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Capsticks

77-83 UPPER RICHMOND ROAD, LONDON, SW15 2TT
Tel:
Work 020 8780 2211
Fax:
Fax 020 8780 1141
DX:
59461 PUTNEY
Web:
www.capsticks.com
Email:
London, Birmingham

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

Dispute resolution

Within Professional discipline, Capsticks is a first tier firm,

Capsticks has a market-leading disciplinary practice, with 2008 seeing the firm prosecute over 600 fitness-to-practise cases for clients that include the General Dental Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain. The year also saw the practice gain new instructions from the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board. The ‘well-versed and experienced’ team is headed by the ‘effective and client-friendly’ John Witt and includes regulatory expert Daniel Purcell. Clinical negligence specialist Gerard Hanratty joined the firm from Weightmans LLP.

Human resources

Within Employment, tier 7

Capsticks boasts ‘an excellent understanding of the healthcare sector from both the NHS and independent sector aspects’. Key clients include the Department of Health and the Healthcare Commission. Martin Hamilton is particularly valued for his ‘understanding of the intricacies of working with medical professionals in third party relationships’, and Gary Hay is also recommended.

Insurance

Within Clinical negligence - defendant , Capsticks is a first tier firm,

The ‘absolutely superb’ nine-partner department at Capsticks is led by the ‘exceptional’ Alison Morley. It acts for approximately 200 NHS trusts, PCTs, health authorities and other healthcare bodies from the private and voluntary sectors across the UK. High-profile work in 2008 included representing NHS bodies involved in the issues surrounding the death of Baby P, including advising on the criminal process and dealing with a number of requests for information, as well as ensuring appropriate disclosure of information to the health professional regulators. Peter Marquand leads the ‘experienced, responsive and measured’ team of lawyers covering NHSLA work, while Philip Hatherall specialises in handling inquests, inquiries and medical malpractice cases. Majid Hassan is ‘always calm and terrific with clients’, and Iain Pickering leads a team that defends industrial disease claims. Katie Hay retired in 2008.

Within Overview,

Leigh Day & Co dominates the ranking for claimant clinical negligence, with Capsticks and Hempsons leading the market on the defendant side. As well as rising in the ranking for clinical negligence work, Stewarts Law LLP stands out for claimant personal injury, with its focus on high-value catastrophic injury work. Defendant personal injury remains a stable market, with Beachcroft LLP, Berrymans Lace Mawer LLP and Greenwoods Solicitors leading the way.

Projects, energy and natural resources

Within Private finance initiative(PFI) , tier 5

Healthcare specialist Capsticks specialises in advising NHS bodies on PPP and LIFT projects. 2008 saw the firm win a host of new PCT clients including Harrow, Surrey and Brighton and Hove. Colin Lynch heads the ‘client-focused’ team.

Public sector

Within Administrative and public law, tier 6

Also recommended are: Anthony Gold, for expertise in the overlap between public, housing and human rights law; Arnold & Porter (UK) LLP, which advises clients in the heavily regulated life sciences sector; Bhatt Murphy Solicitors, which is highly regarded for police and prisons work; Capsticks, led by the ‘very good’ David Mason, for its health and social care oriented practice; Kingsley Napley, which has ‘an excellent reputation for carrying out public inquiry work’, headed by Stephen Parkinson; Payne Hicks Beach, led by Peter Stockwell, also for its admirable public inquiry practice including working on the Rosemary Nelson inquiry; Pinsent Masons LLP, for public law work on behalf of local authorities, including judicial reviews, freedom of information and data protection advice; Public Interest Lawyers, notable for its lead partner Phil Shiner who is ‘really pushing the boundaries’ of public law; Richard Buxton, for advising public authorities on environmental law; Sharpe Pritchard, which acts mainly for local authorities in judicial reviews; and Taylor Wessing LLP, which was boosted by the arrival of Len Murray from Baker & McKenzie LLP.

Within Healthcare, Capsticks is a first tier firm,

Healthcare boutique Capsticks provides ‘good response times and knowledge’, representing over half of the 267 NHS acute trusts and over a third of the 152 NHS PCTs. David Mason gives ‘clear advice and is good at identifying risks’. Peter Edwards is experienced in employment matters relating to disciplinary action and discrimination issues. John Witt, Alison Morley, Chris Brophy and Colin Lynch are also recommended.

Real estate

What we say worldwide

Please choose another Capsticks office to view full details of what we say in that region, or choose from this list to view a specific editorial reference in context.

London

Offices in London

UK Overview

West Midlands

Offices in Birmingham

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Legal Developments in the UK

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

  • Student employees – new restrictions on employment

    On 10 February 2010 a Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules was laid before Parliament which is due to come into force on 3 March 2010.
    - Penningtons Solicitors LLP

  • Landlord & Tenant Briefing

    Dilapidations in commercial premises – ten points to consider
    - Bircham Dyson Bell LLP

  • Being a helpful Landlord may be a mistake!

    Most landlords and their solicitors try to resist the impulse to be helpful, however, in these recessionary times when landlords are concerned to avoid empty space, there may be the temptation to take shortcuts to ensure a letting proceeds. In circumstances where it is intended that Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (the 1954 Act) should not apply to the tenancy, i.e. that the tenant should not have the benefit of security of tenure, then occupation before the lease has been finalised (and the appropriate ‘contracting-out’ steps taken) is a potentially dangerous step and needs to be taken only when the landlord has fully comprehended the potential consequences.
    - Bircham Dyson Bell LLP

  • New regime for approval of major transport projects set to ‘switch on’

    The Planning Act 2008 (the Act) introduces a new regime designed to speed up the planning and, in turn, the delivery of infrastructure projects of national significance. For transport projects, it is one of the most important pieces of legislation in recent years. The new procedure will have to be used for any third runway at Heathrow, amongst other high-profile projects.
    - Bircham Dyson Bell LLP

  • Divorce and the media: the courts, the pay-outs and the speculation

    The rising divorce rate and some well-publicised settlements running into tens of millions of pounds have focused attention on a growing issue in divorce cases: just how far can spouses go to obtain information about their partner’s financial affairs?
    - Schillings

  • Top ten really useful cases of 2009

    If you want your panel solicitor to‘get off the fence’, need to know when a cause of action accrues or wondered whether the judiciary live in the 21st century, the following cases from 2009 provide some really useful guidance. With professional negligence claims on the increase, whether you are giving or receiving legal advice, the cases discussed below highlight practical points for all legal advisers to be aware of.
    - Bond Pearce LLP

  • The twilight zone: legal issues for directors

    there is no legal definition of the term ‘twilight zone’ (perhaps derived from the cult TV series, the writer would like to think), which is now widely used to describe a period of trading when a company has, or is predicted to have, insufficient cash to pay its debts as they fall due. This might be an immediate cash-flow crisis or the problem might be anticipated many months ahead.
    - Holman Fenwick Willan

  • Cloud computing:key issues for SMEs

    Although many definitions exist, broadly speaking ‘cloud computing’ is the outsourcing of specified IT functions via the internet (the cloud) to provide or receive services that would otherwise only be available if the end user had installed the appropriate hardware and/or software on desktops, or on local networks controlled by that organisation itself. Such services may include the use of software over the internet or remote storage of business data by a third-party provider. One benefit of this is that businesses can structure payment for these services differently (for example pay-as-you-go or on a subscription basis), rather than having to pay large sunk costs for long-term software licences, and the purchase and installation of IT infrastructure necessary to support the services locally.
    - SJ Berwin LLP

  • Commission victorious in ‘regulatory holiday’ action brought against Germany

    On 3 December 2009, following an action brought by the European Commission under article 226 of the EC Treaty (now article 258 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU) the European Court of Justice (ECJ) confirmed that Germany had failed to comply with its obligations under the European regulatory framework for telecommunications (the Common Regulatory Framework (CRF)). The ECJ’s judgment in European Commission v Germany [2009] confirms that Germany acted unlawfully by adopting a national law excluding ‘new markets’ from regulation – so called ‘regulatory holidays’.
    - SJ Berwin LLP

  • New Commission

    On Friday 27 November 2009 the new European Commission, which will begin its mandate early in 2010, was announced by Commission President José Barroso. This announcement followed a week after the appointment of Herman Van Rompuy and Catherine Ashton as the President of the European Council and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy respectively, the two new roles created by the Lisbon Treaty, which entered into force on 1 December 2009.
    - Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP
© 2009 legal500.com