Recognition of the excellent legal services which Harrison Clark Rickerbys (HCR) gives to businesses across the south west and nationally has come from the Legal 500, one of the UK’s leading legal directories.
The firm which has eight offices across the country, has 25 rankings in the directory – six leading individuals are marked out as leaders in their field, along with next generation lawyers and rising stars – ones to watch for the future.
From corporate and commercial legal advice to expertise on banking and finance, property, employment, intellectual property, dispute resolution and education, the firm’s specialists support businesses of all kinds. HCR has also has an excellent family law team, so it can advise on a range of personal issues such as divorce, custody of children, as well as personal tax and probate issues.
The corporate and commercial team in Cheltenham is led by Rich Wilkey, who “has a strong focus on private equity.” Senior partner Richard Knight, along with Peter Raybould and Rachael Reeves were earmarked as key lawyers by the directory.
The firm’s banking and finance expertise, with specialist input from PPI expert Fiona Hayles has a strong banking litigation team, and the commercial litigation team, led by Adam Finch, includes key lawyers Andrew Walker and Steven Murray who focus on real estate and intellectual property respectively.
The thriving real estate market in the south west is well served by the team said to have “excellent knowledge of the property sector combined with a friendly approach”; it is headed by Mark Carter, with Zoe Touhey, Ben Thomas and Eimir Tuckett mentioned as key players. Jenny Okafor-Jones’ employment team is also acknowledged as among the top ranking teams in the region, and the firm’s growing expertise in professional negligence is recognised too.
The strong education team, led by Kristine Scott and said to be “A one-stop shop for expertise across the whole education sector”, came in for praise both in the south west and in London; the team is said to be “very experienced, highly attentive and proactive in its approach towards clients’ needs.”
Carolyn Green, who leads the Cheltenham family law team, is recognised as a key lawyer, while Mark Hartley and Alex Taylor, who handle personal tax, trust and probate issues, are also recommended, as is Phillipa Bruce-Kerr.
Rich Wilkey said:
“Recognition like this is an excellent accolade for both individuals and teams. One of the many strengths we have here is the ability to draw in experts to address every aspect of a client’s needs – a commercial property issue may need banking and finance expertise, and a major deal could need employment or immigration advice as part of the package. We work together in a very flexible and practical way to give the best and most commercial advice possible, which clients clearly value.”
Harrison Clark Rickerbys has more than 500 staff and partners based at offices in Cheltenham, Worcester, Birmingham, Hereford, the Wye Valley, the Thames Valley, Cambridge and central London, who provide a complete spectrum of legal services to both business and private clients, regionally and nationwide. The firm also has a number of highly successful teams specialising in individual market sectors, including health and social care, education, technology, agricultural and rural affairs, defence, security and the forces, and construction.