint.


Legal Developments in the UK

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to
  • HOUSING

    In Nzinga Maswaku v Westminster City Council [2012] EWCA Civ 669 the Court of Appeal clarified that in offering a homeless person with alternative temporary accommodation the local authority is obliged to point that if the offer is refused it has discharged its Part VII duties under the Housing Act 1996.
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  • COUNCIL TAX

    In Harrow LBC v Ayiku [2012] EWHC 1200 (Admin) Sales J held that the word “or” in the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) Order 1992, art 3 Class N, had a disjunctive meaning, therefore it was sufficient for the non-British spouse of a foreign student to satisfy one or other of the two conditions, namely being prevented from taking paid employment or being prevented from claiming benefits, in order to qualify as a “relevant person” who was exempted from liability to pay council tax.
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  • QUEEN’S SPEECH

    Bills already introduced pursuant to the Queen’s Speech on 9 May 2012 include Local Government Finance Bill and Electoral Registration and Administration Bill, both accompanied by Explanatory Notes, which in each case address ECHR compatibility.
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  • Standards

    In R (Calver) v Adjudication Panel for Wales [2012] EWHC 1172 (Admin) Mr Calver was a member of Manorbier Community Council who successfully challenged the decision of the Panel to dismiss his appeal against a decision by Prembrokeshire County Council Standards Committee censuring him for a number of comments or blogs posted by him on a website he owned and controlled.
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  • A justified retrospective

    Clive Sheldon - QC debates the pros & cons of retrospective tax legislation
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  • Public Sector Equality Duty (“PSED”)

    In R (Greenwich Community Law Centre) v Greenwich LBC [2012] EWCA Civ 496 the Court of Appeal held that the Council had had “due regard to the PSED when making changes to its funding of community legal advice services”. At para 30 Elias LJ said:
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  • Public Sector Equality Duty

    Surrey County Council conducted a review of its Library Service. This culminated in a Report to the Council’s Cabinet. The Recommendations in the Report included that there should be consultation about a community-partnership approach at selected Libraries.
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  • Judicial Review

    The Judgment of Lindblom J in The Manydown Co Ltd v Basingstoke and Deane BC [2012] EWHC 977 (Admin) repays attention. The Claimant sought to challenge by judicial review 2 decisions of the Council: (1) the Council’s refusal to reconsider its position on the development of a site that it owns (and is the subject matter of a Joint Development Partnership Agreement with the Claimant); and (2) a decision of the Council’s Cabinet approving a selection of sites for development which did not include this site.
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  • The Health and Social Care Act 2012: impact on adult social services

    After its torrid passage through Parliament, the Health and Social Care Bill received Royal Assent on 27 March 2012. The Act deals principally with healthcare reform, but it also contains some amendments to the legislative framework for social care. It will come into force on a day yet to be appointed by the Secretary of State.
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  • Immigration update May 2012

    In this issue: