The Legal 500

East Anglia: Private client

Agriculture and estates

Within: Leading individuals

Denise Wilkinson - Hewitsons

Within: Agriculture and estates

Hewitsons is 'well-placed to advise on all agricultural and rural matters' and it 'provides a high level of advice which represents great value for money'. The firm is on the National Farmers' Union panel for Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, Bedfordshire and Norfolk, and has a nationwide client base that includes mixed estates, major producers of cereal, potatoes, herbs, vegetables and livestock, and some of the largest conservation landowners in the UK. Practice head Denise Wilkinson 'demonstrates a broad depth of knowledge and is always pragmatic and astute; her ability to grasp the matter, provide focused advice and get the job completed without any fuss are a testament to her negotiating and advisory skills'. One client notes that 'she is particularly good at understanding clients' objectives and thinking outside the box'.  She recently advised a client on an option agreement for a fracking project, and concluded the purchase of a plot of conservation standard grassland. Clients also praise the wider team, which include Charles Stevens , who handles acquisitions and disposals including some renewable energy projects; consultant Charles Hewitson, who handles trust matters for agricultural clients; regulatory specialist Deborah Sharples; James Lawrence for commercial contracts; property litigator Natalie Minott; and Lucinda Brown, who handles contentious farming trust and probate matters.

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Charities and not-for-profit

Within: Leading individuals

Denise Wilkinson - Hewitsons

Within: Charities and not-for-profit

The firm-wide charities team at Hewitsons is led from Northampton by Chris Knight, and the Cambridge office is home to highly experienced practitioners including rural and property partner Denise Wilkinson, whom clients describe as ‘clear-thinking and excellent at spotting risks in land transactions'. The practice has more than 400 charity and education clients, among which are RSPB, Canal and River Trust, United Church Schools Trust, United Learning, The Henry Moore Foundation, The Rothschild Foundation, The Thalidomide Trust and Veterans’ Aid, as well as numerous Oxford and Cambridge colleges. Wilkinson recently acted for a nationwide conservation charity in complex property matters relating to reclamation land. This included negotiating a lease from a charitable trust. Senior solicitor Martyn Robinson handles charity formation, amendments to governing documents, incorporations and re-structuring, mergers, academy conversions, and dealings with the Charity Commission. He recently worked with Knight on behalf of long-standing client YMCA Cambridgeshire and Peterborough on its merger with YMCA Suffolk to create YMCA Trinity Group. Planning and environment specialist Deborah Sharples frequently deals with property, planning and and governance issues, and Colin Jones handles construction matters for clients in the not-for-profit sector.

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East Midlands: Private client

Agriculture and estates

Within: Agriculture and estates

Hewitsons’ ‘exceptional’ team counts large landed estates and major agricultural producers among its clients and ‘understands the issues affecting farms and agricultural estates’. The ‘accessible’ Gareth Williams jointly heads the practice with Denise Wilkinson in Cambridge. Senior solicitor Stephanie Dennis is also recommended. In an illustration of the uptick in development-related mandates, Williams recently advised a client on the sale of a property to two house builders, involving seven landowners who had previously entered into a promotion agreement through which the promoter had obtained a planning permission for the sale of the land for residential development. Williams also led in assisting a landed estate client with the surrender and re-grant of an Agricultural Holdings Act tenancy. Clients include Merton College, Oxford, Castle Ashby Estate and Cubley Estate.

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