The Legal 500

South East: Corporate and commercial

Corporate and commercial: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Corporate and commercial: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 4

Spratt Endicott

The team at Spratt Endicott, which is considered 'excellent value for money', operates principally out of the firm’s Banbury and Bicester offices. Name partner and team head John Spratt is ‘excellent at drafting and negotiating complex commercial agreements’, with regular instructions on share purchase agreements, management buy-ins and buy-outs, shareholders’ agreements and international commercial agreements. Director Hitendra Patel provides ‘very practical advice and support on transactions’, with valuable experience of corporate work relating to the technology sector and complex reorganisation projects. Associate Catherine O'Riordan is ‘well organised and has excellent attention to detail’, with expertise in e-commerce law and general commercial matters including data protection and competition law.

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South East: Dispute resolution

Commercial litigation: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Commercial litigation: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 3

Spratt Endicott

The 'strong, knowledgeable' team at Spratt Endicott provides an ‘exceptional level of service’ with ‘fast, proactive responses and clear and timely advice’. Clients of the team include professional service providers, security service operators and automotive companies. ‘Very personable and approachable’ practice head David Whiting ‘is a robust and practical commercial litigator’, who is recommended for his ‘business acumen and understanding, coupled with his legal experience’. The team was recently strengthened by the hire of banking and finance litigation head Anis Waiz, who is noted for his experience of acting for lenders on large complex mortgage frauds. Director Shamser Pangu] is another name to note, as are associates Kyle Wyness and Petra van Dijk, who lead the property litigation and insolvency teams respectively.

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Debt recovery

Debt recovery - ranked: tier 1

Spratt Endicott

The team at Spratt Endicott stands out for its 'excellent' advice. The group is led by Richard Gwynne, who has 'an excellent manner with clients', with other senior members including Martin Hughes and operations manager Steve McDonnell. Associate Peter Gardner is valued by clients for 'providing honest advice'  and for being 'quick to gasp the issues and provide quality advice' and, along with Robert Deane, is noted for 'going the extra mile to ensure a successful recovery'. The team handles the gamut of debt recovery and credit management work, including international recoveries. It also provides a range of in-house training to clients, which are drawn from sectors including banking, telecoms, automotive and electronics.

Next generation lawyers

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South East: Finance

Insolvency and corporate recovery

Insolvency and corporate recovery - ranked: tier 3

Spratt Endicott

Spratt Endicott's 'small insolvency team does high-quality and complex work'. Associate Petra van Dijk, who 'has a high level of technical knowledge and thorough attention to detail', leads the practice and focuses mainly on insolvency litigation. Her work includes the issuance and defence of bankruptcy and winding-up petitions, annulments, setting aside statutory demands, wrongful trading and misfeasance claims, administration order applications, insolvency-related transactions, and retention-of-title claims, as well as injunctive relief matters. Begbies Traynor, BRI Business Recovery and Insolvency and Mazars were represented in 2017. Banking and finance litigator Anis Waiz joined the Bicester office from Knights Professional Services Limited in September 2017.

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South East: Human resources

Employment: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Employment: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 4

Spratt Endicott

Spratt Endicott provides ‘extremely reliable advice’ on employment matters, ‘reacting promptly to instructions and providing excellent value for money with advice as good as one would get from a London firm’. ‘Brilliant’ directors Philomena Price and Carol Shaw lead the practice on a range of work including grievances, disciplinary processes, employment tribunals and business immigration matters. Food sector expert Shaw is ‘fast to respond with clear information and is excellent in interpreting and explaining the law within the particular context’. Price ‘understands the needs and culture of her clients’ businesses’, and handles large-scale redundancy exercises, tribunal claims, training and senior executive severances.

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South East: Private client

Agriculture and estates

Agriculture and estates - ranked: tier 2

Spratt Endicott

Spratt Endicott's agricultural law team is praised for its 'efficient and professional' service and for its ability to 'meet all deadlines and go beyond the call of duty at times when required'. The practice is headed by Christopher Goldingham, who is noted for his 'calm, ordered approach and excellent advice'. Goldingham's expertise covers all aspects of agricultural law, as well as property development matters. Other key figures include David Endicott, who is 'truly outstanding within his field'.

Leading individuals

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Contentious trusts and probate

Contentious trusts and probate - ranked: tier 3

Spratt Endicott

Spratt Endicott is 'a good Oxfordshire-based firm with an impressive client list and some seriously knowledgeable practitioners'. Key figures include David Endicott ('an extremely experienced private client lawyer who cares passionately about his clients') and David Whiting ('a thoughtful litigator with an eye for detail'). Also recommended are Lucy Gordon, who handles a range of contentious probate, estate administration, personal tax, succession and post-death tax planning issues, and Tom McInerney, who acts for clients on Inheritance Act matters, proprietary estoppel claims, and issues concerning validity of wills.

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Family: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Family: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 2

Spratt Endicott

The 'excellent' Spratt Endicott is ‘very responsive with clear communication, quick responses, clear and transparent billing and excellent value for money’. The family practice is headed by ‘outstanding solicitor’ Patrick Mulcare, who ‘mixes the best of the new and the old of the profession’, with particular expertise in divorce cases concerning complex and high-value financial matters. Associate and mediator Gemma Davison heads the firm’s dedicated mediation offering, predominantly focusing on the financial aspects of relationship breakdown. Davison is recommended for her ‘professionalism, knowledge and understanding’. Other figures of note are ‘intelligent, no-nonsense barrister’ Justine Cadbury and associate and childcare law expert Sandeep Sandhu ('listens carefully and goes the extra mile for her clients').

Next generation lawyers

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Personal tax, trusts and probate: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Personal tax, trusts and probate: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 2

Spratt Endicott

The 'first-class' Spratt Endicott provides an ‘exemplary’ service, with ‘excellent knowledge and appropriateness of advice’. ‘Experienced’ managing director David Endicott ‘has a fantastic understanding of private client issues and tax’, and gives ‘clear and simple answers, with a lack of legal jargon when responding to technical questions’. Endicott deals with high-value and complex instructions relating to wills, trusts, charities and personal tax for a broad range of clients. Director Lucy Gordon is ‘knowledgeable and very prompt with her advice and delivery’, with ‘extremely good client-facing skills’. Gordon spends a significant part of her time focusing on elderly client law. Tom McInerney leads the team in Bicester and is ‘extremely personable’. Solicitor Emma Rolfe recently joined the team in the firm’s Bicester office, having previously been with Campbell Law Solicitors.

Leading individuals

Next generation lawyers

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South East: Real estate

Commercial property: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40

Commercial property: Thames Valley, Berks, Oxon, M4/M40 - ranked: tier 3

Spratt Endicott

The 'experienced team' at Spratt Endicott ‘provides a high level of service, with sound, thorough advice’; it provides ‘excellent value for money and advice which is as good as one would get from a major London firm’. ‘Excellent lawyer’ Andrew Woods] heads the practice and possesses expertise in dealing with development and strategic land transactions. Woods is noted for his ‘depth of knowledge, advice and ability to see transactions through to completion, getting good results but not creating animosity’. Director Howard Meakin is noted for his experience in residential and commercial development projects and landlord and tenant matters, while at associate level Graham Roberts and Andrew Querelle are noted.

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South East: TMT

Intellectual property

Intellectual property - ranked: tier 4

Spratt Endicott

The ‘very good, responsive and obliging’ Spratt Endicott handles a broad range of IP considerations, advising clients on privacy policies, licence terms and the IP aspects of corporate transactions, among other matters. Chairman John Spratt leads the IP offering, with assistance from directors Hitendra Patel and David Whiting and associate Catherine O\'Riordan. Whiting is strong for contentious IP issues, bringing his experience of litigation and alternative dispute resolution to assist clients requiring the protection and exploitation of IP rights, while Patel and O’Riordan tend to handle the mainstream advisory IP issues.

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