Howes Percival LLP > Manchester, England > Firm Profile

‘All communications have been professional, polite and efficient.’

‘Gordon Simpson is very helpful, informative and replies to emails and queries quickly and efficiently.’

‘The team has superb expertise in this field, including in the context of high-profile government instructions in directors’ disqualifications and public interest winding-ups. The team has a wealth of experience in running all aspects of heavy litigation and the complex disclosure that involves. It is able to give effective strategic advice to clients and has excellent foresight to anticipate issues in litigation and deal with them effectively.’

‘Morris Peacock is a very experienced and excellent solicitor. He is very adept at covering the granular detail of cases in order to advice effectively on merits.’

‘William Shirley is an excellent solicitor who is very experienced in litigation and advisory work. He dispenses advice authoritatively and is good at making commercial decisions in litigation that has clearly in mind the best interests of his client.’

‘Patrick Manning is a very effective litigator. He is particularly adept at settling difficult issues in correspondence and making tactical decisions during trial. He works very well as part of a team and has a calm manner with clients that inspires confidence during litigation.’

‘The Norwich team are very capable; they have a rare depth of expertise in specific areas of insolvency and their advice is well-considered and priced fairly.’

‘I work with William Shirley and Leon Head. They are fantastic advocates for their firm and are passionate about their local area and the clients within. I have valued both their technical support as well as their drive to progress our ongoing business relationship.’

‘The insolvency team is excellent. They are proactive, engaging and move matters forward, providing solid advice in any type of insolvency appointment.’

‘Michael Green is a great lawyer, knowledgeable and easy to deal with.’

‘Jan Tyler stands out owing to her combination of expertise and professionalism with her compassionate and down-to-earth manner. She takes the time and care necessary to deliver excellent outcomes.’

‘A well-balanced team with varying specialisms.’

‘Stuart Maggs is an excellent no nonsense tax adviser prepared to give opinion and to advise. Nice to work with.’

‘There is depth and strength to the private client department.’

‘Good dissemination between teams and then communication and coordination, so we get seamless service.’

‘Jonathan Greenhalgh is a good client coordinator and checks things, bringing his experience to promotion agreements.’

‘A good quality all-round team. Always ready to respond to our ever-changing needs and specific requirements.’

‘Commitment to problem solving.’

‘Scott Smith is extremely helpful and diligent, always willing to help us with negotiations as well as providing excellent legal advice.’

‘The team are all very experienced, responsive and professional in their approach to matters. They are able to react quickly to instructions and with their wide knowledge of real estate matters and collaborative approach to working.’

‘Both Steven Beach and Elizabeth Thomas are very approachable and responsive and go beyond normal limits to complete a task. At all points, they both keep their clients well informed on the progress of individual matters, from commencement through to completion.’

‘Susanne Hinde has been particularly outstanding. She helped us through a tricky negotiation with strategic legal advice which helped us to achieve an excellent result which all parties were happy with. She worked long hours, pulled all parties together and was highly respected by the third party legal teams for doing this.’

‘Good commercial experience, fits our own requirements well.’

‘Nicola Curle provides commercial and high-quality advice on development matters.’

‘Howes Percival LLP combines first-rate knowledge of planning law with high levels of commercial awareness.’

‘Jay Mehta provides us with expert planning advice and is a valued member of our external project team, advising us on all aspects of planning law.’

‘Direct, concise and commercial. Shockingly prompt service.’

‘Jay Mehta, makes light work of complex matters. Jamie Childs is commercial and pragmatic dealing with s.106 planning obligation agreements’

‘Jamie Childs is knowledgeable, adaptive to innovative and new arrangements. Jamie is a great team worker.’

‘Great knowledge of the law, strong understanding of the merits of a case, great client skills, and is efficient and organised.’

‘Bill Trow displays a level of experience well beyond his years of practice. He is very bright, good knowledge of the law and the merits of a case.’

‘I consider the Howes Percival litigation team in Norwich t be the leading practitioners. They have the skill to explain the nuances of complex matters in a translatable manner and to always be cognisant of the commercial aspects.’

‘I rely on Jamie Kidd as he always provides detailed, considered and practical advice, especially in dilapidations matters. I have found that Jamie is the most knowledgeable and insightful of lawyers in the field.’

‘The property litigation team is talented, experienced and incredibly well resourced.’

‘Simon Murhpy and Leanne Davis are very knowledgeable and experienced and they both have skills excellent judgement which compliments their superb client-handling skills.’

‘Extrememly helpful and always mindful of costs. Happy to provide additional resource for projects and help with negotiations. Always provide practical and pragmatic advice.’

‘Scott Smith is extremely competent. Always focused on finding practical solutions. He is also a great advocate for diversity and wellbeing both within the firm and externally too.’

‘The team always treat us with respect and understanding. The people are fantastic.’

‘No job or question has been too much for them and they always approach us with a smile, even on the trickier cases.’

‘Estelle Corner is very skilled at managing my expectations around cases which we bring to them which, is no small feat!’

‘Howes Percival are an excellent law firm we have used many times over the years. There is a high-caliber team, who fully understand our requirements and support us in the best way.’

‘The team is excellent. They come with my strongest recommendation. Always available, always excellent advice.’

‘Matt Thompson and Gerald Couldrake provided a warm, personal service but also demonstrated a high level of technical expertise which was reassuring throughout our business sale process.’

‘Miles Barns is an excellent Senior Associate. His knowledge, output and communication are stand out qualities.’

‘Tremendously commercial and strategic. Calm heads and supreme attention to detail. I can be confident nothing is slipping through the net. They are a first class team.’

‘They’re just a fantastic group of individuals. One of the things I like the most is that the quality is always excellent no matter who I deal with.’

‘Satnam Chayra and her team are exceptional in every way possible.’

‘We have always been happy with the availability of the team and their responsiveness to requests made. Advice is given in plain English and options are properly explained.’

‘Gary Pitt was excellent. Sensible, timely, thoughtful approach to matters.’

‘Very good, professional team.’

‘Nothing is ever too much trouble, and this firm really prides itself in its relationship management with their clients. Even when you drop issues on them at short notice, they are able to help and support. The advice we get is clear and well thought through and has helped me to develop in my own learning and experience of employment law.’

‘Graham Irons and Hannah Pryce in particular stand out for me. The team are really friendly and approachable – I never feel daunted having to pick up the phone to them.’

‘The people truly make interactions with Howes Percival around some of the most complex employment issues so much easier!’

‘They take the time to truly understand the organisation and the culture of the organisation and provide information and advice appropriate to all situations.’

‘You get a very personal touch when dealing with Howes Percival. Always seem to be up-to-date with the latest legislation and always easy to deal with. Billing is clear, with no “hidden extras”.’

‘Partners are usually available but will always get back to you if a message is left. Hannah Pryce and Graham Irons are particularly excellent. Hannah is exceptional in her advice and the way she can explain the current legislation and how it covers my particular issues.’

‘Strength – training and investment in their Associates. Staff wellbeing – I know this is important to them as an organisation.’

‘The team has superb expertise in this field, including in the context of high-profile government instructions in directors disqualification and public interest winding ups. The team has a wealth of experience in running all aspects of heavy litigation and the complex disclosure that involves. The team is able to give effective strategic advice to clients and has excellent foresight to anticipate issues in litigation and deal with them effectively.’

‘The Northampton Team have a very strong presence in client debt recovery and work with various stakeholders to secure practitioners for formal appointments where required.’

‘In depth knowledge, highly efficient, sensible fee levels, excellent service.’

‘The Team I have been involved with have always acted professionally but alongside this are very personable. They are prompt and efficient and the advice has always been clear and extremely useful.’

‘Satnam Chayra – very experienced litigator. Commercially pragmatic but, if necessary, can see the client through to trial. A winner.’

‘Great communication and a feeling that as a client one feels both professionally and personally cared for.’

‘Having dealt with Satnam Chayra and her team on many legal issues over the years, I can thoroughly recommend them and Satnam’s knowledge and expertise.’

‘Howes Percival seem to combine hard-edged litigation tactics with a really personable, community-focussed approach. In doing so, their Property Litigation team is able to combine the strengths of a boutique or regional outfit with the assurance of a national commercial firm.’

‘Satnam Chayra is formidable; good on the law; aggressive on litigation tactics; and never one to back down unnecessarily. She’s also very responsive.’

‘The team is excellent. They come with my strongest recommendation. Always available, always excellent advice.’

‘They’re just a fantastic group of individuals. One of the things I like the most is that the quality is always excellent no matter who I deal with.’

‘The team couple excellent knowledge and experience in this field with a hands on, personable approach. This combination means that they are a delight to work with.’

‘I have worked with Hannah Steggles on a number of cases over the last 4 years. I have consistently been impressed with the commercial, common sense approach she brings to cases. I have not worked with any one who is more committed to their clients than Hannah. This coupled with her excellent technical knowledge means that I have repeatedly recommended her and will continue to do so.’

‘Matthew Talbot – a highly capable, personable and problem-solving IP lawyer. Highly recommend.’

‘I have worked with other law firms in the past but I can honestly say that Howes Percival and the team have been fantastic from start to finish from the advice to implementation and for dealing with curve balls easily efficiently and delivering the desired result.’

‘Hannah Steggles is extremely experienced at Howes Percival. Whilst anyone qualified can do what they do, no one can quite deliver it in the way they do…and I know this as I’ve used other law firms!’

‘The team provides an excellent blend of strong relevant experience with the hard graft needed to get the work done, while always maintaining a ‘can do’, positive spirit, looking always to solve problems.’

‘Andrew Harris – very experienced, unflappable, pleasure to work with. Shital Odedra – very efficient, hard working, tenacious.’

‘Everything about the Howes Percival team is about ‘can and will do’. No obstacle to a transaction is too much trouble to understand, collaborate, explain and resolve. The team works incredibly well together. Each member is dynamic, experienced and fantastic to work with. My clients have nothing but good words to say about them, and we can be very demanding when it comes to timescales and project management.’

‘Tom Redman (Director) has an affable down to earth style that blends technical skill with commercial pragmatism to get deals done. Tom grasps the detail of a deal quickly, is thorough in approach and a genuine pleasure to work with. Keen to get the best results for his clients without making every document an unnecessary intellectual battle with the other side.’

‘The team/people are all very approachable and able to explain legal documentation to individuals with little or no legal understanding. Andrew Harris, Tom Redman and Shital Odedra were all excellent.’

‘Good strength and depth.’

‘The corporate team in Cambridge and Norwich is excellent.’

‘Oliver Pritchard and the team work seamlessly with other professional advisers and clients on transactions – they have plenty of experience, combined with a calm and commercial approach.’

‘Oliver Pritchard’s in-depth legal and practical knowledge is very helpful when working on transactions together. He is very prompt in responding and courteous, with a friendly manner which clients find very reassuring. He has great team supporting him.’

‘James Stephen brings many years of experience and commerciality to Howes Percival’s corporate team.’

‘A top bunch – well-informed.’

‘A great work ethic.’

‘Howes Percival are particularly good at bringing together multiple disciplines whilst providing a strong lead who will pull together the various elements for the client, ensuring the transaction is considered as a whole. I find this is quite rare and really does add value for the client. I found Oliver Pritchard to be particularly good at this.’

‘A great team that makes clients feel confident in their abilities and steer them well.’

‘An honest, approachable team that were always available when required and gave prompt responses.’

‘Everyone from partners to trainees show professionalism and good knowledge – they are very pragmatic and approachable. They work closely together and juniors are not just left to get on with it, which often can be the case for the larger law firms.’

‘Pragmatism, efficiency and attention-to-detail. Oliver Pritchard in particular has a wide range of knowledge from deals in various sectors which he applies to provide effective advice and to help get a deal over the line. Associate Lizzy Page is incredibly efficient and not only has strong knowledge of corporate law but brilliant deal management skills.’

‘Oliver Pritchard and Lizzy Page and are always commercial, practical and respond quickly to any work required. Great value for money in dealing with legal issues.’

‘Oliver Pritchard has a great deal of experience dealing with corporate and commercial situations. He is always quick to respond and offer practical and commercial guidance in any corporate situations that arise. Lizzy Page works in the corporate engagement team with Oliver is is always thorough – everything is produced on a timely basis and she always has a positive, can-do attitude.’

‘Oliver Pritchard has detailed company law knowledge coupled with relevant commercial experience. Lizzy Page is extremely well-organized and can be relied upon to produce accurate documentation on a timely basis.’

‘The team offers outstanding legal acumen coupled with a firm grasp on the commerciality of matters. Their work is on a par with any big city firm at a fraction of the cost.’

‘Michael Green and Victoria Sandell are the standout candidates amongst an already strong team. They are the dream team for commercial litigation in Cambridge and beyond.’

‘Very competent instructing solicitors who are able to identify the key issues in a dispute and marshal resources accordingly, ensuring that the client gets value from the whole team.’

‘Michael Green brings a sharp analytical tool kit and a unique judicial perspective to a problem. Victoria Sandell is insightful, clear and intelligent in her instructions – she is one of my favourite solicitors to deal with.’

‘The team and the individuals are responsive and emphatic.’

‘Gordon Simpson has always been supportive and has been a calming influence during very stressful moments. Gordon has taken the time to explain everything to me and his communication skills have been paramount to our very successful relationship.’

‘Gordon and the team have been incredibly fair at all times. All of the technological mechanisms that Howes Percival have in place work effectively too.’

‘Gordon Simpson’s consist approach has helped tremendously. Gordon’s qualities are clearly helping to shape new solicitors within the Howes Percival organisation. I would not hesitate in recommending Gordon and Howes Percival to anyone.’

‘Howes Percival’s team is highly professional, diligent and committed. Their attitude towards clients treads the perfect line between friendliness and professionalism.’

‘Gordon Simpson is a highly professional and thoughtful man. He has an astute legal brain, delivers his ideas and reasoning in considered manner, avoiding complex legal speak, which a layman cannot often understand. His manner is always professional, he puts clients at ease and adapts to their needs. I would highly recommend him.’

‘The level of service across various teams is fabulous. We have always found Howes Percival to be very professional and comforting is some some anxious situations. This is a very good skill to have and rare to find.’

‘The balance of providing a professional service whilst keeping us informed on technical issues that are not easily explained, is exceptional. It has been good to have the same people to contact whenever we have required assistance, and this is complimented by those people remembering who we are and what our background is. We have always used Gordon Simpson as our first point of contact and he is excellent.’

‘The team is efficient, communicative, good at meeting timescales, and personable.’

‘Laura Brown is extremely knowledgeable; I value her honesty and excellent problem-solving skills. She demonstrated empathy and offered support to others involved in the case where appropriate. Her goal is to get a resolution between the two parties before it reaches tribunal. She sets realistic expectations, the good and bad; her communication and efficiency are excellent.’

‘Laura Brown supported me through a pretty traumatic time. She is responsive and friendly whilst managing to get across some strong advice when I was in a very emotive state. I cannot thank her enough.’

‘The team is totally committed learning and development. They encourage investigations to enable inter-departmental knowledge transfer with a view to delivering a higher quality of comprehensive customer service.’

‘Proactive and positive in recognising and implementing opportunities for new working practices to facilitate better employee engagement. Excellent engagement with the local business community through professionally delivered, topical employment seminars and webinars which are beneficial, informative and readily assimilated.’

‘Laura Brown is highly competent and knowledgeable with excellent customer focus. She provides superb client management with consideration and instinctive understanding allied to expertise in all aspects of employee relations negotiations.’

‘Laura continually provides professional, pragmatic solutions with excellent attention-to-detail. Thorough and consistent service across all client business sectors displaying objectivity in all commercial transactions.’

‘Excellent client service, good communication and a commercial approach.’

‘Robert Starr is a star individual in health and safety, achieving outstanding results with excellent client care.’

‘The firm has a wide-range of expertise across sectors, which compliment one another.’

‘Robert Starr is a very able and experienced regulatory solicitor. His lengthy experience gives him a real advantage in those areas where health and safety overlaps with other disciplines such as healthcare, food and drink and agriculture. He is also a very good choice as a man who puts his client at the centre of the case and has a very agreeable manner.’

‘The team at Howes Percival are extremely competent and knowledgeable in respect to health and safety law.’

‘Alan Millband is extremely knowledgeable, helpful and offers clear practical guidance in ensuring our business remains legally compliant and protected.’

‘Approachable and knowledgeable. I regularly attend the firm’s seminars and always find them informative.’

‘Tessa Haskey is experienced and highly engaging.’

‘As regards the particular nuts we asked them to crack, they did a splendid job.’

‘I’ve worked mostly with Stuart Maggs but also with Katharine Danks; I’d rate both of them as ‘summa cum laude’ professionals.’

‘Having used the team for many years now we find them totally supportive, knowledgeable and approachable. Excellent with dealing with matters on agricultural estates. We trust them implicitly to provide us with help and advice to achieve the best outcome. They have dealt with difficult and complex issues and we cannot fault their approach – always highly professional, calm and systematic.’

‘Katharine Danks is exceptional. She has excellent specialist knowledge and has the gift of explaining and communicating simply. Her advice is always clear, concise and timely. Attention-to-detail was second-to-none and always rigorous and focused. She is so supportive and highly professional. Always going the extra mile – she is personable and incisive.’

‘Katharine Danks has been involved with numerous, often difficult, cases and we totally trust her judgement. Her dedication to her clients is second-to-none. Stuart Maggs provided excellent tax advice and guided us through succession planning. He is always available, strategic and had exceptional specialist knowledge. The team explained all the costs, were transparent and kept us abreast of any changes.’

‘Very good level of detail provided in a timely manner. Able to deal with complex issues with multiple stakeholders.’

‘Katherine Danks has a very professional approach with a high-level of detail and knowledge about the sector.’

‘Their main strength is their skill in assessing a great deal of information and making difficult decisions about sensitive issues, while maintaining neutrality.’

‘Michael Green in particular is very astute and technically impressive. He’s also able quickly to get to grips with personalities and their management. Work is delegated sensibly to secure value for money.’

‘Michael Green is technically very good but also adept at dealing with people at an emotional time in their lives. As a litigator himself he’s very well-placed to understand the dynamics of these sorts of disputes, and is reliably robust with third parties claiming against the estate, which always goes down well with beneficiaries who want to see their inheritance preserved.’

‘An excellent service across the board.’

‘Michael Green is excellent both in terms of technical expertise and litigation strategy. He is calm and reassuring but prepared to take a hard line with the opposition where needed.’

‘I think Michael Green is standout: he is very knowledgeable, he sits as a part-time judge so he has an excellent feel for litigation and he is pragmatic. He is also very good with clients.’

‘Stephen Patch was the consummate professional. He responded quickly and gave us sound advice throughout, even in areas beyond the original brief.’

‘Stephen Patch in particular stands out for me, for his willingness to help clients get their affairs in order even at short notice. The client had been sadly diagnosed with a terminal illness and Stephen was very responsive and compassionate for which they were delighted and very thankful.’

‘Stephen is very easy to work with – he has client-centric values and always seeks to do a professional and pragmatic job.’

‘A personal approach and a great level of experience.’

‘Stephen Patch has a hands-on approach and understanding of clients’ needs and wishes.’

‘Jamie Childs is knowledgeable, good at describing legal matters in plain English, adaptive to innovative and new arrangements. Timely and usually very swift responses. A great team worker.’

‘The team is knowledgeable, well run and proactive.’

‘Jamie Childs is an impressive lawyer: knowledgeable, pragmatic, on the ball, true to his word. He gave us good advice and we all had confidence in him.’

‘Strong Relationship end to end. Collaborative. Diversity of people. Good brand and reputation in the market.’

‘Haydon Simmonds – Great, strong relationships builder, trustworthy, open and honest and always there to support and help where he can. Available and response time is really good.’

‘A strong, vibrant team that integrates well with the corporate offering of the firm.’

‘Haydon Simmonds leads the banking team and is a very experienced banking lawyer, with a strong client list and is a great person as well!’

‘Jahid Ali is very visible in the business markets. He has been excellent with my clients with quality advice and always follows through with any actions agreed. Clients have also fed back to me to say how pleased they have been with the referrals.’

‘Strong team who work well as a collective to ensure the best possible client care’

‘Alishia Marrocco is brilliant. Down to earth and supportive. She gives realistic and robust advice but will then support you in your instructions and make sure they are put forcefully in court.’

‘The team is excellent. They come with my strongest recommendation. Always available, always excellent advice.’

‘They’re just a fantastic group of individuals. One of the things I like the most is that the quality is always excellent no matter who I deal with.’

‘Commercially minded with great strength and breadth of skill, and knowledge.’

‘Great professionalism and communication, Simon deMaid is excellent.’

‘From initial engagement through to completion, they provided an exceptional service. Transparent, effective communication, concise information, and fully supportive.’

‘Everyone is helpful, polite, professional, knowledgeable and pragmatic; they take a common-sense approach to providing advice.’

‘Simon deMaid stands out. He is a good listener and has an almost uncanny ability to capture and then summarise what you have said. His advice is clear and specific – so many lawyers sit on the fence! His demeanour is calm and unflappable and he will do everything he can to help.’

‘Anna Bithrey has been outstanding in explaining and guiding us through our case. Very personable, and has been a calming presence throughout. Her advice on everything has been invaluable, her advice has always been excellent, giving more confidence in all areas of our case.’

‘They are a well-respected firm.’

‘They are a strong team who work well to support each other and maintain top-quality client care.’

‘This is a full-service firm with an excellent reputation.’

‘A dynamic team. All hardworking members with integrity.’

‘All contacts I have with anyone from this practice are consistently professional and efficient. My family and I are treated with respect and all of our needs are met without ever being made to feel confused or overwhelmed by difficult situations.’

‘Jennifer Laskey treated me with respect and compassion throughout, she was concise and accurate with all advice and explained the processes we needed to go through as well as the areas that would be risky and expensive to pursue. She was kind beyond measure.’

‘Solid contentious estates and trusts team in the East Midlands, led by Jennifer Laskey.’

‘Jennifer Laskey has a natural charm, excellent knowledge and good litigation judgment. She is a pleasure to work with. The kind of estates and trust litigator you’d recommend to a friend.’

‘Alex Hornsby is clearly very knowledgeable – she is thoughtful and thinks things through. I was very impressed and grateful for her advice.’

‘Howes Percival are outstding in there help, support, knowledge and straight talking. They for me are the very best in Law firms in the county.’

‘Lucy Elianu – her support throught out and knowledge is second to none. A wonderful person to have on your side.’

‘Always very helpful and have useful insights into planning law related issues.’

‘The team offer topical legal updates which are incredibly useful in an ever changing planning context. They are always approachable and helpful.they always make you feel like you are their only client and will make time for you.’

‘Chris May is always on hand to provide his thoughts and I value substantially his reliability and creative thinking. His ability to collaborate positively with me and my team is impressive so we can jointly deliver challenging projects for clients. He is my first point of contact for any specialist planning law advice and support.’

‘As a whole, the team work well together providing a strong level of knowledge within the planning and environment sector. The CPD sessions they run are also invaluable.’

‘Chris May – Chris has assisted on a number of projects, most recently an appeal, which no task was too great or small in order to progress and get us the decision we needed. He is always available to discuss matters and takes genuine pride in his work.’

‘Paul Hunt – No question is too much for Paul to answer, he seems to know every shred of planning law there is and can provide advice off the top of his head. He is also very considerate in how he provides solutions taking into account the goals and aims of our business.’

‘Sarah Hollis – Sarah is a valuable member of the team who is always on hand to support the partners during appeals and larger tasks. She is also very approachable and responds in a timely manner.’

‘The team has a good speed of response, and gets deals under control at an early point in the transaction.’

‘Marcus Carter has an overall commercial approach and proactive stance.’

‘The team are forward thinking, always looking to provide solutions and not afraid to step outside from the usual constraints. Every project small or large is given the same level of consideration. They strive to enable deals to happen rather than many who put obstacles in the way, the HP team develop strategies to overcome them. They are refreshingly dynamic and at all times willing to go above and beyond the call of duty.’

‘Marcus Carter is the core to the team. His ethos and proactive; ‘cant do enough’ approach filters down the whole team and indeed the wider firm. His enthusiasm is infectious and has given a new lease of life into the legal world.’