Gerallt Jones > Hugh James > Cardiff, United Kingdom > Lawyer Profile

Benefitting from ‘good experience in the local market’, Hugh James has, over the years, developed deeply rooted relationships with a number of high-profile domestic businesses/institutions, including S A Brains and Development Bank of Wales, ensuring a steady flow of ongoing day-to-day corporate/commercial instructions, as well as M&A matters. Many of these mandates have involved disposals to UK and international-based entities, including its recent work for S A Brains on the sale of its remaining stake in coffee shop chain Coffee #1 to Caffè Nero. ‘Calm and sensible’ team head Gerallt Jones  led on the aforementioned mandate and is noted for his transactional and general corporate and commercial support advice to clients within the sports and food and beverage sectors, with the Welsh Rugby Union a particularly visible client. The ‘exceptionally knowledgeable’ Greg Williams has private equity expertise for investees and investors, particularly within the life sciences sector, work which he combines with his role as head of the firm’s dedicated healthcare group – which frequently sees him engaged in acquisitions and sales of pharmacies and dental practices. The ‘commercially astute’ Aled Walters heads up the commercial side of the practice, which has garnered particular acclaim for its expertise at negotiating complex commercial contracts for clients in the media, tech and gaming sectors. In summer 2023 the firm acquired boutique Cardiff-based firm Loosemores, taking on a team which works with range of corporate and commercial matters for clients in the sport, media and entertainment, charities and technology sectors. The ‘very professional and diligent’ Siôn Tudur  has a good reputation for handling corporate transactional work, particularly for clients within the SME spacem, working alongside the ‘very personable’ Mark Loosemore, who has a focus on commercial contracts work for sports clients.

Hugh James has a strong grounding in the sports arena and deploys a multidisciplinary approach on behalf of broad and varied client portfolio spanning many different sports and types of client, including clubs, governing bodies and individuals. Nurtured over the years by ‘calm and sensible’ team head Gerallt Jones , the Welsh Rugby Union remains a core client, with banking and finance partner Dominic Marshall  recently advising it on the refinancing of its £20m CLBILS emergency loan secured in October 2020.  ‘Hugely experienced and able’ commercial litigator Tracey Singlehurst-Ward has a significant focus on sports mandates, and continues to spearhead the firm’s work for the British Boxing Board of Control. In July 2023 the firm acquired Cardiff-based boutique Loosemores, taking on a team well-regarded for its work for a wide range of clients covering a range of amateur and professional sports. The ‘knowledgeable and well-connected’ Mark Loosemore provides ‘highly commercial and thorough’ advice to many Welsh governing bodies, including the Football Association of Wales (FAW), across a range of commercial agreements, relating to, inter alia, sponsorship, image rights and hospitality rights deals. On the contentious front, the ‘very diligent’ Karl Thomas has a strong track record advising on sports disciplinary cases and sports regulatory disputes. Drawing upon her governance and charities law expertise, ‘very personable and helpful’ solicitor Rebecca McCarthy is also a key member of the team and ‘specialises in legal status for sports clubs’.