Gateley Legal

Chris Adams

Chris predominantly acts for Midlands-based commercial property developers in respect of the acquisition, funding, development and disposal of land. He also advises on general real estate management issues. His experience ranges from initial site diligence, drafting and negotiation of acquisition documents for investment acquisitions and bespoke acquisition documents for land assembly for development schemes including commercial/ mixed use residential schemes, retail parks and industrial/ distribution hubs, site disposals, drafting and negotiating lease documentation (mainly acting for landlords).

Paul Alcock

Paul acts for major housebuilders, land promoters and independent property developers on site acquisitions, land options, conditional contracts and promotion and collaboration agreements.

Janine Allen

Janine advises businesses of varying sizes upon litigation and dispute resolution across a varied range of industry sectors and works with individuals, SMEs and listed companies but the emphasis is on owner managed businesses across the North West. Her main areas of experience are commercial contracts including: corporate litigation, breaches of trust/ fiduciary duty, professional negligence and contentious probate. Janine is an accredited mediator (both CEDR and ADR) and regularly mediates and resolves all types of commercial disputes.

Philip Alton

Philip has extensive experience across a broad spectrum of finance matters. He has particular expertise in equipment leasing and asset finance together with consumer credit work. He regularly provides advice on regulatory issues, drafting standard and bespoke finance documents, advice on the structuring of projects and handling one-off transactions. He has assisted various clients gain FCA authorisation and frequently advises on authorisation issues.

Andrew Annette

Andrew is an expert in all aspects of residential development work including acquisitions through immediate and conditional contracts, strategic options and promotion agreements, joint ventures and collaboration agreements, through to affordable housing disposals, infrastructure agreements, site set-up and plot sales. He has worked for SMEs through to national housebuilders throughout the Thames Valley and Home Counties including Barratt, Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon, CALA and Linden.

David Armitage

David has a wealth of expertise in corporate finance, corporate and commercial matters, including: mergers & acquisitions, cross-border transactions and investments. UK inward- and outward-bound investments acquisitions, corporate structuring and projects. He has over 30 years’ experience working for clients on growth and acquisition strategies. His clients include public companies, multi-national and private family-owned companies from the UK, the US and further afield and covering many different sectors.

Ruth Armstrong

Ruth is the Head of the Regulatory and Business Defence Unit at Gateley. Ruth is a recognised leader in the regulatory field, advising on all regulatory disciplines ranging from fatal accidents to fraud and pollution to bribery. She has over 25 years’ experience of regulatory and white collar defence work for businesses and senior office holders. Ruth sits on the IOSH Environmental & Waste Management Group national committee and working party of the National Safety & Health Conference. She delivers strategic guidance and thought leadership to industry through her business defence work.

Gareth Atkinson

Gareth has a wide range of experience in all aspects of commercial real estate work, and in particular development work. He acts for landowners, developers and local authorities in relation to large scale development and regeneration schemes.

Catriona Attride

Catriona leads the national Private Wealth & Family team at Gateley. She is a trusted legal and tax advisor, working closely with individuals and families to provide solutions to their high value and complex wealth planning and protection objectives. Catriona advises a range of clients and acts for families across the generations in planning for and preserving their wealth.

Heather Aust

Heather provides advice and support to a number of clients working in wide ranging industries including insurance, retail, construction, professional services, recruitment and manufacturing. Delivering support on issues which cover the full range of employment law, Heather is part of her client’s wider HR team advising on day-to-day workplace issues and larger restructure and litigious matters. Heather has significant experience in drafting, amending and negotiating contractual documentation and policies and in achieving results in the Employment Tribunal setting.

Christopher Avery

Christopher heads up the firm’s Reading office, in the heart of the UK’s Thames Valley. Christopher started his legal career as a commercial property lawyer and soon became the managing partner of Pitmans at the age of 31. During his 36 years with the firm the business grew from 25 to over 200 staff with a fee income in excess of £20m.

James Baird

James is an expert in advising lenders in all aspects of banking and asset finance litigation, and has particular expertise in advising on matters such as fraud, international cross-border recoveries, title disputes, quality disputes, consumer credit litigation and collections consultancy. He regularly advises lenders on and obtains injunctive relief including freezing orders and mandatory delivery up orders and is known for his pragmatic commercial legal advice and strategy in often complex cases.

Rachel Baker

Rachel acts for a wide range of developers, investors, occupiers and banks in respect of their acquisition, development and disposal of land, real estate finance and general real estate management issues. Her experience ranges from initial site diligence, drafting and negotiation of bespoke acquisition documents for schemes including large out of town retail parks and mixed use regeneration projects, site disposal, drafting and negotiating lease documentation (acting for both landlords and tenants).

Mailin Bala

Mailin is a highly experienced commercial lawyer, specialising in copyright, digital, data and media. Her work includes advising clients on a variety of commercial matters which pivot around the exploitation of intellectual property rights and digital products and services, as well as IT-related transactions. She works with clients ranging from start-ups to established global businesses, working across a variety of sectors, including digital, media and technology as well as other clients that are digitally developing their businesses (e.g. in the automotive and retail sectors).

Hannah Baldwin

Hannah advises insolvency practitioners, banks, turnaround professionals, directors, companies and creditors on all legal aspects of restructuring and insolvency including formal insolvency appointments, restructuring, security issues and disposals and acquisitions of businesses and assets out of administration. She has assisted on a number of high profile administrations including most recently, Patisserie Valerie and Jamie Oliver Restaurants.

Kate Ball

Kate specialises in residential development, acting for developers and housebuilders on the sale and purchase of development sites. Kate’s experience includes conditional development/sale agreements involving planning obligations, serviced land acquisitions and site assembly and investigations as well as disposals to affordable and private rented housing providers and commercial and health sector occupiers.

Michael Ball

Michael is based in Manchester and works with the group to make sure clients get the best out of their people in the following areas:- People Management and Development- People and Business Change- Business Protection- Conflict ResolutionHe is a CEDR accredited mediator and has 30 years' experience of acting on behalf of mainly corporate clients in particular in the retail and leisure sector.

Paul Ball

Paul advises clients on employment matters across a variety of sectors in relation to: day-to-day employee issues such as disciplinary action and dealing with grievances strategic advice, in particular relating to change management: large scale redundancy, changing terms and conditions of employment or business transfer situations discrimination issues confidentiality and post-termination restrictive covenant issues contractual issues in relation to business transfers and TUPE employment aspects of corporate transactions employment law training service agreements settlement agreements, in particular executive severance Paul has advised employers on all aspects of employment law for over 20 years and has particular experience in relation to discrimination issues, contractual issues arising on business transfers, and the delivery of in-house client training.

Peter Barr

Peter is an experienced litigator, regularly advising on high value, complex disputes. His practice covers a diverse range of sectors including energy and utilities, housebuilding and construction, logistics, shareholder disputes and higher education. He has acted in a number of the leading Court of Appeal cases involving higher education institutions. Peter is frequently instructed to advise on complex commercial litigation, development disputes, overage disputes, procurement challenges and Judicial Review as well as all types of alternative dispute resolution. Because of the breadth of his practise, Peter is often required to advise in relation to data subject access requests, freedom of information requests, defamation and reputation protection, nuisance claims and breaches of restrictive covenants.

James Baty

James advises on both contentious and non-contentious insolvency and restructuring matters. His particular specialism concerns litigation arising in the context of insolvency, civil fraud and professional liability. James acts for a wide variety of clients including directors, investors and insolvency practitioners. James is highly regarded for his detailed forensic ability on complex cases and is increasingly instructed concerning cross-border claims or litigation for offshore clients whose claims have a nexus to the UK. He has acted in relation to a number of notable successes including the reported decision in Angelmist Properties Limited [2015] EWHC 1858 (CH). Since qualification James has handled cases resulting in actual recoveries for clients exceeding £50m.

Joanna Belmonte

Jo ensures that the banking lawyers are kept up to date with changes in law and market practice. She has experience in a wide variety of aspects of banking work including bilateral and syndicated facilities, security structures and intercreditor arrangements. She has worked for borrowers, institutional investors, private equity providers and social housing groups.Prior to working as a professional support lawyer, Jo gained extensive experience in coordinating and running acquisition and leveraged finance transactions and property and development finance transactions both within the UK and internationally. She is dual qualified in both England & Scotland and practices in England.

Gary Bird

Gary has over 30 years’ litigation experience in both real estate and commercial litigation. He deals with any real estate related disputes, in particular landlord and tenant disputes, and provides advice to clients on real estate transactions. Gary has litigation experience at all levels of court up to and including the House of Lords. He also has expertise in alternative methods of dispute resolution and extra-judicial tribunals such as the First-tier Tribunal.

Lesley Brentnall

Lesley’s expertise is residential property and residential development in addition to all areas of non-contentious landlord and tenant work, property management and leasehold enfranchisement claims. Lesley has worked in property law for over 25 years and has considerable experience in dealingwith all elements of residential property. She has acted for many satisfied owners and investorsas well as some of the most innovative property developers in the East Midlands. She has a loyal client following and is very well regarded in the residential property sector.

Sophie Brookes

Sophie leads the team of professional support lawyers at Gateley Plc and also manages the firm's Information Resources team. As a Corporate PSL, it is Sophie's job to make sure that Gateley's lawyers and clients are kept up to date with new law and market practice in the dynamic world of corporate finance.Her role includes analysing new law and practice to advise how these could affect Gateley's clients and their transactions. She also identifies future developments, including innovations in legal technology, and designs novel processes to help Gateley deliver commercial legal services efficiently and effectively. Sophie is an accomplished public speaker and effective trainer, regularly designing and delivering tailored sessions to Gateley Legal clients and contacts.

Matthew Brown

Matthew is an experienced restructuring advisor to large and small companies. He also advises restructuring professionals such as accountants, financial institutions, directors, landlords and pensions trustees. Matthew has particular expertise in creating and implementing solutions to restructure financially or operationally challenged companies.

Nigel Brown

Nigel specialises in all aspects of corporate work advising both public and private companies on acquisitions and disposals, corporate finance (including equity and debt issues) and corporate governance. With extensive experience of advising at a senior level in a variety of sectors, Nigel also has a broad experience of corporate and commercial transactions including shareholder arrangements, joint ventures and commercial contracts. His practice includes capital markets where he has advised many UK and international issuers on their flotations and primary and secondary fundraising, as well as acting for institutions including nominated advisers and brokers.

Andrew Buchanan

Andrew heads up the Restructuring Advisory unit and specialises in advising upon corporate strategy and trading whilst under financial pressure, often during the twilight zone, and is predominantly based in the North West and London. This advice requires a solutions-driven approach with Andrew often accepting the lead advisor role to highlight transactional and corporate restructuring solutions. Andrew acts for private and public companies, financial institutions, funders and other stakeholders. He has recently represented our surety clients upon a number of very significant restructuring assignments. Andrew regularly advises Boards of Directors and other stakeholders upon directors' duties and trading issues. This experience can frequently lead to the formulation of transactional and other restructuring solutions, both solvent and insolvent. Andrew has worked with a range of household names and sectors in which he has experience include automotive, aerospace, retail, manufacturing, technology, care homes, real estate and professional services. Andrew often works closely with colleagues who specialise in providing solutions for pension deficits.

John Buckby

John specialises in intellectual property law. His work covers the full spectrum of contentious and non-contentious intellectual property, including trade marks, passing off, copyright, designs, patents, confidential information, and domain names. John is a dual-qualified solicitor and trade mark attorney. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (CITMA) and the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI). John is particularly experienced in advising on the protection and enforcement of trade marks, brands and copyright. He handles trade mark applications, oppositions, revocations, cancellations, and related proceedings around the world. John worked in the music industry for several years before becoming a lawyer. He takes a highly pragmatic ‘no fuss’ approach to solving legal problems and seeks favourable commercial deals and solutions for his clients. John has a strong track record of resolving intellectual property disputes in a client-focused, efficient way. He has won numerous cases in the courts and trade mark registries, including cases in the UK courts relating to passing off, copyright, and design rights. Recent cases include trade mark oppositions, revocations, and complex trademark disputes relating to keyword advertising and comparative advertising.

Peter Budd

Peter has vast experience acting for blue chip and public sector clients on commercial, IT and all service related matters, particularly in connection with supply contracts, logistics, outsourcing, systems procurement and regulatory issues including data protection and e-commerce.

Kate Canning

Kate specialises in commercial disputes and regularly brings and defends claims in a variety of sectors. She focuses on actions relating to breach of restrictive covenants and breaches of confidentiality, business ownership and management disputes, disputes arising out of the sale and purchase of businesses, healthcare and public procurement disputes. She has acted on numerous cases involving both making and defending applications for urgent interim relief including Search Orders, Delivery Up Orders and prohibitive injunctions. She has experience in IP disputes and cross-border disputes.

Anjali Chadda

Anjali is a professional support lawyer in the Commercial Dispute Resolution team. She is responsible for ensuring that our dispute resolution lawyers are kept up to date with legal developments and changes to civil procedure. Anjali delivers and coordinates the dispute resolution in-house training programme. She has experience in creating and delivering bespoke training courses and seminars.

Charlotte Chapman

Associate in Real Estate. I deal with a wide range of transactional property matters, with particular experience in acting for pension schemes on property acquisitions, and for holders of large investment portfolios with property acquisition and management work. I also have experience of assisting on corporate support and insolvency matters and acting for corporate clients on landlord and tenant transactions.

Chris Cheatle

Chris specialises in advising corporate occupiers in all aspects of landlord and tenant work. His key client’s include Goodyear and Formula One Auto Centres as well as a major high street and a number of businesses in the retail sector. Chris spent a number of years earlier in his career working in the in-house property team of NatWest bank dealing with the bank’s “business as usual” real estate requirements.

Lisa Clark

After spending over a decade at Gateley specialising in the acquisition of sites for immediate and strategic residential development schemes, Lisa was appointed Head of Midlands Plot Sales and Plot Support. She manages the plot sales, infrastructure and setup teams in our Birmingham office. She also has experience assisting our litigation department with claims made by and against residential development clients

Gavin Clarke

Gavin is a specialist restructuring lawyer. Consistent exposure to a wide range of projects, together with a secondment at a firm of accountants, has allowed Gavin to develop an informed but commercial approach to law and a greater understanding of clients’ needs. Gavin has significant experience advising insolvency practitioners and financial institutions on all legal matters arising from corporate and individual insolvencies.

Jodie Clarke

Jodie’s experience includes acting for companies, business owners and senior executives on a broad range of employment and HR issues. Jodie specialises in drafting and advising on employment contracts and company handbooks/policies; assisting with disciplinary and grievance issues; corporate support work; HR support and in-house training; redundancy and restructuring exercises; managing and implementing dismissals; post-termination disputes and settlement agreements; and Employment Tribunal litigation.

Paul Cliff

Paul specialises in mergers & acquisitions in the private and public company arena, capital markets work and public company advisory work. He has many years’ experience of working at the very highest levels of industry and commerce and always offers down-to-earth, pragmatic advice no matter how complex the transaction. Paul is a member of the Legal Experts Group of the Quoted Companies Alliance (QCA) and heads the firm’s capital markets group.

Richard Clitherow

Richard has a wealth of experience in tax matters and is a Chartered Tax Adviser. He advises on employee share incentive agreements, tax provisions in business and share sale agreements, venture capital investment reliefs, capital gains tax planning, reorganisations and real estate taxes including stamp duty land tax and VAT.

Michael Collins

Michael advises employers and trustees of occupational pension schemes on all aspects of pensions law as well as dealing with pensions issues on corporate transactions. He also provides legal advice to executive pension providers and other pension professionals. He is well placed to advise on all pensions related issues, having advised clients ranging from owner managed businesses in relation to their executive pensions to the multi-billion pound pension funds of major international companies.

Simon Cooper

Patent Attorney & Trade Mark Attorney, Managing Director

Della Copley

Della is a Senior Associate who specialises in contentious and non-contentious infrastructure and construction matters. She acts for a variety of private and public sector clients including developers, funders and contractors across a range of sectors. Della assists clients with the resolution of disputes and has experience in a broad range of dispute resolution methods, including adjudication, litigation and arbitration. She drafts, negotiates and advises on a variety of project documents, including standard and bespoke building contracts, professional appointments, collateral warranties and bonds.

Rafe Courage

Rafe specialises in residential development, acting for developers, housebuilders, social housing providers and landowners on the sale and purchase of development sites. The type of work that Rafe undertakes includes conditional development/sale agreements involving planning obligations, site assembly and investigations and infrastructure logistics. Rafe is experienced in negotiating sales, planning and/or revenue overage agreements, commercial lettings and complex infrastructure/energy (CHP) arrangements.

Andrew Cowan

Andrew has many years’ experience in advising on mergers and acquisitions. He regularly acts for owner managers, private equity and trade across a wide variety of sectors in relation to complex acquisitions, disposals, private equity investments, reorganisations and joint ventures. As national head of the firm’s Transaction Support Services group, Andrew utilises his wealth of experience in leading specialist teams undertaking large scale legal due diligence and transaction support exercises.

Alison Davidson-Cox

Alison specialises in acquisition, corporate and leveraged finance and acts for banks, funds and alternative lenders in their roles as senior (including unitranche), super senior RCF or mezzanine lender as well as private equity investors. Alison has particular expertise in acting both investor and lender side on sponsor-backed acquisitions, and advises on bilateral and syndicated finance transactions across a wide range of industries. Alison has spent some time in-house at Barclays Bank where she gained experience in project and infrastructure finance as well as general corporate lending, and was heavily involved in a bank-wide project to improve the setting and measurement of financial covenants. Alison also has experience in real estate finance and ABL transactions.

Christopher Davies

Christopher is a professional support lawyer and has specialised in employment law for over 20 years. He is responsible for ensuring that our employment lawyers are kept up to date with legal developments and changes to civil procedure. Christopher delivers and co-ordinates our employment in-house training programme and has experience in creating and delivering bespoke training courses and seminars. He writes legal updates and articles for external publications.

Michelle Davies

Peter Davies

Peter is an experienced dispute resolution lawyer in the firm’s Construction unit and a member of the Strategic and Operations Boards. He has considerable experience in construction disputes, acting for developers, contractors, sub-contractors and construction professionals. He is familiar with all standard industry documentation and has considerable experience of all types of dispute resolution.

Helen Davison

Laura Devlin

Laura is experienced in advising on corporate, real estate and leverage finance transactions. Her practice spans a range of sectors with particular experience in general residential, commercial and mixed use investment and development finance.

John Downs

John has expertise in a wide range of commercial property work with a particular focus on the hotels and leisure sector, real estate finance, retail and investment property matters. He advises a variety of international and UK corporate clients on acquisitions and disposals of various types of commercial property, from individual properties to the acquisition or sale of portfolios of properties. He has acted for a number of institutional landlords and corporate tenants on estate management matters, including the roll-out of branded concepts. In addition, he also regularly works closely with colleagues on the property elements of corporate transactions.

John Downs

John has expertise in a wide range of commercial property work with a particular focus on the hotels and leisure sector, real estate finance, retail and investment property matters. He advises a variety of international and UK corporate clients on acquisitions and disposals of various types of commercial property, from individual properties to the acquisition or sale of portfolios of properties. He has acted for a number of institutional landlords and corporate tenants on estate management matters, including the roll-out of branded concepts. In addition, he also regularly works closely with colleagues on the property elements of corporate transactions.

Emily Drake

Emily specialises in civil fraud matters and advises in relation to claims such as tax avoidance, complex property fraud and cryptocurrency fraud. Her experience includes advising in relation to fraud claims both before the High Court and the LCIA and she has advised institutional clients before the First-Tier and Upper Tribunal (Tax). Her expertise also covers asset protection, asset tracing and recovery and she has advised clients in cross-border matter involving other jurisdictions such as the BVI, Cyprus and the CIS market. Emily also has significant experience in advising clients at the investigatory stage of matters, assisting clients to identify and prepare claims, identify and recover assets and preparing interim applications for the preservation of assets and documentation.

Hannah Drozdz

Hannah is a professional support lawyer in the restructuring team. She ensures that the restructuring lawyers are kept up to date with changes in law and market practice. Hannah has experience in a wide variety of aspects of restructuring work both contentious and non-contentious. She has worked for insolvency practitioners, directors, banks and companies facing claims from insolvency practitioners.

Jonathan Dugdale

Jonathan acts predominantly for lenders as well as for pension funds, developers and borrowers on real estate transactions. He is experienced in investment and development funding along with landlord and tenant, development, and sale and purchase transactions as part of the firm’s wider commercial property offering.

Elly Duggins

Elly’s main areas of expertise include acquisitions and disposals of commercial real estate, landlord and tenant issues and real estate finance. She also specialises in real estate transactions involving pension schemes and has acted for a number of pension providers.

Chris Dunn

Christopher has specialised in corporate work since qualification in 1983. He has wide experience of mergers & acquisitions, management buy-outs and buy-ins, reorganisations, shareholder disputes and providing wide ranging advice to boards of directors. He has extensive experience of work for property companies and for professional firms.

Harriet Eden

Harriet has been appointed as the dedicated professional support lawyer for the residential development team. Her role is to ensure that the team is kept up to date with changes in the law and the housebuilding sector, as well as overseeing training and compliance with client requirements.

Susan Ehlinger

Susan specialises in planning law and is involved in the Planning team’s full offering – from drafting and negotiating section 106 agreements, advising on strategy and the planning regime generally (including planning enforcement), town and village green issues, through to providing highway advice. She has extensive experience in a range of property types, including in the residential, retail, hotel, and manufacturing and distribution sectors. Her planning expertise is therefore wide-ranging and encompasses many high value cases. Susan also regularly works for a number of well-known companies and national brands.

Victoria Elliot

Victoria has a wide range of experience in all aspects of corporate law including private equity transactions, mergers and acquisitions and management buy-outs. She acts for private equity investors, management teams, SMEs, corporates and entrepreneurs.

Victoria Elliott

Victoria has a wide range of experience in all aspects of corporate law including private equity transactions, mergers and acquisitions and management buy-outs. She acts for private equity investors, management teams, SMEs, corporates and entrepreneurs.

Fiona Emms

Fiona undertakes all aspects of insolvency and corporate recovery work with particular specialism in contentious matters. She has extensive experience of acting in contentious insolvency proceedings including cases involving allegations of fraud and breach of duty as well as the full range of office holders claims based on antecedent transactions and wrongful trading. She has acted for both office holders and former directors in bringing and defending claims.

Avril England

Work for a variety of clients, primarily medium to large size companies. Provide a full range of employment work, both contentious and non contentious.

Stuart Evans

Stuart advises on a wide variety of pensions law issues. He works on numerous schemes to which Gateley’s independent trustee company, Entrust Pension Limited, has been appointed as trustee. His experience includes drafting pension scheme deeds and rules, advising employers and trustees of occupational pension schemes on the interpretation of scheme documentation and on the exercise of their duties, powers and discretions.

Christopher Fanner

Chris has a wealth of experience advising on a wide variety of leveraged acquisition, corporate, telecoms, funds, infrastructure and other structured debt financings. His client base includes banks, mezzanine funds, private equity funds and portfolio companies, and corporate borrowers. He is an expert in advising companies based within the healthcare, TMT and financial services sectors.

Jenni Ferguson

Jenni specialises in private company acquisitions and disposals, private equity transactions, corporate reorganisations and general corporate advisory matters. Jenni’s experience includes acting for companies, business owners, private equity investors and management teams on a broad range of corporate transactions.

Ryan Ferguson

Ryan specialises in residential development, including land acquisition and strategic land options. He acts for most of the top 10 housebuilders in the UK, and for smaller developers/land promoters acquiring interests in land for residential development. He also has experience of commercial lettings and funding arrangements.

Ryan Ferguson

Ryan specialises in residential development, including land acquisition and strategic land options. He acts for most of the top 10 housebuilders in the UK, and for smaller developers/land promoters acquiring interests in land for residential development. He also has experience of commercial lettings and funding arrangements.

Andrew Field

Andrew specialises in finance litigation, advising and representing financial institutions. His expertise includes guarantee claims, security enforcement (including mortgage possession proceedings), injunctive relief, asset recovery, professional negligence claims, fraud claims and personal insolvency. He also acts for lenders in defending claims brought by customers. Andrew has significant advocacy and mediation experience.

Sarah Fitzgibbons

Sarah specialises in commercial dispute resolution, with particular emphasis on shareholder disputes. She has acted for Plcs, privately-owned companies and individuals in a variety of matters including advising on shareholder disputes, commercial contract disputes, restrictive covenant claims, injunctions and search orders, partnership disputes, professional negligence claims and breach of warranty claims.

Ravi Francis

The majority of Ravi’s practice is for international clients. His clients are normally professional fiduciaries, wealthy individuals and their advisers. Ravi advises on a broad range of subjects which tend to centre around UK tax law and the law governing trusts and other wealth-holding structures. His most common areas of advice include Supporting individuals, businesses and fiduciaries on the UK taxation and structuring of crypto assets as well as succession and estate planning considerations surrounding digital assets. tax planning for clients who are moving to or leaving the UK, to minimise both UK and foreign taxes; determining an individual’s UK tax residence and domicile status under UK law and the impact this has for UK tax purposes; using offshore trusts, foundations and companies to hold personal wealth and business assets; establishment, administration and taxation of UK investment companies; advising on UK succession laws and how conflicts with foreign succession laws can be resolved; and the application of double taxation agreements to an individual’s affairs.

Rebecca Freeman

Daniel French

Daniel is an expert insolvency and business restructuring advisor to insolvency practitioners, institutional lenders and major corporates. She has many years’ experience in the corporate restructuring and recovery market, with a particular interest in real estate issues arising within an insolvency context. He has experience in advising in many sectors such as property, manufacturing, retail, leisure and professional services.

Kerry Gibbons

Kerry is a seasoned and highly regarded banking lawyer with a wealth of experience. Kerry is known for her balance of fastidious attention to detail and solutions focused commerciality. She is determined and will always go the extra mile to get transactions across the line. Kerry is great at forging strong relationships with both clients and other lawyers. She has a broad practice acting for both banks and borrowers across a range of transactions. She is experienced in acquisition finance, real estate finance, structured finance, asset-based lending and traditional banking finance.

Sarbjeet Gill

Sarb specialises in residential development including promotion agreements, strategic options land acquisitions and sales of affordable housing to registered providers. Sarb has experience acting for both promoters and developers.

Simon Gill

Simon specialises in corporate acquisitions and disposals, re-organisations and corporate finance transactions. He is a member of the private equity team and regularly acts for institutions and management teams on leveraged transactions requiring an equity investment. As a senior lawyer with many years’ corporate experience, Simon is ideally placed to advise on the full range of issues arising from corporate acquisitions, disposals and mergers. He has a detailed understanding of business realities that comes from working with large retail and trading brands.

Richard Gillatt

Richard specialises in the site set up and preparation of sales documentation in relation to residential developments including management agreements with management companies. He also deals with legal issues arising throughout the life of the developments and the handover to management companies. He has over 30 years of experience acting for local and national housebuilders. He has dealt with most aspects of property work for housebuilders over the years.

Colin Gittus

Colin is a real estate lawyer specialising in finance and investment transactions. He advises on all manners of real estate finance, investment, real estate portfolio management and corporate support work.

Charles Glaskie

Charles is Head of Gateley's Corporate Platform. He specialises in mergers & acquisitions in both the private and public company arenas. Charles has many years’ experience of a full range of corporate finance work. He has a master’s degree in law (from the College of William & Mary, Virginia, USA) and has been awarded the Corporate Finance Qualification by the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Stephen Goodrham

Steve is a partner and an expert in dealing with commercial disputes. He is a specialist in acting for businesses that need to enforce restrictive covenants, as well as professional negligence cases and disputes arising out of business sales. He also advises clients on contractual claims, and how clients should terminate particular contracts or respond to termination by other contracting parties. Steve has spent over 20 years dealing with commercial disputes He has acted for PLCs, private companies and individuals.

James Gopsill

James specialises in all areas of corporate tax, real estate tax and share schemes. He has particular expertise on the taxation of real estate investment, real estate development and urban regeneration. James' clients include global banks, listed companies, private companies, entrepreneurs and individuals, charities and landowners. He is a consulting editor on VAT, stamp duties and stamp duty land tax for Lexis Nexis Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents. He is also a member of the VAT Practitioners Group and a member of Law Society Stamp Taxes Working Group.

Benedict Gorner

Benedict is a trusted advisor on employment law matters to a range of blue chip clients. His contentious practice encompasses everything from high court restrictive covenant disputes to multi-party tribunal claims. Benedict is also frequently asked to advise on transactional projects, with a particular focus on TUPE transfers and change management programmes.

Chris Greenwell

Chris has practised in broad litigation for over 30 years, now specialising in shareholder, warranty and earn-out issues arising out of mergers and acquisitions, professional negligence (issues arising out of solicitors and financial services in particular), breaches of employment covenants and financial services regulatory obligations, trust disputes and contentious probate/ inheritance claims with a team develops the firm’s practice in this field. Much of this litigation is resolved at mediation. Many cases are conducted on a fee or risk sharing agreement with clients. Chris has acted to pursue and attend in civil proceedings and for claimants and defendants in claims in Dubai, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya, South Africa and the USA. Chris has in the past practised in criminal defence, personal injury (former member of a personal injury panel) and employment litigation; a collection of experience invaluable in delivery of the range and breadth of his practice and particular specialisms now.

Philip Gregory

Phil specialises in commercial property development work, acting for developers and end user occupiers on complex and large scale development schemes. He has particular expertise in acting on retail development projects and regeneration schemes. In addition to advising on development transactions, Phil has experience in acting on significant investment and portfolio sale and purchase transactions as well as all types of landlord and tenant matters.

Rebecca Grisewood

Rebecca is a partner in the Corporate team with many years’ legal experience. She specialises in all corporate transactions such as mergers and acquisitions, disposals and joint ventures, and has particular expertise in private equity deals. Rebecca acts for international and UK corporates, financial institutions, management teams and entrepreneurs.

Guy Guinan

Guy has extensive experience of both contentious and non-contentious employment law. He acts for a broad range of national and international clients in the corporate, retail, leisure and public sectors. He advises in respect of all other forms of trade dispute and frequently appears as an advocate in the Employment Tribunals dealing with unfair dismissal, discrimination and other employment litigation. Guy takes a proactive approach to dispute resolution and his practice is focussed on being innovative and finding a commercial solution to disputes prior to litigation becoming necessary. Guy’s forte is in providing pragmatic advice to in-house counsel and HR professionals alike.

David Gwilliam

Patent Attorney & Trade Mark Attorney, Partner

Kathryn Hacking

Kathryn specialises in contentious insolvency work and all advisory aspects before and after insolvency. Typically Kathryn advises insolvency practitioners, secured lenders, creditors and directors on insolvency issues. Her areas of expertise involve advising on setting aside antecedent transactions, investigation work, fraud, dishonesty, tax avoidance, recovery of monies from and to companies in financial difficulties on a funded or contingent basis. She also deals with all types of insolvency appointments and all issues arising pre and post insolvency appointments.

Oliver Harker

Oliver advises on a broad range of corporate and capital markets matters, including private M&A, Takeover Code-governed transactions, IPOs, private equity, venture capital and joint ventures. He acts for private and public listed companies, financial institutions, private equity, management teams, entrepreneurs and state owned entities and has a wealth of experience of advising on complex cross-border transactions.

Lorna Harris

Lorna specialises in all aspects of employment law. She acts for larger corporate clients, with sites and operations throughout the UK, in a range of sectors including utilities and energy, betting and gaming, health, retail and hospitality. She has an extensive litigation practice and acts in many complex, high value and multiday Employment Tribunal cases, in particular she has been involved in some high value whistleblowing and protective award disputes.

Danielle Haston

Danielle is predominantly instructed by Insolvency Act officeholders but also advises UK local authorities, private equity houses, investors, foreign creditors and company directors on institutional civil financial fraud, asset stripping and tax avoidance including working alongside the criminal authorities where there is a civil/criminal overlap. She has solid cross-border experience and is heavily involved in the firm’s Russia and CIS litigation practice on claims where there is a route to bringing claims from those jurisdictions in the UK. She is now developing a crypto-asset recovery niche practice to assist both insolvency practitioners and victims of high value fraud aimed at investigating, tracing and recovering cryptocurrency and assets bought with fraudulently obtained crypto and she is a member of CAPAG.

Julian Hayes

Julian has over two decades of experience of litigation, principally in relation to high value professional negligence cases and providing litigation services to insolvency practitioners and commercial clients arising from corporate and complex individual insolvency. Julian has successfully pursued negligence, office holder and company claims against professionals and directors. Assignments have included acting for HMRC in relation to orchestrated missing trader fraud and pursuing claims arising from the administration of a managed serviced company scheme.

Paul Hayward

Paul provides expert advice for institutions and management teams on leveraged transactions. He also heads up the firm’s London office. He specialises in investment work and in advising on all forms of merger & acquisition work. He advises numerous private equity funds on a wide range of corporate matters.

Richard Healey

Richard has expertise in restructuring matters and complex and international dispute resolution. He has significant extra-territorial experience in asset protection, asset tracing and recovery and of representing parties in disputes, both in the High Court and London Court of International Arbitration, as well as numerous overseas courts including the Courts of Appeal of Hong Kong, Singapore and Gibraltar. Richard has a particular specialism in cases involving tax avoidance, evasion and fraud. He started his career as a Banking and Financial Services Litigator at the international firm of Simmons and Simmons and now has 20 years of complex litigation experience. Since 1999, he’s had extensive experience of conducting heavyweight financial litigation matters on behalf of high net worth individuals, corporate, institutional and officeholder clients as well as government departments.

Claire Herbert

Claire is a Partner and advises on a wide variety of commercial disputes for a range of clients. Claire specialises contentious probate/inheritance claims and is experienced in dealing with media litigation, contractual claims, professional negligence, shareholder and partnership disputes, and enforcement action.

Jim Hillan

Jim’s practice covers the provision of tax advice to clients undertaking domestic and international corporate transactions. He also specialises in the VAT and stamp taxes issues arising from real estate development and investment transactions.

Katherine Hornsby

Katherine specialises in corporate finance and general corporate work including mergers & acquisitions, disposals, private equity, buy-outs, investments and joint ventures and has experience acting for buyers, sellers, private equity funds and management teams.

Holly Howarth

Holly specialises in contentious construction matters dealing most commonly with adjudications, High Court litigation and the mediation of construction, engineering and professional negligence disputes. She acts for and against employers, developers, contractors and sub-contractors in addition to construction professionals such as architects, surveyors or engineers. Holly also advises on bond wordings and disputes in relation to bonds, indemnities and guarantees. Holly enjoys Higher Rights of Audience before the Senior Courts of England and Wales.

Emlyn Hudson

Emlyn is Gateley’s national head of the Construction & Surety unit. He deals with the full range of complex construction and surety work. This includes complex bond transactions, bond disputes and the security and recovery claims in addition to high value, complex disputes arising out of all the forms of major standard form construction and engineering contracts as well as professional negligence claims. Emlyn prosecutes litigation, arbitration and adjudication proceedings in conjunction with the strategic use of alternate dispute resolution (mediation, conciliation and expert determination).

Darren Hughes

Darren has experience in dealing with all aspects of commercial real estate work including real estate finance. He acts for a wide range of occupiers, developers, investors and banks on site acquisitions, disposals, day-to-day property management and real estate finance.

Tom Hughes

Tom specialises in commercial contracts, IT and intellectual property. His work covers a broad range of legal issues and types of agreement, but particular areas of focus include cloud-based / SaaS solutions, consumer contracts and regulatory issues such as data protection. Tom works with clients across a variety of sectors, from niche technology start-up firms to large multinationals and major national retail clients. He acts on high value and business critical commercial contracts and has also prepared many framework agreements and standard terms and conditions for clients, together with regularly advising on a whole range of “business as usual” legal issues and agreements.

Louise Ilhan

Louise specialises in the acquisition of immediate and strategic land for the UK’s foremost housebuilders. Her work focuses on site acquisition through land options, conditional contracts and promotion and collaboration agreements. Louise spent ten years post-qualification in private practice dealing with all areas of commercial property, advising a wide range of corporate retail, leisure, banking and investor clients on acquisitions and disposals and all aspects of landlord and tenant and estate management.

Mark Iveson

Mark specialises in all aspects of planning and compulsory purchase law and associated environmental and highways issues. His work involves complex statutory agreements, strategic planning advice, appeals, applications, development consent orders, scheme/site specific advice/opinions and High Court work.

Martin Jahreiss

Martin is a specialist tax lawyer who advises on a broad range of tax issues across all types of transactions and restructurings. He specialises in company tax planning, corporate acquisitions and disposals, reconstructions, management buy-outs and management buy-ins. He is frequently involved in real estate transactions and advises on share-based employee incentivisation. As well as being a qualified solicitor, he is a chartered tax adviser and the education secretary of the regional committee of the Chartered Institute of Taxation.

Paul Jefferson

Paul heads up the Gateley Private Equity group and has over 25 years of corporate transactional experience. He leads a variety of M&A deals, specialising in private equity transactions, such as management buy-out/buy-in and development capital investments, as well as advising on mergers and acquisitions, disposals and joint ventures. Paul also advises on fund formation and constitution for a range of private and institutional investors and limited partners both in the UK and offshore, advising fund managers and limited partners in those structures.

Andrew Johnson

Andrew has many years’ experience in handling commercial disputes and heads up Gateley’s Commercial Dispute Resolution unit. His expertise encompasses court proceedings, arbitrations, mediations and expert determinations. Andrew has significant experience in acting in a range of disputes including dealing with issues arising out of corporate transactions, complex projects, trading contracts and property related agreements. Andrew has acted for a range of Plc clients and other organisations including: Bellway Homes Limited, Repsol Sinopec Resources UK Limited, Marshalls Plc, FCC Environment Limited and the Universities of Leicester and Leeds.

Chris Jones

Chris acts for lenders and borrowers on a broad range of financing transactions. He has extensive experience and is highly knowledgeable in corporate/leveraged finance, real estate finance, asset-based lending and structured finance. His clients have included major UK and international banks, challenger banks and other alternative lenders, debt investment funds and private equity houses, together with corporate borrower clients in a wide variety of sectors and industries. Chris has significant asset finance experience, principally involving aviation and rail, where clients have included the Department for Transport, transport specialist banks, and owner-lessors and operating lessees of planes and rolling stock. Chris also has a strong working knowledge of restructuring, enforcement and insolvency matters. Chris studied Law at the University of Oxford, graduating in 2003. He qualified as a Solicitor in 2007 and spent the first eight years of his career with the London office of a “Magic Circle” law firm. This period included client secondments to the securitisation transaction execution team of a major international bank and to the in-house legal team of a rolling stock owner-lessor. More recently, Chris was a Partner with an award-winning regional law firm before joining Gateley Legal in January 2020.

Helen Jones

Helen is a Senior Associate in the Restructuring team at Gateley, based in Birmingham. She specialises in non-contentious insolvency transactional and advisory work. Helen regularly advises financial institutions, investors, companies/directors, insolvency practitioners and creditors on all aspects of security and its enforcement, restructuring, distressed acquisitions and disposals and formal insolvency processes. She completed a secondment to a major clearing Bank.

Richard Jordan

Richard provides tax and legal advice to high net worth individuals, their families, trustees and family offices. He provides full estate and succession planning advice for clients that are tax resident in the UK, often with tax as a major factor, and frequently in connection with liquidation events. He explains, in simple terms, the wide range of planning options available to such clients, from family investment companies to trusts. Further afield, Richard provides expert tax advice to individuals looking to immigrate to the UK, or seeking to invest some of their personal wealth into the UK. He has expertise in the legal and tax implications of a wide variety of offshore structures used to hold luxury assets and liquid investments.

Tamanna Keir

Tamanna advises on all aspects of corporate law, specifically company mergers and acquisitions, private equity investment and capital markets. She acts for companies, nominated advisors, private equity investors and management teams and has significant cross-border experience with clients based in the US, East Asia, India and Europe.

Patrick Kennedy

Patrick is a partner in the pensions team as well as a director and founder of Entrust, a leading professional pension trustee company. He has overseen Entrust develop into a global business helping inward investors in more than 20 countries worldwide manage legacy defined benefit scheme liability aspects of their UK operations. Patrick has helped to develop Entrust’s comprehensive services platform for businesses seeking to reduce the time and money spent looking after their defined benefit schemes. He has worked on sole trustee appointments and co-trustee cases, including as Chair of trustees. Patrick has succeeded in challenging negotiations, assisted employers to break free from outdated scheme structures and brought a leading industry wide scheme for over 200 employers to a successful conclusion.

Amira Khan

Amira handles both contentious and non-contentious construction matters, advising on a wide range of building and engineering disputes relating to payment, claims for variations, extensions of time, loss and expense and professional negligence. Amira acts for housebuilders, developers, funders and end user occupiers as well as on behalf of main contractors, consultants and specialist sub-contractors.

Megan Kirby

Megan specialises in corporate lending and is regularly involved in acquisition finance. She has experience acting for banks as well as private equity investors and corporate borrowers in a range of sectors, including real estate and healthcare.

Nicola Kirk

Nicola is a specialist restructuring partner who provides advice and assistance on contentious and non-contentious insolvency, restructuring, refinancing, turnaround, rescues, recoveries, security issues, protection of creditor interests and advisory matters (both corporate and personal). She also specialises in commercial disputes with particular emphasis on finance, corporate and shareholder disputes, asset and debt recovery.

Chris Kisby

Chris specialises in providing employment law advice and assistance in relation to all human resource matters and all employment-related aspects of corporate and commercial transactions (including IPOs, mergers, acquisitions, insolvencies, as well as commercial insourcing and outsourcing arrangements). He also specialises in Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeal Tribunal litigation and advocacy. He acts for national and international clients across a diverse range of sectors. He has acted for professional sports organisations, sports governing bodies, transport and logistics businesses, media and publishing companies, food and drink manufacturers, global retail brands, security service providers, investment banks and other financial services organisations.

Phillip Laidlow

Philip is a specialist in wills, trusts, tax law and estate planning and has been involved in planning against care fees for many years. He has lectured extensively on the subject and has appeared on television and in radio broadcasts, together with providing commentary in various publications. He has written and contributed to many books including: Tolleys Tax Planning for Post Death deeds of Variation, Tolleys Inheritance Tax, Tolleys Annual Tax Planning, and Tolleys Tax Havens.

Belinda Laurance

Belinda specialises in residential development and regeneration sites, regularly advising national developers on land acquisition including conditional contracts, funding agreements, development agreements and building leases. Belinda also advises housebuilders on disposals to registered providers and local authorities. Belinda’s expertise is in acting for national housebuilders and for institutional and agricultural landowners. She has significant experience in strategic land, advising on option agreements and promotion agreements. She also has expertise in landowner collaboration agreements for strategic sites, advising on equalisation and land pooling arrangements.

Tim Ledger

Tim has acted for all of the country’s largest national housebuilders, including regeneration specialists.In addition to acting for housebuilders, a good deal of Tim's practice nowadays involves acting for three of the country’s largest residential land promoters. Since 1987, Tim has specialised exclusively in the housebuilding sector and as a consequence has an enviable wealth of experience in dealing with all aspects of the acquisition and disposal of consented and unconsented land whether through conditional contracts, strategic options or land promotion agreements. He has also prepared consortium and partnering agreements between other builders, Registered Providers and local authorities.

Matt Leech

Matt specialises in all aspects of recovery, restructuring and insolvency work, with an emphasis on non-contentious corporate and property advice. He advises insolvency practitioners, fixed charge receivers, banks and other lenders, directors and shareholders. Matt has undertaken secondments with Royal Bank of Scotland’s AIM team, Yorkshire Bank’s SBS team and National Australia Bank’s CRE team and has a good working knowledge of lenders’ internal processes, procedures and requirements.

Mark Lennon

Mark is an experienced dispute resolution lawyer. He acts for clients in various forms of dispute resolution, including formal court litigation, adjudication, mediation and negotiation. He specialises in contentious construction matters, acting for a wide range of clients including housebuilders, developers, contractors and sub-contractors. Mark provides strategic commercial and legal advice to clients on all types of construction disputes, relating to payment, defective design, materials or workmanship, variation claims, extensions of time/delays, loss and expense.

Karen Levesley

Karen acts for major names in manufacturing, retail, energy, IT and telecoms negotiating, mediating and litigating complex and high value disputes from the pre-action stage through to trials in the High Court and appeals to the Court of Appeal. Karen’s focus is on achieving efficient and cost effective resolutions with as little impact as possible on her clients' businesses. Karen regularly acts for clients involved in contract disputes, post-acquisition warranty and indemnity claims arising out of SPAs, shareholder disputes/ unfair prejudice petitions and claims to enforce employee restrictive covenants. Karen has a teamwork-based approach to litigation and a successful track record in obtaining search orders, freezing injunction orders and other injunctions for her clients on an urgent basis. Since joining Gateley in 2002 Karen has gained an excellent reputation for fighting her clients’ corners hard and well and for obtaining good results including on difficult cases. Karen is known for her ‘can do’ attitude, her straight and open approach and is recognised for providing an exceptionally high level of service to clients.

Christopher Lister

Chris acts on a full range of banking and corporate finance related matters including leverage and acquisition finance transactions, real estate finance, general corporate lending, asset-based lending and receivables financing. Chris’ clients include private equity sponsors, corporate borrowers, banks and specialist debt funds. He has acted and advised on a broad range of bilateral and syndicated financings for borrowers, lenders and other investors across a number of sectors, jurisdictions and asset classes.

Patrick Long

Patrick has over 20 years’ experience in acting on banking and corporate finance transactions. During that time he has worked in-house heading the UK Corporate Banking Legal Team at Bank of Scotland and subsequently working as a banking and finance partner in private practice. He is regularly involved in complex structured finance and corporate lending deals including real estate investment and development, leveraged buy-outs, general commercial lending, restructuring, ABL and private client lending. He regularly advises a wide range of leading banks and financial institutions, corporate and high net worth borrowers. His experience includes secured and unsecured UK and cross border transactions.

Rob Lucas

Rob specialises in intellectual property law. He provides advice across the full range of IP rights, whether in relation to their identification, protection or enforcement. Rob also assists businesses develop overseas markets for their products and services, managing international brands and working with tried and trusted associates to enforce rights and resolve disputes around the world. Rob is well known for supporting manufacturing, packaging, cosmetic and retail businesses. He advises cosmetic manufacturers and suppliers in respect of their activities in the UK and around the world and is active within Yorkshire’s Cosmetics Cluster. This work includes licensing rights from household name celebrities and sports stars and advising on licensing deals with well-known brands.

Robert Lye

Robert specialises in intellectual property law. His practice focuses primarily on handling IP and IT related disputes and their resolution. He has extensive experience of both conducting and defending actions involving the infringement of IP rights. He also has experience of handling claims for compensation and other remedies arising from the termination of commercial agency agreements.

Andrew Macmillan

Andrew heads the national Employment, Pensions and Private Client Group is the Head of our People Platform which brings together our specialists in employment law, pensions, leadership and management development. He has specialised in employment law for over 25 years and provides strategic and commercial legal advice on the full range of employment law issues with a particular focus on restructuring, redundancies, industrial relations, senior executive issues, complex disciplinary and grievance matters and employment tribunal litigation.

Andrew Madden

Andrew was responsible for creating the banking & finance team at Gateley and has overseen the development of a national team. Having started life as a corporate lawyer in private equity transactions, Andrew’s focus is advising on corporate and banking transactions; he is regularly involved in complex structured finance and corporate lending deals, including leveraged buy-outs, project finance and restructuring. Andrew’s clients include many of the leading banks and financial institutions operating in the UK, as well as private equity investors and corporate borrowers. Andrew is responsible for managing many of Gateley’s national bank panel appointments. He also advises on ABL transactions, cross-border and syndicated lending.

James Madill

James is an expert in investment transactions and landlord and tenant matters. He leads a team who act for London-based and regional funds and advises on acquisitions, disposals and asset management work over a wide range of UK assets. James has advised on over £100m of property acquisitions and disposals over the past year, including complex conditional purchases and time critical transactions where clients were able to secure a commercial advantage by contracts being exchanged within a few days of instruction.

Thea Maertens

Thea specialises in business sale and purchase disputes and pensions litigation. She has acted for a wide range of clients from Plcs to individuals in a wide range of matters, obtaining urgent remedies such as search orders and other prohibitive injunctions.

Beth Mather

Beth is a partner in the Gateley corporate team. She specialises in mergers and acquisitions (many with an international dimension), buy outs and disposals with a focus on private equity. Beth has considerable deal experience, is well known in the Midlands corporate finance market and advises on a wide range of transactional and non-transactional corporate matters.

Kenneth Maxwell

Kenneth acts for a wide range of debt funders in the real estate market. As well as acting on real estate investment transactions, Kenneth advises lenders and borrowers on development finance matters. He also has expertise in lending in the healthcare sector.

Anna Mayfield

Anna heads the banking and finance team. She specialises in banking and acquisition finance, acting for many of the major UK clearing banks and a number of corporate borrowers. Anna advises clients on a wide range of banking and finance matters including real estate finance, development finance, healthcare lending, syndicated and bilateral borrowing and structured finance.

Stephen Maynard

Stephen advises trustees and employers of occupational pension schemes all aspects of pensions law as well as on their duties and responsibilities. His experience in this area includes advising on the interpretation of scheme documentation and overriding legislation. He also advises businesses on the pensions aspects arising from corporate transactions and restructurings. Stephen manages a number of occupational pension schemes to which Gateley’s independent trustee company acts as the corporate trustee.

Niall McCooey

Niall advises companies, investors and individuals on acquisitions, disposals and private equity investments. As well as acting for general corporate and private equity clients, Niall often advises on the corporate aspects of joint ventures in the construction and real estate sectors.

Roger McCourt

Roger has acted for corporate clients and financial institutions for over two decades, dealing with all aspects of recoveries, litigation, dispute resolution and risk management issues. This includes complex recoveries work, contractual disputes, insolvency issues, operational disputes, claims involving allegations of misselling/mispresentation, professional negligence and fraud. During his career, Roger has had two secondments to the in house legal teams of major clearing banks and is recognised as having a wealth of insight and understanding of the financial services sector, as well the internal pressures and external requirements of clients across commercial sectors.

Brendan McGeever

Brendan is a leading corporate restructuring lawyer and head of the firm's Banking Group. He advises banks, funds, venture capitalists together with other financial institutions and stakeholders in businesses, on all aspects of corporate restructuring and turnaround. As well as corporate restructuring, Brendan also advises insolvency practitioners on more complex assignments and can give advice on all aspects of corporate administration.

Andrew Messent

Andrew’s main area of practice is claims arising from the carriage of goods by sea, road and air and other related areas such as warehousing. As well as the full range of transportation issues, Andrew also regularly advises on related insurance matters. Andrew is the co-author of CMR: Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (4th edition, 2017).

Mark Metcalfe

Mark specialises in private company mergers and acquisitions and private equity investments. He is primarily based in the Reading office, but travels widely supporting his colleagues and clients. He acts for private equity investors, corporates, management teams and entrepreneurs. Mark was named Young Dealmaker of the Year at the Thames Valley Deal Awards 2018.

Shazan Miah

Shazan has experience in a broad range of commercial property work, from acquisitions and disposals to property finance and landlord & tenant matters. He has acted on a number of high-value disposals of mixed use developments and portfolio sales. He regularly acts for developers and investors and has particular expertise on student accommodation projects with complex planning and overage provisions. He also has considerable experience in acting for insolvency practitioners and has dealt with numerous disposals in this area. He acts for a number of household names in the retail sector as well as many of the largest institutional lenders.

Katie Mindurski

Katie has experience in dealing with all aspects of commercial property work including freehold and leasehold acquisitions and disposals and general landlord and tenant work. Katie’s experience includes: drafting of leases; negotiation of leases; property acquisitions and disposals; lease renewal proceedings and general property portfolio management.

Zum Mohammed

Zum advises on all aspects of corporate law, including venture capital, mergers and acquisitions, private equity transactions, joint ventures, shareholders' agreements, investments and general corporate advisory mandates. She acts regularly for investors, entrepreneurs and management teams in a wide range of sectors.

Martin Montgomery

Martin advises on a broad range of corporate transactions, including buy-side and sell-side mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital transactions, investments, joint ventures and shareholder structures, pre-IPO fundraisings, IPOs and secondary securities issues. He acts for public and private corporates, institutions and individual entrepreneurs and management teams.

Richard Morton

Richard is highly regarded for his innovation, broad experience and thought leadership in all types of financing transactions. He works on highly complex, demanding and innovative deals and is renowned for providing the highest quality legal advice for more than 20 years to governments, banks, funds, UK and international institutions and corporates. Richard is author and contributing editor to the leading textbook Modern Financial Regulation.

Christian Mulvihill

Christian specialises on transactional construction matters but also advises clients regarding dispute avoidance and resolution. His clients include funders, developers, contractors, purchasers, tenants, sub-contractors and consultants.

Pauline Munro

Pauline is a seasoned and highly regarded regulatory lawyer with vast experience of working for clients facing regulatory intervention. She specialises in health & safety including fatal accidents, trading law & trading standards, food safety, product safety & product recall and contentious environmental matters.

Gemma Murphy

Gemma acts for a wide range of asset finance and leasing companies as well as consumer finance and short term lenders. This is in addition to her significant experience of acting for bank, private equity investors and corporate borrowers in a range of sectors. Her areas of expertise include equipment leasing and asset finance (both regulated and non-regulated), commercial and consumer lending alongside regulatory consumer credit work.

Nuala Murphy

Nuala is a specialist employment solicitor advising on all matters relating to the employment relationship. Nuala’s practice includes both contentious and non-contentious work. She advises clients on a range of internal HR related issues and carries out training for managers and HR advisors. Nuala undertakes litigation in the Employment Tribunal, including multi party claims. She is also involved in Court litigation as a result of breaches of confidentiality or post-termination restrictions. Nuala has represented a number of senior executives and advises on exit packages. Nuala regularly advises on the employment issues arising out of corporate transactions, such as mergers and acquisitions and TUPE transfers.

Leanne Murray

Nick Murrills

Nick has experience across a wide range of commercial matters for both corporate clients and high net worth individuals. Nick has acted for and advised clients in respect of contractual disputes, shareholder disputes, breach of warranty claims, commercial fraud matters, professional negligence claims and international litigation. Alongside a core commercial litigation caseload, Nick focuses on his niche specialisms: sports litigation and defamation / reputation management. Nick has acted for a wide range of sports clients including Premier League football clubs, a county championship cricket club, national sports governing bodies, world renowned players, managers and sports agents. Nick is the Independent Chairman of the United Kingdom Cheerleading Association as well as Honorary Legal Adviser to the North West Counties Squash League.

Sally Newton

Sally is a professional support lawyer in the Real Estate team. She ensures that the Real Estate lawyers are kept up-to-date with changes in the law and market practice. Her professional support work also includes writing insight for clients, drafting and updating standard documents and delivering training. Before becoming a professional support lawyer, Sally worked on a wide variety of real estate transactions for 15 years, including residential and commercial site acquisitions and disposals, housing association developments, secured lending on public houses and acting for both landlords and tenants on leases.

Callum Nuttall

Callum is a leader in the fields of residential development, urban regeneration and urban extensions. He is also a Director of Gateley Plc and a member of the Gateley Group Strategic Board. Callum has specialised in acting for housebuilders, land promoters and landowners on large scale residential developments, regeneration schemes, urban extensions and residential-led mixed use schemes nationwide for over 25 years.

Oliver O’Sullivan

Oliver specialises in providing immigration advice to companies and to individuals. He supports companies with managing the legal immigration requirements of global assignments, particularly for companies looking to hire workers into a UK office. He is a specialist in advising overseas companies and entrepreneurs with regards setting up UK offices and companies in line with UK immigration law.

$Louise O\'Toole$

Louise O\'Toole

Louise provides a mixture of traditional private client and UK tax advice for international client services, in particular to mid and high net worth individuals either living in the UK or non-UK individuals with UK interests.

Alex Parkes

Alex has extensive experience acting for developers on a wide range of development projects, principally in respect of their promotion, acquisition, funding, development and subsequent disposals. He has experience advising on a range of sectors including retail parks, commercial/mixed use schemes and logistics/industrial warehousing. As well as real estate development Alex advises banks and funders in connection with commercial investment and development as well as providing the Corporate team with support in respect of the real estate aspects of mergers and acquisitions.

Vijay Patel

Vijay specialises in advising on commercial real estate matters, with particular emphasis on finance and development. He has advised investors, developers and funders on all aspects of real estate transactions, including acquisitions and disposals, development agreements, commercial leases, property management and financing arrangements (for both investment and development).

Mark Pearce

Mark advises individuals and trustees on all aspects of UK tax and private client legislation that may be relevant to them. Mark’s niche area of specialism is advising clients with international elements (whether these be work, family or assets), clients holding or creating digital assets or clients seeking to structure digital asset businesses. While there are certain, common actions most clients should take, such as preparing wills and lasting powers of attorney, more complex scenarios require bespoke planning. Such planning may mean the establishment of domestic or international trusts and companies or ascertaining the UK classification and tax treatment of digital assets such as NFTs. Mark works with clients to help them understand the ownership, management and tax aspects of such structures. Mark’s work often involves considering a client’s future and how they would like to hold and eventually devolve their assets. With digital assets, even ‘simple’ activities, such as gifting a cryptocurrency, can give rise to a number of issues. Internationally, it is often necessary to consider laws outside those of the UK, whether they be domestic laws of a particular country of religious legal systems such as Shari’a. With digital assets the lack of legislation in many jurisdictions often requires an analysis of international standards and best practice. Mark’s experience with a number of international jurisdictions is often useful to clients when considering their own jurisdiction of residence and the jurisdiction for their businesses and assets.

Andrew Peddie

Andrew is an experienced company lawyer, with expertise in private and public M&A and corporate finance, private equity, joint ventures, corporate reorganisations and all other aspects of corporate law. In the first part of his career in the City, Andrew worked on a variety of transactions mainly for large international businesses, with a focus on the oil and gas, IT, telecoms and manufacturing sectors. Since 1996 Andrew has mostly been based in Thames Valley, and the majority of his practice has been in private company M&A, alongside acting for a number of AIM-listed companies, and often in the technology sector. Since helping to establish Gateley’s Reading office in 2016, Andrew has been increasingly involved in private equity backed transactions, while continuing to act for corporate acquirers, and owner managers on exits.

Adam Percival

Adam specialises in advising on a wide range of corporate deals, including acquisitions and disposals, reorganisations and joint ventures.He is also a member of the Private Equity team operating out of our Birmingham office and the corporate transactions he advises on often involve a private equity investor.

Richard Pettifor

Richard is an expert in real estate development, funding and investment, having acted for a variety of institutional and private clients on mixed use, logistics, retail & leisure, and office schemes. Having recently worked in the commercial development sector, Richard is able to combine this direct experience with a wealth of knowledge from many years as a commercial real estate lawyer acting upon complicated and significant transactions.

Andrew Piatt

Andrew heads the national Planning team. He specialises in planning, highways, compulsory purchase & compensation and local government law and is an experienced public inquiry advocate. Andrew acts for an extensive range of clients including landowners, developers, housebuilders and retailers, as well as public sector bodies. He has experience of acting on all types of development, in and out of centre retail, employment, residential, roads, airports, stadia and tall buildings.

Simon Pigden

Simon heads up Gateley’s Business Services group and is also head of the Commerce, Technology & Media practice. He is a commercial lawyer in every sense, advising clients across a range of sectors. Simon advises on: Commercial ventures Outsourcing (of IT, logistics, facilities management and other business processes) Procurement of goods and services Licensing of rights Supply chain management Franchising Sport Hotels Bribery Act compliance

Helen Pitt

Helen specialises in commercial development work and has a wide range of experience acting in all aspects of that work for a variety of clients. Having spent over 10 years in private practice, Helen moved in-house to a major commercial development company, where she worked for eight years. Her previous varied experience enabled her to undertake all aspects of that company’s property work. On her subsequent return to private practice, she brings her commercial and client-led approach with her.

Tom Platt

Steven Plummer

Steven specialises in acting for housebuilders and developers dealing with residential development sites. He is experienced in dealing with land acquisitions, land disposals, strategic land options, promotion agreements, affordable housing and long-term development projects. He is also experienced in dealing with funding arrangements for development site acquisitions.

Victoria Portman

Victoria is an expert advisor on both contentious and non-contentious insolvency matters. She predominantly advises insolvency practitioners (including successor practitioners) and secured lenders on potential and actual claims, although she has experience in all insolvency practice areas. Victoria is a confident and professional lawyer with a “can do” attitude. She is well regarded by her clients for providing clear and commercial advice delivered through top quality service. She is an experienced litigator, and she gives creative solutions and strategic advice as well as advising on the legal position. Victoria has wide-ranging experience, and she has had numerous successes in relation to claims arising from tax fraud and tax avoidance, wrongdoing by former insolvency practitioners and former directors, against third parties to recover money, property or assets belonging to insolvent estates both in the context of bringing and defending such actions. She also recently co-authored two articles in Corporate Rescue and Insolvency: “Insolvent estates of deceased persons: life lessons” (2021) 5 CRI 156 and “Unauthorised collective investment schemes” reform needed (2021) 6 CRI 199.

Chris Radford

Chris is a leading player in the Midlands restructuring market and is widely known for his superb technical ability, the clarity of his advice and his straightforward approach. His career in restructuring started in 1989 and since then he has been involved in many of the Midlands’ largest restructuring and insolvency assignments.

Natalie Reed (née Howes)

Natalie is a legal director and advises on a variety of commercial disputes including breach of contract, professional negligence, breach of post-termination restrictions, and data protection claims. She also specialises in higher education disputes, including advising higher education institutions regarding student complaints, as well as student procedures, discipline and fitness to practise. Natalie acts for both corporate and individual clients, advising clients on pre-issue settlements, including those negotiated through mediation, as well as dealing with cases which are the subject of court proceedings.

Owen Reynolds

Owen has specialised in family law since he started his training contract in 1996. Owen advises on all aspects of family law including divorce, matrimonial finances, cohabitee disputes, disputes about children, domestic violence injunctions and pre- and post- nuptial agreements. Owen is also a Collaborative Lawyer, so can conduct cases in a more conciliatory manner using the Collaborative Law route. He has a wealth of experience having started his career dealing with Legal Aid cases including complex children cases. During this time he has acted for clients in divorce and financial proceedings in both small money and high net worth cases, including Section 37 injunctions to freeze assets.

Kate Richards

Kate has a wealth of experience of private equity deals, such as management buy-out and development capital investments, as well as advising on mergers and acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures and shareholder/member arrangements.

Nicola Richardson

Nicola’s practice encompasses advising on a variety of commercial disputes for both corporate and individual clients. She has experience of all aspects of the litigation process from the pre-action stage through to trial, and has participated in a number of mediations and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.

Helen Roberts

Helen is a Partner in the real estate team and acts for landowners, developers, investors and occupiers carrying out a wide range of freehold and leasehold real estate work. Helen specialises in complex large scale industrial and retail development projects, acting primarily for Midlands based developers. Recent transactions over the last twelve months include acting for Roxhill Developments Limited in connection with the land assembly and funding of a major industrial development and infrastructure project capable of delivering in excess of 3 million square feet of industrial space, on-going letting, disposal and funding work in connection with three existing industrial sites, and the negotiation of options, promotion agreements and joint ventures. Helen also routinely acts for other developers in connection with the acquisition, funding and letting of new retail business parks and the negotiation of development management agreements, and last year concluded the sale of the Boleyn Ground Stadium on behalf of West Ham United Football Club Limited.

Jacob Robinson

Jacob specialises in advising on corporate, banking and debt restructuring transactions. He is regularly involved in complex structured finance, real estate finance and corporate lending transactions including leveraged buy-outs and general commercial lending. He acts for many of the major banks and financial institutions in the UK, private equity houses and corporate borrowers and regularly acts on multiple jurisdictional transactions.

Robert Rosenberg

Robert specialises in consumer credit, mortgages and financial services regulation and advises extensively in respect of lending documentation, financial promotions and compliance with the FCA Handbook of rules and guidance. He has a niche expertise advising the sub-prime and not standard lending sectors on regulatory and legal risk including dealing with the regulators. He carries out compliance reviews for clients and provides support in dealing with FCA authorization issues, regulatory reviews and investigations including support on past business reviews. He has worked for the government and regulator advising on consumer credit policy. He is known for providing pragmatic commercial solutions in complex matters.

Mark Rutherford

Mark heads the firm’s Corporate team in Nottingham. He specialises in corporate finance including mergers and acquisitions, private equity, management buy-outs and company disposal transactions. He is one of the leading lawyers in his field in the East Midlands and has an extensive client base of owner-managed/ owner-led businesses and larger companies including many with an international dimension. Mark has been nominated for the East Midlands Insider Dealmaker of the Year Award several times.

Becky Ryding

Becky advises trustees and employers of occupational pension schemes on all aspects of pensions law. She also works on numerous schemes to which Gateley's independent trustee company, Entrust Pension Limited, has been appointed as trustee.

Sarah Sabin

Sarah specialises in commercial dispute resolution including contractual disputes; company, partnership and shareholder disputes and professional negligence. Sarah regularly acts for clients involved in disputes arising from mergers and acquisitions. She assists individual and corporate clients in a number of different business sectors, including developers, professional service providers, healthcare and sports - with a client base ranging from local and European owner-managed businesses to global corporations. Sarah is experienced in all methods of dispute resolution – litigation, arbitration, adjudication and alternative methods of conflict resolution such as mediation and in relation to cross-border litigation.

James Sargent

James deals with all aspects of non-contentious, commercial real estate law, including advising on conditional contracts, option agreements and leases. He is experienced in acquiring sites for development/re-development for a variety of uses including business parks, industrial estates, distribution/logistics hubs and renewable energy facilities. James has significant experience in the energy sector, having advised developers, investors and funders on a number of on-shore wind and solar farms from both a pre-construction and operational perspective.

Lukas Schmidt

Pam Scott

Pam specialises in residential development work and has over 20 years’ experience working exclusively in the housebuilding sector. She acts for our housebuilder clients on acquisition of development sites ranging from immediately available schemes to large scale regeneration projects and longer-term strategic land. Pam is experienced in advising on grant and funding schemes available to our clients, a large part of her practice is advising our housebuilder clients on schemes working collaboratively with Homes England, public sector bodies and affordable housing providers to bring forward mixed tenure developments across the country.

Matthew Scudamore

Matthew specialises in planning, compulsory purchase, highways, judicial review and aspects of environmental law. He acts for many of the UK's major developers, housebuilders and land promoters and is experienced in dealing with planning and highways agreements for both commercial and residential development. He regularly carries out complex planning due diligence for commercial developers as well as advice relating to delivery of large scale developments.

Richard Sealey

Rick has over 20 years of experience acting on banking and corporate finance related transactions. He has experience in a very broad range of work acting for financial institutions and for on shore and off shore borrowers of all sizes. Rick is regularly involved in complex structured finance, real estate development and investment finance, secured finance and restructuring related work. In addition, Rick also advises on bond and surety related financing.

Richard Sealy

Rick has over 20 years of experience acting on banking and corporate finance related transactions. He has experience in a very broad range of work acting for financial institutions and for on shore and off shore borrowers of all sizes. Rick is regularly involved in complex structured finance, real estate development and investment finance, secured finance and restructuring related work. In addition, Rick also advises on bond and surety related financing.

Joanne Sears

Joanne is a specialist commercial real estate lawyer with a broad range of experience. Since joining Gateley, she has specialised in advising national housebuilders on all aspects of land acquisition of greenfield and brownfield sites, from initial title advice to the acquisition of land, strategic options, multi-developer collaborations and land promotions. Her focus has been land in Yorkshire and the North East. Joanne has acted for numerous FTSE-listed companies on a variety of real estate matters during the course of her career, including commercial landlord and tenant matters, strategic land acquisitions and site assembly as well as corporate support due diligence and property portfolio management.

James Seed

James commonly acts in complex breach of contract claims, shareholder disputes, contentious trust and probate matters, High Court employment actions, and professional negligence claims. James’ experience is based on work for public and private companies, professional associations, high net worth individuals, estate executors, and insolvency practitioners. He has significant experience of injunction applications and trial work, whilst his practice encompasses litigation in the County Court, High Court and the Court of Appeal, often with a cross-border element. He has successfully used mediation on many occasions as an alternative and cost-effective means of resolving disputes.

Merran Sewell

Merran is a specialist employment lawyer advising on all aspects of the employment relationship. She provides straightforward, practical advice with an emphasis on finding solutions. Merran supports a range of clients from internationally-headquartered entities, financial institutions and household names to local charitable bodies and senior executives in their personal capacity. Merran manages the full range of employment tribunal claims and has extensive experience of multi-party litigation. She was instructed by the lead respondent in litigation described by The Guardian as “the largest ever legal claim over the national minimum wage” and regularly represents employers in a range of tribunal claims involving issues such as whistleblowing, constructive unfair dismissal, the adequacy of TUPE information and consultation exercises and discrimination issues. This includes representation before the Employment Appeal Tribunal. She also regularly supports clients with complex disciplinary and grievance issues and change management programmes and the drafting and enforcement of post-termination restrictions. Merran regularly advises on a variety of corporate transactions and insourcing/ outsourcing exercises which often involve the TUPE Regulations. Recent support included advising Gymshark on the employment-related aspects of the investment by General Atlantic which valued the Gymshark business at over £1bn.

Safeea Shafiq

Safeea advises all types of clients on all areas of commercial litigation. She is an effective litigator, dedicated to supporting clients and achieving great results. Safeea specialises in IT and telecom disputes, shareholder disputes, breach of contract claims, employee restrictive covenant breaches and breach of warranty and indemnity claims. Safeea’s experience also includes disputes involving: partnership claims, sale of goods/ supply of services, franchises, defamation, agency agreements, registration and enforcement of foreign judgment and costs litigation. Safeea handles litigation in the High Court and Court of Appeal and at all stages of the litigation process (from pre-action to trial, enforcement and appeals). She successfully uses alternative methods of dispute resolution to achieve commercial and practical outcomes for her clients. She is experienced in dealing with claims involving misrepresentation, negligence, breach of fiduciary duties and civil fraud and has conducted her own advocacy.

Becky Shepherd

Becky is a specialist residential development lawyer who acts primarily for national housebuilders. She is part of the site set-up limb of our residential development unit and now specialises in the set-up of new build estates and the preparation of sales documentation for a variety of clients. She also deals with management agreements with management companies together with legal issues arising throughout the life of the developments. Becky has previous experience in our land acquisitions team dealing with strategic and immediate land acquisitions, via conditional contracts and option agreements, as well as disposals of affordable housing to registered providers, both turnkey and golden brick.

Rebecca Sherwin

Rebecca Sherwin is head of the real estate team. She is an expert in real estate finance. She advises banks, borrowers and funders on the real estate aspects of commercial and residential investment and development.

Katie Silvester

Katie is a member of Gateley Plc’s Operations board and provides administrative support to its Strategic board and the board of Gateley (Holdings) Plc. Her role encompasses a range of activities including risk and compliance, governance, IT, facilities and more. Prior to her current role, Katie was a partner in our Corporate team having many years’ experience working within corporate finance, advising on mergers and acquisitions for both public and private companies. She has also advised shareholders, officers and advisers on in connection with corporate law related matters, in particular mergers and acquisitions and stock exchange regulatory requirements.

Ray Simpson

Ray’s expertise lies in the area of commercial real estate development and he specialises in acting for developers on major industrial, retail, office and leisure projects.

Mahnvir Singh

Mahnvir is a Legal Director in the restructuring team and has experience of advising a broad spectrum of clients including banks, funds, PE houses and CLOs, corporate debtors, directors, shareholders, insolvency practitioners, financial advisers, agents/security trustees and pension scheme trustees. Mahnvir has also gained valuable experience from secondments at major international banks and has first-hand experience of corporate and investment bank restructuring teams, leveraged and structured debt financings, distressed debt trading and distressed mergers and acquisitions. Notable matters that Mahnvir has worked on include: the CPP and Affinion Schemes of Arrangement, IBRC loan portfolio sales, Regency Casinos, Opal Property Group, KCA Deutag, Snoras Bank, Drive Assist, Premium Bars and Restaurants plc, Meridien Hotels Group, Eurotunnel, Concordia Bus AB, Courts plc and Homebuy plc.

Alexandra Smith

Nick Smith

Nick has significant experience in national and international corporate finance, capital markets, private equity and mergers & acquisitions, with particular specialisms including real estate investment and finance, and telecoms and technology mergers & acquisitions.

Sarah Souter

Sarah specialises in private company mergers and acquisitions, and private equity investments. She acts for companies, private equity investors and management teams. Sarah also advises on corporate advisory matters. Sarah was named Young Dealmaker of the Year at the Thames Valley Deal Awards 2019.

Karen Spencer

Karen is a nationally recognised expert in surety law, specialising in advising on bond wordings and disputes in relation to performance bonds, indemnities and guarantees issued for construction projects. She advises on resolving construction disputes, commercial disputes and professional negligence cases. She also has particular expertise in advising on disputes arising in relation to nuclear decommissioning projects. She has worked internationally in cooperation with clients and lawyers overseas in relation to large bonded contracts, notably shipbuilding, factories and power plants.

Rachel Stevens

Rachel provides a wide range of pensions legal advice to both employers and trustees of occupational pension schemes. She has worked on issues ranging from employers funding obligations under the Pensions Act 2004 to extensive drafting work consolidating schemes’ deeds and rules. Rachel is also a director of Entrust, a company which acts as trustee of ongoing and winding-up schemes.

Hayley Sullivan

Hayley specialises in non-contentious construction and surety matters. She acts for all development stakeholders from sureties, funders, developers, housebuilders, contractors, sub-contractors and consultants. Hayley acts for various developers on a wide range of schemes including student accommodation, leisure and retail, healthcare and industrial facilities. She also acts for numerous funders and has a wealth of experience in carrying out large volume construction due diligence in short timescales. She has developed a particular niche in relation to sports stadia and training facility development and refurbishment having acted for several Premiership football clubs.

Jo Symes

Jo is a member of the tax team advising on all areas of business tax. Jo has particular expertise in property taxes including VAT and SDLT. She regularly advises national housing developers in relation to their acquisitions of property for development including SDLT reliefs and the ability to defer SDLT. Jo also advises in relation to LTT (the Welsh equivalent to SDLT) and potential SDLT/LTT cross-border transactions. She has experience running an appeal to the first-tier of the Tax Tribunal on the availability of relief from the 15% rate of SDLT and has instructed and attended conferences with leading tax counsel including in relation to land pooling trusts. Jo has also advised non-statutory property investment funds on the tax consequences of their transactions, including reporting on the release of rights of light and property transfers between sub-funds and transfers of going concerns.

Brian Taylor

Brian practises mainly in the area of dry shipping litigation, international trade and the disputes that arise out of commodity transactions. He has acted for ship owners, charterers, P&I Clubs, shipyards and all parties involved in the sale, purchase and transportation of commodities (wet and dry). He has extensive experience of most forms of arbitration and has represented clients at all levels of the English court system. He has also acted in several complex ship building arbitrations.

Simon Taylor

Simon specialises in real estate development, finance, investment and joint ventures. He has a wealth of experience in complex real estate development matters including town centre regeneration, retail office and distribution parks and residential promotion and collaboration. He is a focused and committed advisor, transacts large complex deals and has a proven track record of working collaboratively with clients. Simon has significant expertise in real estate finance and structuring. Whilst often acting for the developer (including as development manager), Simon has frequently been instructed by public sector sponsors and occupiers, investors, financiers and corporate occupiers.

Mary Thakkar

Mary acts for property companies, developers and private individuals, undertaking a wide range of real estate work in the commercial real estate sector. She specialises in landlord and tenant transactions, acquisitions and disposals, estate management matters, secured lending and corporate support work.

Sonia Thandi

onia specialises in insolvency litigation. She mainly acts for insolvency practitioners but has also represented other key parties in the restructuring and insolvency market. Sonia has experience in dealing with claims under the Insolvency Act 1986 and the Companies Act 2006 and issues arising in contentious and non-contentious insolvency matters.

Martin Thomas

Rebecca Thomas

Rebecca has experience in advising a range of clients on a variety of litigious commercial matters. She is experienced in advising on all aspects of the litigation process, from pre-action stage through to trial, and regularly acts for clients (both claimant and defendant) involved in breach of contract claims, warranty and indemnity claims, fraud and unjust enrichment, enforceability of restrictive covenants, breach of confidentiality and shareholder and partnership disputes. She also has experience in obtaining emergency relief such as search orders, delivery-up orders and prohibitive injunctions. She also has a particular specialism in reputation management work, often acting immediately to protect and restore business and personal reputations. Areas of expertise include cases in libel, slander, defamation, malicious falsehood, harassment, breach of confidence and often deal with any and all social media take-down requests.

Alex Thompson

Alex has for the last decade specialised in advising clients on fraud and asset recovery matters. His experience includes co-ordinating a major international asset recovery assignment for UK and offshore liquidators, which culminated in litigation being pursued in England for approximately £70 million and ultimately led to a substantial recovery being achieved for an institutional creditor. He has successfully applied on numerous occasions for urgent without notice relief in support of fraud proceedings and has conducted “dawn raids” for office-holders in order to prevent asset dissipation and preserve evidence. Most recently, he has advised an overseas government in relation to the pursuit of complex and high value fraud claims arising from the collapse of the country’s banking sector. This has required an international asset recovery strategy to be carefully devised and litigation to be co-ordinated in multiple jurisdictions, including the relevant FSU state, the UK and the United States.

Chris Thompson

Chris became National Head of the Employment Unit in May 2019, having spent the previous two years as a member of our Operations Board. He has specialised in employment law since qualification in 1997. He advises on the full spectrum of employment issues and also has expertise in the regulatory framework applicable to employment agencies and businesses. He has experience in sectors including recruitment, retail, leisure and travel, utilities and energy, financial services, health and the public sector.

Robert Thompson

Rob is a seasoned specialist in residential development whose expertise includes immediate land acquisition, strategic land options and funding for major schemes. He has comprehensive experience of assisting Britain’s largest housebuilders in all aspects of real estate and planning, regularly project-managing sites from their acquisition through planning consent, assembly and site set-up to construction and plot sales.

Mark Tiggeman

Mark specialises in construction law and is also highly experienced in contentious commercial matters, particularly in handling complex cases with cross border elements. He regularly acts in cases involving both Common Law and Civil Law, including those involving international standard forms of construction contracts including, but not limited to, FIDIC.

Richard Tindall

Richard advises high street and institutional lenders and investors on all forms of real estate finance including large scale investment portfolios and bespoke development finance. He has spent time on a legal secondment with HSBC UK Bank Plc working alongside the Bank’s Corporate Banking Real Estate team.

Ken Titchen

Ken has wide ranging experience of all aspects of restructuring, insolvency and turnaround work, with an emphasis on transactional and advisory work. He has advised lenders, insolvency practitioners, companies and directors, creditors and stakeholders for many years, operating across a wide variety of industries and business sectors. Ken has spent time on secondment with a national lender in the UK and with the high value restructuring team at a leading overseas bank.

Hannah Turner

Hannah specialises in estate and personal tax planning including will preparation, trust preparation and administration and estate administration. She also prepares Lasting Powers of Attorney and manages Court of Protection Deputyships.

Jenny Vaughan

Patent Attorney, Partner

Jocelyn Virtue

Jocelyn specialises in real estate finance for both investment and development facilities, including hotels financing. She also has experience of corporate lending and investment grade lending. She has represented a range of UK, European and US banks, building societies and funds in UK and cross-border finance transactions. She also has significant experience acting for real estate finance borrowers. Jocelyn has experience in acting for a variety of surety and insurance firms, both individually and in syndicates/ groups. This includes advising on indemnities, facility letters/ agreements and risk-sharing arrangements and in particular on the interaction of sureties’ rights with secured senior debt which may be in place and the documentation covering that.

Robert Waite

Robert specialises in planning, highways, judicial review and aspects of environmental law, acting for an extensive range of clients including landowners, developers, housebuilders and institutions. He has experience of acting on most types of development including residential, educational & health, renewable energy, retail, business park and mineral & waste sites. Advising on the funding of development-related infrastructure through ‘obligations’ under Section 106 of the Town & Country Planning Act and in the context of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 has been part of his day-to-day practice.

Rod Waldie

Rod was appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer on 1 May 2020. He has been a key member of the Group’s Strategic Board since joining the business via our acquisition of the Manchester office of Halliwells LLP in 2010. Prior to his appointment as CEO, Rod was the Senior Office Partner of our Manchester office and led the Group’s national property services team. He has been involved in the successful integration of a number of the Group’s post IPO acquisitions. Rod has over 25 years experience as a real estate lawyer. He has considerable experience in real estate investment acquisitions and disposals, estate management, development and landlord & tenant. Clients include off-shore investors, on-shore real estate companies and developers, real estate asset management companies, high net-worth individuals, retail and leisure operators and specialist providers of supported living accommodation.

Nicholas Walser

Nick specialises in litigation and arbitration relating to shipping and international trade. He speaks fluent French and is a correspondent member of the French Maritime Law Association (AFDM). Nick’s experience and expertise includes commodity trading disputes, especially under GAFTA and FOSFA terms and oil trading contracts, cargo claims, disputes under charterparties, bills of lading, general average, MOAs and shipbuilding contracts. Lloyd’s List named him as one of their top 10 UK maritime lawyers in 2017.

Andrew Ward

Andrew has a wealth of experience in the commercial real estate market, undertaking a full range of non-contentious real estate work. He advises on investment acquisitions and disposals, development, portfolio and asset management work and all aspects of commercial landlord and tenant work. Andrew acts for a variety of public and private companies nationally, acting principally in the last few years for investors/asset managers in the retail sector.

Michael Ward

Michael has over 30 years’ experience as a corporate lawyer, advising private and public companies and private investors. He acts for sellers, buyers and debt or equity providers on corporate transactions, restructurings and shareholder disputes. Michael is regularly involved in contract negotiations, deal origination and deal restructuring.

Neil Warner

Neil specialises in commercial dispute resolution, acting for a wide range of clients in a variety of business sectors. His particular areas of specialism include breach of contract and warranty claims, breach of confidentiality, shareholder and partnership disputes. He also has a wide range of experience in obtaining emergency relief such as search and seize orders and prohibitive injunctions. Neil is a trustee of Birmingham Citizens’ Advice Bureau.

Helen Webster

Helen specialises in providing employment law advice to businesses at all stages of the employee lifecycle, helping clients to make informed, balanced decisions based on a thorough appreciation of legal and commercial requirements. Helen has particular experience of advising on the employment aspects of mergers and acquisitions, acting for private equity, management teams and trade in relation to complex acquisitions, disposals and private equity investments. She has particular expertise advising private equity portfolio companies and is regularly instructed on board level employment and strategic issues, such as senior exits and integration projects.

Tertia Werry

Tertia advises on all elements of real estate law including landlord and tenant work, sales and acquisitions and real estate finance.

James White

James is an expert in landlord and tenant law. He leads a team of lawyers who specialise in advising businesses in relation leasing, managing and disposing of commercial property. He specialises in the retail sector, advising a number of national retailers on their store portfolios. James sits on the property committee of a national retailer, reporting monthly to the main board on property matters. James has substantial experience of dealing with office lettings, advising both landlords and tenants on new lease arrangements. His work has included advising on lettings of office space in the City of London as well as regional head office facilities for retailers, professional services firms and national housebuilders.

Leigh Whittaker

Leigh advises on a range of corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital investments, joint ventures, corporate restructurings and general corporate governance matters. His experience includes advising listed companies, private companies, private equity houses, management teams and entrepreneurs.

Paul Wild

Paul provides both pension scheme trustees and employers with day-to-day advice in relation to the management and operation of their pension schemes, as well as assisting with the pension aspects of corporate transactions.

John Williams

John specialises in advising banks, building societies and other financial institutions on a wide range of contentious matters including guarantee claims, security enforcement (including mortgage possession proceedings), asset recovery, fraud and professional negligence claims. He also assists clients with complaints to the Financial Services Ombudsman and defends claims brought against them in relation to allegations of mis-selling financial products and breaches of contract.

Sean Williams

Sean is an expert in estate and succession planning. He acts for high net worth individuals, ultra-high net worth individuals and not-for-profit organisations. He advises on complex, tax-efficient wills, the establishment and administration of high value trusts, estate administration and related matters. Sean acts as a professional Executor and Trustee. Sean advises business owners on succession planning, inheritance tax and wealth protection through wills, trusts and alternative structures. He has significant experience of administering high value trusts and estates. Sean also acts for a number of charities and advises on the creation and administration of charities.

Andrew Wilson

Andy has experience acting for housebuilders, developers and landowners in all aspects of development matters from acquisition through to volume new build plot sales. He has acted for large Plc housebuilders, regional housebuilders, smaller local housebuilders through to land promoters and traders. He specialises in acting for a wide range of clients on land acquisition work whether by way of options (strategic or otherwise) conditional contracts or straight forward unconditional purchases and related areas such as overage agreements. He also has experience in reversionary disposals and assists the new build plot sales team by doing some site set up work.

Mark Wilson

Mark is Head of Gateley’s Complex and International Recovery Work unit. He has over 25 years of experience in all aspects of corporate insolvency, turnaround and restructuring acting for banks, venture capitalists, insolvency practitioners and corporates. She specialises in contentious insolvency matters often involving offshore entities and allegations of fraud or breach of duty. He also has a niche practice in bringing claims against and defending insolvency practitioners.

Gavin Winter

Gavin is a specialist commercial litigator with many years of experience handling disputes of all varieties and sizes, including high value and complex claims. He has a wide and varied experience of managing commercial and contractual disputes, negligence actions (including professional negligence matters), and property litigation.

Alexander Wood

Amanda Wootton

Amanda is experienced in debt recovery and asset finance, providing advice to financial institutions on recoveries, title disputes, satisfactory quality claims, fraud, personal guarantor claims, third-party applications, enforcements of judgment and unenforceability claims.

Adam Youatt

Adam is the head of the Real Estate team in Nottingham. His clients include investment funds, occupiers and both public and private sector organisations involved in regeneration and development schemes of all values. He is a real estate investment and development specialist, with particular expertise in purpose built student accommodation schemes, investment fund transactions and healthcare related property matters. His experience includes site assembly, joint venture and profit share arrangements, development agreements, investment acquisitions, funding agreements, property management agreements, the negotiation of institutionally acceptable leases, pre-lets and forward sales as well as general property and landlord and tenant transactions. He acts for investments funds such as Custodian REIT plc and the Starwood Capital Group as well as healthcare operators such as GP practices and renal dialysis operator Fresenius Medical Care.