Withers LLP > Cambridge, England > Firm Profile

‘Withers’ corporate team in Cambridge has deep specialist knowledge of venture capital transactions in the technology sector.’

‘Susanna Stanfield has deep specialist knowledge and is an authority in the field.’

‘One strength is that Withers demonstrate quite clearly a collaborative approach and a ‘one team’ ethos.’

‘The Withers team is open, personable, international, and tech-savvy.’

‘Withers is notable for the intensely international profile of both its work and its lawyers, and it has a particularly strong reputation in Italian and CIS work. It also appears to have a very collaborative culture, with particularly good relationships between partners and associates, and so is able to deploy strong and well-integrated teams to matters of all sizes.‘

‘The team has very hardworking and practical senior associates and very strategic partners.’

‘Peter Wood is a fabulous lawyer, who always attracts the big cases and the big clients.’

‘Roberto Moruzzi has a lifetime of experience in this field, and is able to assemble the right people for the job in question.‘

‘Tatiana Menshenina is a very strategic lawyer – she always thinks several steps ahead and keeps the broad picture of litigation in focus.’

‘Lesley Timms is an excellent lawyer, and Eleni Polycarpou is very experienced, and has good judgement.’

‘Stephen Ross is great with clients and runs a very effective operation.’

‘The team led by Elaine Aarons has unparalleled experience, a deftness of touch, commercial and pragmatic approach.’

‘Their expertise, pragmatic advice, coupled with a genuine support and empathy for clients is a powerful combination.’

‘Highly capable, skilled and knowledgeable team. Personalised approach from start to finished and very responsive to a changing landscape.’

‘Melissa Paz is exceptional. Detailed but pragmatic. She is able to build a full view of the situation, go below the surface and understand the case from all angles.’

‘Meriel Schindler is an exceptional legal professional. She has a deep understanding of the law and is skilled in representing clients in a variety of employment-related matters.’

‘The team is responsive with a good knowledge of the law in this field giving sensible and pragmatic advice.’

‘Great knowledge and diverse expertise across all sectors of the property legal fields’.

‘Bertie Hoskyns Abrahall, David Holland, Ed Jarron are all excellent lawyers with great knowledge, experience and skill’.

‘Very good client base and strong private client firm’.

‘Matthew Woods – calm and measured’.

‘Very strong with strategic advice’.

‘David Holland – excellent to deal with. Responsive, and refreshingly practical and balanced advice’.

‘Knowledgeable. Good communicators. Friendly. Ed Jarron and David Holland are key names’.

‘The team at Withers are always really supportive and offer practical, organisation-focused advice which balances legal technicalities and business risk. Chris Priestley is our lead partner and offers great service and insight across the sector’.

‘The senior individual on the team, Alison Paines, was highly expert in the field and greatly accelerated my learning curve in a complex field. She was ably supported by Roger Waite who coupled his own expertise with a high level of responsiveness’.

‘In the charities team, Emma Flower is consistently impressive. Extremely knowledgeable, thorough and highly capable, I feel entirely confident with her advice’.

‘Partner, Philip Reed – I have found him very responsive, easy to work with, reassuring when the legal issues have been quite challenging and unfamiliar’.

‘Excellent international reach and expertise. Partner-led service. Chris Priestley brings decades of charity experience and expertise and delivers to clients in plain English. High quality, personal service’.

‘Alison Paines – an incredibly good lawyer who has great emotional intelligence and understanding of the human story that often lies behind the technical legal issues that a situation may present’.

‘Alison Paines is among the top charity lawyers in England, and has an incredible ability to find solutions to difficult problems. Chris Priestley is unflappable and has a profound knowledge of the sector and of charity law. Emma Flower is very shrewd. Roger Waite has acute powers of analysis and is extremely knowledgeable. Hugo Walford is also very sharp, and good with clients’.

‘I work closely with Hannah Brearley and Chris Priestley. Both are outstanding problem solvers, good listeners and adhere well to instructions. They deliver on time and on budget. Their advice is tailor made for our business needs.’

‘Paul Hewitt is one of the big players in this practice area: he scrutinises a dispute from every angle and manoeuvres expertly to outflank his opponent. Stephen Richards is both thorough and strategic, allowing him to see through a problem early and work towards a practical, attainable solution.’

‘Natasha Stourton is calm, confident, and knowledgeable. She is able to rise above the fray to effectively promote her client’s case. Richard Walker is a deep thinker who has a real feel for the law in this area. He is creative in seeking solutions and is a canny tactician.’

‘When Alice is working on your matter you know it is being well looked after as she is always on top of the detail meaning you are always one step ahead of the opponent. She is super bright and great fun to work with. Surely a partner in the making.’

‘Paul Hewitt is fiendishly hard-working, knows his area of law inside out and is a supremely effective litigator. Stephen Richards is charming, knowledgeable, first-rate litigator. Natasha Stourton is a young partner who’s certainly going places – a dynamic and effective litigator. Sarah Aughwane is a superb associate – charming, efficient and always across the detail.’

‘Paul Hewitt has an exceptional reputation, which he deserves. He is particularly good on strategy – he is very good at thinking a case through and working out how to get to the end result, rather than just reacting to the latest decision from the other side. He is well-liked by clients, very clever and knows his stuff.’

‘Its people and international outlook and reach are excellent. The depth of the advice is what sets Withers apart. They also have a very collaborative approach. Dawn Goodman’s attention to detail is good and she has an ability to bring into her Withers’ team the relevant complementary skills across the Withers international network. She is also very determined and conscientious.’

‘Of particular note are Sarah Aughwane, Richard Walker, Alice Tomlin, Rosalind Russell – they are all super-bright and personable and deserve recognition as partners of the future/ones to watch. Great team and a pleasure to work with.’

‘Paul Hewitt is the ultimate warrior any charity client would want on their side. Paul is a key strategist, oozes expertise and has confidence that any opponent would crumble in battle.’

‘Stephen Roberts leads an internationally recognised team of private client and contentious probate lawyers. All the team are approachable and straight talking. Extremely valuable when difficult decisions need to be made’.

‘Julia Abrey, head of the elder client team has the right balance of empathy and detailed knowledge of complex law to deliver not just a first class service- but one where the client feels truly supported’.

‘Withers Court of Protection Team are second to none. The team have great experience whilst also the sensitivity needed for these matters. Stephen Richards is a leader in the field. Handles multi-party complex matters with ease’.

‘Alice Tomlin is always on top of her brief and always sees the key points. When Alice speaks people listen’.

‘Stephen Richards is both thorough and strategic, allowing him to see through a problem early and work towards a practical, attainable solution. Natasha Stourton is calm, confident, and knowledgeable. She able to rise above the fray to effectively promote her client’s case;’

‘Simply the market leaders. The gold standard. Paul Hewitt is an extraordinary lawyer. The name you want on your side. Stephen Richards is firmly intelligent, responsive and kind’.

‘Hugely well-coordinated team – they work seamlessly together. They are all very good lawyers, and nice to work with too. Paul Hewitt – excellent and experienced litigator. Stephen Richards – tireless litigator with excellent judgment’.

‘The team has a strong international reach, so you can approach them in relation to most jurisdictions and they will have knowledge, experience or contacts. Julia Abrey has a strong knowledge of many jurisdictions and is pleasant and efficient to work with’.

‘Suzanne Todd is the head of department; a commanding yet friendly presence who delivers excellent results and is guaranteed to give parties the greatest possible level of reassurance. She is a strategic thinker, measured, affable and persuasive.’

‘One of the best family teams in the country.’

‘Claire Blakemore is outstanding. She is highly strategic, thoughtful and her professional advice rivals that of the best family KCs.’

‘Michael Gouriet is a marvellous solicitor; engaged, detailed, responsive, committed and wise. Diana Parker remains the best family lawyer in London. She has incredible judgment and strategic vision.’

‘One of the strongest all-round teams of partners, associates and assistants, there is little they have not seen and done before. A client base from the cream of society, commerce, finances and international ultra-high-net-worth families, means they all are alive to the needs of such clients, and meet them, then surpass them.’

‘Katharine Landells is the standout partner at this firm.’

‘Sarfraz Ali is an incredibly impressive solicitor. His forensic attention to detail is fantastic and he has an exceptional bedside manner with clients. He has the work ethic and the skills to be a leading partner soon.’

‘Jennifer Dickson is a newly made up partner; ambitious, eager and ferociously hard-working, she will be a leading light of the family law world. Excellent, confident judgment with decisive advice offered in a thoughtful and measured manner.’

‘Responsive, forward thinking, smart, congenial’.

‘The team is quite unique in London to the extent that they have both UK and US private client lawyers closely working together as one team for clients who are subject to both tax systems. They differentiate themselves by having lawyers who have deep expertise in specialist areas such as trusts, insurance and funds’.

‘I believe they also stand out in terms of the depths of the relationships they have with their clients, and quality of service‘.

‘Highest quality and superb client list. Penny Warr, Charlie Tee and Mara Monte all super knowledgeable and great people too, excellent client service’.

‘This team provides knowledge and skills for international clients, which is vital for the increasing mobile clients where families are linked to multiple countries. They are thoughtful and clear about what they can do for each potential client from the beginning of the relationship, as well as costs that would be incurred’.

‘Alessia Paoletto is knowledgeable, thoughtful and client-centric. She also understands that change is happening across the professions with the rise of technology, and looks to see how clients can benefit from this in relationships she builds’.

‘Strong expertise, knowledge, availability of practice areas.’

‘Availability, flexibility, knowledge, personalities.’

‘I cannot speak highly enough of Sharon Whitehouse’s exceptional performance during our M&A/corporate restructuring. Her expertise, professionalism, and dedication were invaluable, resulting in a smooth and successful restructuring process. I highly recommend her services.’

‘Ruzin Dagli – consistently able to stay calm and focused. A measured contributor to discussions.’

‘Hussein Haeri is outstanding in every way. A great leader of the firm\’s capability in Public International Law and an excellent lawyer with a great intellect.’

‘Hussein Haeri is one of the best PIL experts working from a law firm. He leads a team of stellar associates. They can handle any dispute in the PIL field – from investment treaty arbitration to boundary disputes. They are also a delight to work with.’

‘This team has an unrivalled capacity to take on multi-jurisdictional art cases with offices stationed all over the world to permit rapid action. This global chain of offices bring local expertise with decades of experience in London to resolve the most complex of disputes’.

‘Eleni Polycarpou is the stand out, anything a client wants sorted she can handle. She is an absolute star’.

‘Sarah Barker has an intimate grasp of the art world and the way in which its actors think’.

‘Eleni Polycarpou runs an extremely successful multi-lingual team with a superb eye on strategy alongside Sarah Barker, who is incredibly well known for her highly specialised and long-standing premium expert position in the market’.

‘Withers deservedly have an outstanding reputation for litigation in the field of art and cultural property. Eleni Polycarpou is immensely experienced, and has the critical (in this field) combination of deep knowledge of culture and history, high intelligence, commitment to the client’s cause, and a winning personality’.

‘Overall, Sarah Barker’s in-depth knowledge of the art world combined with her sharp analytical mind and intuitive understanding of our company have made it possible for our company to make the right decision again and again’.

‘Real understanding of the art world – and relationship between gallery and artist. Sarah Barker – very knowledgeable, clear, professional and impressive. Also efficient and likeable’.

‘Eleni Polycarpou is knowledgeable and approachable. Very hands-on, professional and knowledge based team. Giulia Trojani is a very strong associate, very hardworking, efficient and bright’.

‘Suzanne Todd  is hard-working and human in great balance with her clients – she will move mountains for her clients. Very experienced and humble too’.

‘Diana is a class act. She is elegant and considered in her approach, cuts to the chase and will help steer clients effectively to positive outcomes as quickly and simply as possible’.

‘Claire is always at great pains to aim for a collaborative approach. She is sensitive to clients needs, thoughtful about the pressure points and thorough in all that she does. She likes to leave no stone unturned’.

‘Excellent at managing the UHNW and HNW financial cases, both Claire Blakemore and Suzanne Todd have got deservedly good reputations as mediators’.

‘Claire has excellent judgment, and the ability to get on with all types of clients which is vital as a mediator. Suzanne is hugely efficient and hard working and achieves excellent results for her clients’.

‘Suzanne Todd’s knowledge, experience and practical, constructive approach makes her a star name for HNW/UHNW mediation. She is empathetic but focused on attaining the best possible outcome for mediation clients’.

‘Withers have some of the best talent in London, breadth and depth in both partners and junior associates. They are a full service firm so also have specialist advisors where needed on trust or property aspects’.

‘Claire Blakemore is the full package as a lawyer. She is firm when needed but will settle cases which are capable of being settled’.

‘I have been referring business to Pervaze for years, and he always goes above and beyond for his clients. He is hands down the best property solicitor in London. Always available, takes good care of his clients and is able to deal with complicated sales and provide sound advice. He is always my go-to solicitor’.

‘Pervaze Ahmed and his team at Withers are without doubt the most efficient and professional team I have worked with in nearly 25 years in the property industry. It is their constant ability to react quickly and communicate, as well as they are always reachable, that sets them apart’.

‘Pervaze Ahmed, a consummate professional and is always available to help. The best I have ever dealt with’.

‘Communicative, always available, diligent. Pervaze Ahmed, Nicholas Vaughan’.

‘Extremely proactive, extremely personable and extremely professional. Reactive, responsive and competitive rates‘.

‘Nicholas Vaughan – responds immediately, available 24/7, lateral thinking to solve problems, pragmatic, calm and very reassuring to clients‘.

‘Reliable, can do attitude. Nothing too much trouble. Swift’. 

‘Henry Stuart, Nick Vaughan, Pervaze Ahmed. All superb’.

‘Responsive, respectful, knowledgeable and approachable. Well considered and helpful legal advice and guidance. Wide range of specialisms and the teams work hand-in-hand to ensure their clients have expert and appropriate legal opinion.’

‘The team at Withers LLP stands out for its unparalleled dedication to innovation and client-centric approach. A key characteristic that distinguishes the practice from others is the multidisciplinary background of its team members, which enables a holistic understanding of clients’ needs.’

‘The Withers team work tirelessly to come up with creative solutions for their clients. They leave no stone unturned when it comes to defending the reputation of their clients.’

‘Very good attention to detail and availability to provide input. Very good commercial knowledge of the industry.’

‘Jo Sanders is a very sensible and knowledgeable lawyer.’

‘Jo Sanders and Andrew Fremlin-Key make a formidable and extremely diligent team.’

‘The team is excellent and very commercial, the lawyers are very professional and always on top of things.’

‘James Shaw is a seasoned practitioner when it comes to acting for early stage companies.’

‘Iain Cockburn is the consummate trusted advisor. Super strong legally but very sharp commercially.’

‘Our work with Withers is led by Susanna Stanfield. Susanna is delightful person to work with, who brings a calm presence to discussions and negotiations. Susanna recognises the depth of work required for each event/work package and while clearly excellent in her own discipline also recognises when to bring in colleagues with relevant expertise.’

‘The lawyers offer great outside-the-box thinking.’

‘The Withers team have provided a first-class service, with a bespoke understanding of the individual needs on our company, throughout its life cycle to date, from start-up to consolidation and early growth.’

‘James Shaw is a fantastic all-round trusted adviser. He has always been great to speak to whenever we are in sticky situations and is good at providing holistic advice which takes into consideration the peculiarities of our specific business. James takes a risk-based commercial approach depending on the situation, which is much more appropriate than the usual one size fits all approach that many firms take.’

‘Iain Cockburn is an excellent technical partner – he is driving forward the firm’s innovation and cost-efficiency and data management using legal tech.’

‘Fantastic team of very capable international lawyers.’

‘Withers represents a lean team that offers great value to clients.’

‘Hussein Haeri is excellent – very knowledgeable about international arbitration and highly experienced.’

‘The team has very hardworking senior associates and very strategic partners.’

‘Tatiana Menshenina is a very strategic partner – she always thinks several steps ahead and keeps the broad picture of an arbitration in mind.’

‘Combines hard work, common sense and a keen eye for detail.’

‘Strong across both commercial and investment disputes.’

‘Particular strength in CIS-related arbitration and very good communication skills.’

‘A small but high quality team.’

‘Harvey Knight is absolutely brilliant. He has huge expertise in acting for individuals and senior managers, and will fight tirelessly for his clients. One of the few solicitors to have actually defeated the FCA in Court.’

‘The Withers team as a whole are class acts. Very astute and at the top of their game.’

‘Stephen Ross – a superb brain, an excellent commercial sense and a practical, calm manner. He’s ideal.’

‘Breadth of knowledge and experience spread over multiple jurisdictions with lawyers at every level and demonstrating linguistic skills’

‘Peter Wood – global head of litigation – a fabulous lawyer who is feathers are never unruffled – always attracts the big cases with the big clients, such as the Vatican case which he is dealing with in the UK

‘An exceptionally capable team with a vast wealth of experience. One of the very best civil fraud teams in London. Tremendously user-friendly and very easy to work with. They have a remarkable track record when it comes to delivering results.’

‘Roberto Moruzzi (partner) has a lifetime of experience in this field and is able to assemble the right people for the job in question. A delight to work with.

‘An excellent team with a significant amount of high value work. The firm also has significant international links, critical for fraud work.’

‘Roberto Moruzzi is very experienced and offers exceptional wisdom when managing cases. There is very little he has not seen before.

‘A heavily experienced commercial litigation and fraud team with strength in depth and a closely cooperative team. Very communicative and easy to deal with.’

‘Nicolette Bostock is very experienced and knowledgeable. She is a professional and knows what she is doing. She has dealt with complicated immigration matters and likes fixing tricky cases. I would not hesitate to recommend clients to Nicolette if there was a conflict.‘

‘Very good breadth of knowledge, availability is great.’

‘Nicolette is great, she is very commercial and explains everything clearly and concisely.’

‘An exceptional provider of immigration advice, the Withers team understands the pressures and requirements of our firm, and really helps us to navigate the immigration minefield in a post-Brexit UK.‘

‘They are pragmatic, understanding case facts very quickly.’

‘I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to work with the immigration team at Withers LLP (UK). Their expertise and dedication help the immigration processes of our company operate smoothly and successfully. What sets this practice apart is their unique combination of deep legal knowledge, personalised attention, and unwavering commitment to their clients.‘

‘Eleni Polycarpou gives sound commercial advice.’

‘Consistently high quality, commercially savy advice, and always willing to go the extra mile for a client.’

‘Eleni Polycarpou has great overview of her cases and finds a way to make things work for her clients. Joshua Swift is extremely bright, with a great handle on the detail. Caroline Thompson is very astute and on the ball.’

‘They have a large pool of exceptional associates.’

‘This is a strong team working in difficult cases.’

‘Joshua Swift is a particularly impressive senior associate.’

‘Strong industry knowledge, with the ability to pull in required area specialists. Very client focused – they care!’

‘Chris Priestley stands out for giving clear advice and recommendations.’

‘Strength across the team with an inclusive breadth of knowledge.’

‘Carl Newman is a dynamic, personable, great lawyer. Clients love his analytical skills and charisma in getting the right result. Anthony Hanratty is beginning to come into his own and produces fabulous written work.’

‘Natalie Sherborn possesses a deep understanding of reputation management which can literally change the course of nascent criminal investigations to her favour. An impressive and immensely talented strategic operator.’

‘Carl Newman has forgotten more about defeating criminal investigations than most people can ever hope to learn. Experienced, unflappable and simply excellent at what he does.’

‘A strong team able to advise corporates in relation to corporate crime and regulatory investigations. Also strong on internal investigations where allegations of potential misconduct arise.’

‘Natalie Sherborn possesses great experience in advising and representing global corporates facing investigation. Confident in the boardroom and able to quickly get to the heart of the matter and get buy-in from key partners.’

‘Good quality. Thoughtful and helpful.’

‘The team at Withers has a great breadth of talent from partners to associates. Natalie Sherborn who joined as a partner in May 2022 was a great addition to the team. High quality advice’.

‘Carl Newman is an exemplary talent; well respected and very commercially sound’.

‘Great strength in depth with a team of seasoned practitioners who are ahead of their game. The team is well respected in the legal community.’

‘Carl Newman is an impressive lawyer with the skills and tactics to ensure that his clients receive the best possible outcome during the lifetime of their case. He is a master tactician who is able to navigate the complexities of an instruction.’

‘An impressive team who are able to advise upon the full range of white-collar work’. 

‘Natalie Sherborn brings a calm approach to the most complex of matters. Strength in dealing with international investigations and marshalling a team of lawyers in different jurisdictions. Easy to communicate with and gets straight to the heart of the matter is a straightforward way’.

‘Withers’ employment team has a wealth of experience in claims covering a range of legal issues, including claims with an employment and commercial angle. Client management is second to none; they fight hard, but are commercial and pragmatic at the same time.’

‘Claire Christy – an outstanding employment lawyer with expertise in commercial work as well. Fantastic at managing tricky clients and opponents, and a great tactician. Tough, but pragmatic.’

‘Meriel Schindler is very responsive, experienced, commercial/pragmatic and user friendly; all of the qualities that we look for in our external lawyers.’

‘We recommend Meriel and Emma Sanderson. Emma is very clear and careful with her drafting – we have used her on employment contract reviews and projects.’

‘Excellent team with breadth of experience and expertise’

‘Extraordinary strength and depth at all levels and incredibly user friendly.’

‘Claire Christy – The lawyer of choice: exceptionally intelligent and diligent, but very personable.’

‘Excellent expertise in charity sector and good understanding of entrepreneurial or family run businesses or international matters. Really exceptional associates managed by very experienced and commercially savvy partners. First rate client care.’