The Legal 500

Within Corporate and commercial: Elsewhere in East Anglia, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

The ‘pleasant and efficient’ Geoff Hazlewood is now a partner at Ashton Graham, which advises many healthcare bodies and franchisors, and has a noteworthy French legal services team.

Within Corporate and commercial: Ipswich, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Paul Whittingham is ‘an excellent communicator with solid professionalism’. The firm appeals to many clients because it is ‘big enough to know, small enough to care’. Petra Sharp is now a partner in the practice, which advises SMEs, listed companies, franchises and UK subsidiaries of foreign businesses.

Within Corporate and commercial: Norwich, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

At Kester Cunningham John, Edward O’Rourke is ‘always prompt to respond and proactive’; and associate Damian Humphrey comes highly recommended on corporate issues. Recent deals include the merger of a £4.5m supplier to the offshore industry.

Within Licensing, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s meticulous Amanda Timcke comes highly recommended for sales and purchases of licensed premises and licence applications.

Within Commercial litigation: Cambridge, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s Michael Frape is ‘a safe pair of hands’ for shareholder and partnership disputes. He advised Taiwan’s Sunplus in a £450,000 claim against a Cambridge technology company.

Within Commercial litigation: Elsewhere in East Anglia, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Rob Adam and Mark Merriam are among the region’s best-known litigators. Breach of warranty and fiduciary duty claims feature in a diverse caseload.

Within Commercial litigation: Ipswich, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Ashton Graham ‘provides good, value-for-money service’. Polly Stephenson advised a European client on a disclosure order against a major bank.

Within Commercial litigation: Norwich, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

At Kester Cunningham John, solicitor Matthew Bowden has been advising on matters including a high-value shareholder dispute. Chris Gilbert is no longer at the firm.

Within Debt recovery, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham attracts high praise from clients. Sarah Lock runs the firm’s bespoke computerised system.

Within Banking and finance, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s Ron Clare and Edward O’Rourke provide ‘high-quality advice with a commercial edge’.

Within Insolvency and corporate recovery, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

‘Proactive and practical’, Ashton Graham’s team is led by Rob Adam and Paul Whittingham. It handled the insolvency of Catchpole Nursing Home, and also advised on a £12m bankruptcy.

Within Employment, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Acting for regional, national and international clients, Ashton Graham’s ‘rounded approach is prompt, thorough and commercially aware’. The ‘dynamic’ Matthew Potter has ‘obvious depth of knowledge’, and Julian Outen is also recommended.

Within Health and safety, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Julian Outen excels in health and safety negotiations with trade unions.

Within Clinical negligence: claimant, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

At Kester Cunningham John, Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp is ‘a tour de force’ renowned for her ‘dogged determination and terrier-like qualities’; Tom Cook is ‘highly intelligent, sensible and organised’; Trefine Maynard is ‘dedicated to her clients’; and Sandra Patton is ‘unfailingly polite and patient’; ‘there is no better firm’. Recent work includes multimillion-pound cerebral palsy and failure-to-diagnose cases.

Within Personal injury: claimant, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John is ‘a top-class firm with top-class practitioners’, notably Ruth Booy, who is noted for her ‘excellent strategic thinking’; Hannah Rutterford, who is ‘bright, and highly regarded by other PI lawyers’; Simon Davis (‘organised and calm’); and Justina Molloy (‘absolutely fantastic’). Recent work includes a £2.5m RTA claim.

Within Professional negligence, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Rob Adam and Mark Merriam handled a £200,000 claim against a solicitor, and Polly Stephenson advised on a £250,000 claim against pension advisers.

Within Regional review,

Nevertheless, in East Anglia that story could be overshadowed by the merger between Ashton Graham, where Mark Merriam has stepped down from the managing partner role to be replaced by head of private client Alan Brown, and Kester Cunningham John. The merger is scheduled for completion in October 2011 and is set to create a new firm, Ashton KCJ, with many synergies and a very strong presence across seven offices in the region, unless some rationalisation takes place.

Within Agriculture and estates, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s partners are ‘personable and have good knowledge of rural matters’. Jonathan Long and Jeanette Dennis are ‘detailed, exact and to budget’.

Within Charities, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s ‘proactive, courteous, and patient’ team includes Mary Ambrose, who is ‘extremely bright, and will make a big impact in the region’, and Mark Watson, who is ‘thorough, and good value’. The firm counts many Cambridge colleges as clients.

Within Family, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Stephen Williams is ‘clear and concise’ and ‘head and shoulders above many in the area’, delivering ‘exceptional service, and excellent value’. The five-strong team is a local favourite for Children Act and collaborative law matters.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate: Cambridge, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John ‘provides high-quality advice and practical solutions’, through Lynn Wicks and the ‘helpful, sensitive’ Jennie Pratt.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate: Elsewhere in East Anglia, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

Ashton Graham is ‘comprehensive, clear, prompt, very professional and good value for money’. Managing partner Alan Brown combines ‘professional integrity, empathy and administrative efficiency’. Matthew Cameron’s French legal services team advises on cross-border tax and wills.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate: Ipswich, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s tight-knit team is ‘pleasant, efficient, experienced and positive’, and includes Ian Reed, who advises three multimillion-pound trusts. David Hughes has retired.

Within Personal tax, trusts and probate: Norwich, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s wealth management team is ‘approachable and friendly, and has an excellent rapport with clients’. Robert Chalmers is ‘very efficient, and particularly helpful on complex trust and taxation matters’.

Within Local government, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Consultant Bob McGeady’s planning expertise and in-house experience is a boon to public sector clients of Kester Cunningham John.

Within Commercial property: Cambridge, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s Charles Webb and Magnus McManus are noted for the client-centred approach and eye for value. McManus handles the national portfolio of Savills, and is advising a Cambridge College on a £10m land sale to a national housebuilder.

Within Commercial property: Elsewhere in East Anglia, Ashton KCJ is a first tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s attentive and thorough Andrew Roe advised on a land sale to a supermarket chain, and the optioning of a large residential development site. Matthew Cameron’s French legal services team handles cross-border deals.

Within Commercial property: Ipswich, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Toby Kramers ‘compares favourably with other lawyers in the area for his commercial and pragmatic approach and good value for money’. The firm is assisting a new client in developing a 120-house site near Diss.

Within Commercial property: Norwich, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John has lost Chris Gilbert, but Simon Cunningham and James Slinger are prominent in the region and beyond. The team advised Dacorum Borough Council on the £3.2m redevelopment of a derelict site in Hemel Hempstead.

Within Construction, tier 4

Kester Cunningham John’s team is ‘excellent in all regards, knowledgeable and commercially aware’, and includes James Slinger, Magnus McManus and consultant Bob McGeady. The firm advises Camgrain, the UK’s largest farmer-owned central storage business. Associate Samantha Houlden is ‘a pleasure to deal with, and will feature in the industry for many years to come’.

Within Planning, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

‘Star player’ Bob McGeady at Kester Cunningham John is ‘an expert negotiator, and fights his corner vigorously’, and is ‘equally at home in planning inquiries, High Court judicial reviews, and the nuts and bolts of complex planning applications’.

Within Property litigation, Ashton KCJ is a third tier firm,

Ashton Graham’s Rob Adam and Mark Merriam have been active in mediations, and advised on a failed gentleman’s agreement over a development site.

Within Social housing, Ashton KCJ is a second tier firm,

Kester Cunningham John’s Bob McGeady and Charles Webb are on the boards of major housing associations. RSLs call on the firm’s employment and construction teams.