Hawkswell Kilvington Limited

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Gary Ashton

Gary specialises in all aspects of construction and engineering law, with particular focus upon dispute resolution and risk management. A partner with 20 years’ experience, he has a wealth of knowledge gained from advising a wide range of clients across the construction sector. Gary is recognised for his expertise in relation to all forms of dispute resolution, including High Court proceedings, adjudication, arbitration and mediation. He has dealt with many complex, multi-party, high value disputes. As a leading expert in in construction adjudication, Gary has personally acted in over 125 adjudications with a proven track record of success. Gary is praised by clients in the Chambers UK Guide as “superb at providing advice across a variety of matters” and described in the Legal 500 as “an exceptional lawyer who is highly organised, extremely efficient and knowledgeable offering well researched, honest and pragmatic advice”.

Rachel Heald

Rachel leads the firm’s non-contentious team. Her work involves drafting, negotiating and advising a range of clients (including developers, contractors, sub-contractors and funders) on construction documents including building contracts, consultant appointments, collateral warranties, letters of intent and performance bonds. Rachel has years of experience of projects across the spectrum of the construction industry, from retail and office fit-outs to care homes, housing and hotels, to factories and industrial developments and utilities, nuclear and infrastructure projects. Rachel was ranked as a ‘Next Generation Partner’ in the 2025 Legal 500 rankings. She was nominated for Lawyer of the Year (Real Estate category) at the Legal 500 Northern Powerhouse Awards 2023 and in the Mentor of the Year category at the Women, Influence & Power in Law UK Awards 2024. Clients describe Rachel as “incredibly pragmatic and very responsive” and “user-friendly”, with “exemplary” attention to detail.

Rebecca Jackson

Rebecca is a Legal Director with over a decade of litigation experience. Rebecca specialises in resolving complex construction disputes via all forms of dispute resolution including High Court construction litigation (including high value multi-party litigation), adjudication, mediation, arbitration and expert determination.

Matthew Leonard

Matt is a Partner specialising in construction and engineering disputes. He advises clients on dispute avoidance, mitigation and resolution on projects across a number of sectors including commercial, healthcare, industrial, residential, sport, student accommodation, and hotel/leisure. Matt provides commercially focused support to clients and has considerable experience across a broad range of disputes including those involving fire/building safety, delay, defective work, valuation, payment, termination and professional negligence. Matt regularly advises on issues arising under bespoke and industry standard forms of contract and assists clients with resolving disputes via direct negotiation, adjudication, litigation and arbitration. Matt is an advocate of all forms of alternative dispute resolution and has successfully settled numerous matters at mediation.

Joe Mills

Joe is a solicitor specialising in contentious matters whose commitment to assisting clients in the construction arena has been recognised by the Legal 500, where he is noted for being “easy to communicate with” and as having “an excellent understanding of this area and gets to the real issues quickly and puts clients at ease”. Examples of the sectors within which Joe has acted for clients include: \tEngineering and Infrastructure; \tEnergy; \tPetrochemical; \tAviation; \tTelecommunications; and \tGeneral construction. As is common with the discipline, Joe provides advice and acts across a range of dispute resolution forums, including: \tAdjudication; \tArbitration; \tLitigation in the Technology and Construction Court; and \tExpert determination. In that context, Joe’s experience encompasses representing clients on all the main forms of construction issues such as: \t Defects; \tDelay; \tLoss and expense; \tFinal and interim payment cycle disputes; \tContractual interpretation; and \tAdjudication enforcement. Joe is committed to working with, not just for, those who instruct him and will always strive to find a logical and commercially focused solution to a problem faced by a client.

Katherine Morgan

With over seven years of specialised experience in construction law, Katherine Morgan is a trusted advisor to contractors, consultants, and employers across the construction sector. She focuses on resolving complex construction disputes and has a strong track record representing clients in mediation, adjudication, and litigation. Katherine regularly advises on issues involving delay, defects, variations and payment disputes. Katherine adopts a strategic approach, clear communication, and keeps commercial objectives at the forefront.

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Shauna O\'Neil

Shauna is a solicitor who works with an array of clients on both contentious and non-contentious construction matters at the firm. Shauna’s experience includes: \tassisting parties through various alternative dispute resolution procedures including, but not limited to, adjudication; and \tdrafting, negotiating and advising on construction documents including building contracts, consultant appointments and collateral warranties.

Jonathan Robson

Described in the Legal500 as an “extremely helpful” solicitor who provides “clear advice that is presented plainly and simply” and who speaks his clients’ language, Jonathan is a Legal Director specialising in contentious construction law. Jonathan has considerable experience assisting employers, contractors and sub-contractors from a variety of industries in the resolution of disputes at all stages of a construction project, including disputes relating to defects, delays and variations, as well as payment disputes at interim and final account stage. Jonathan’s experience covers all major forums of dispute resolution including litigation, adjudication, arbitration and mediation. Jonathan offers clients commercially focussed and “economically justified” advice on disputes arising under bespoke and standard form construction contracts including the NEC, JCT, ICE, FIDIC and iChemE forms. Jonathan has worked with clients across a broad range of construction sectors including education, hotel/leisure, heavy engineering, water treatment/processing, energy, mechanical and electrical, food processing, pharmaceutical/laboratory, residential and commercial.

Thomas Salter

Thomas is a Partner at Hawkswell Kilvington and has been in construction law his entire career. Thomas focuses on contentious matters and advises on complex construction and engineering disputes throughout the contractual supply chain. Disputes frequently concern extensions of time, variations, non-payment and contract formation. Thomas has extensive experience of all standard forms of contract including JCT, NEC and FIDIC and is frequently asked to provide contractual and commercial advice to clients during on going projects. Thomas is regularly instructed to represent clients in adjudication, litigation (usually in the Technology and Construction Court), arbitration and mediation.

Claire Saunders

Claire joined Hawkswell Kilvington in 2011 as a trainee solicitor and has since progressed to the role of Legal Director, specialising in contentious construction law. With over a decade of experience, Claire delivers strategic, commercially focused advice on high-value and complex construction and engineering disputes. Her areas of expertise include claims involving termination, loss and expense, variations, extensions of time and contract formation. Claire acts for a broad range of clients and is experienced in all major forms of dispute resolution, including adjudication, mediation, arbitration and litigation in the Technology and Construction Court.

Matthew Shotton

Matthew is a Legal Director with well-rounded experience of construction and engineering disputes. This experience includes providing advice on the delivery of large infrastructure and built environment projects, as well as the resolution of complex and high value disputes, typically in adjudication and TCC litigation. Matthew’s extensive work on rail and water infrastructure projects has developed a proficiency with complex target cost and framework agreements. He has a good track record of success in the TCC on such matters which, combined with secondments to engineering and insurance clients, provides a strong platform for providing pragmatic legal advice.

Daniel Silberstein

Daniel joined Hawkswell Kilvington in 2005, became a Partner in 2011 and is the current Managing Partner. Daniel has extensive experience of dealing with complex and high value construction disputes, representing clients in all forums of dispute resolution. He regularly advises in relation to disputes involving issues such as valuations, extensions of time and liquidated damages, loss and expense, defective works and complex construction related professional negligence claims. He has successfully led large teams of solicitors, experts and counsel in adjudication proceedings, arbitration proceedings and litigation in the Technology and Construction Court. Daniel is also highly experienced in all forms of alternative dispute resolution, and has resolved many claims by way of mediation, early neutral evaluation and expert determination. Daniel has been praised by clients for his “full understanding of what we do and the outcomes we need”, his “experience, commitment, legal knowledge and negotiation skills” and “understanding our business and getting things done”. He is recognised and ranked as a notable practitioner in both Chambers and Partners and Legal 500.

David Spires

David joined the firm as Partner in 2019, having previously been head of construction at Watson Burton LLP. David’s twenty five years of experience as a specialist lawyer extend to all aspects of construction and engineering law, however his primary focus concerns the resolution of complex disputes through litigation, arbitration, mediation and in particular adjudication, where his career has run in parallel with the growth of this forum into the UK industry’s principal means of dispute resolution. An assured negotiator, David’s pragmatic approach to the resolution of complex issues has seen him described by clients as “very personable” and “a pleasure to work with”, and as managing cases “effectively and proactively”.

Samantha Stait

Samantha is an associate solicitor who specialises in non-contentious construction law. Samantha’s experience includes drafting and negotiating building contracts, consultant appointments, collateral warranties, letters of intent, performance bonds and guarantees.

Prudence Walton

Prudence is an associate solicitor specialising in contentious construction law. Prudence has significant experience representing employers, contractors and sub-contractors across a broad range of sectors and industries in the resolution of construction and engineering disputes, including disputes relating to contract formation, defects and delays, termination and payment disputes. Prudence acts for clients in various dispute resolution procedures such as adjudication, litigation and mediation. Prudence has been recognised in the Legal 500 as being an “outstanding individual”.