Member News

Leathes Prior is noted as commercial, practical and prompt in the Chambers UK 2015 guide. The Chambers and Partners UK 2015 independent guide to law firms and individual lawyers has been released.

The firm welcomes improved rankings for the Real Estate Team. The team is described as proficient in investment matters for national and international investors. The guide draws on “significant experience in acting for independent developers, landowners and retailers across the country”. One source describes work done by the team: “Excellent, very smooth transaction, done without any fuss and without making it excessively complicated.”

Robert Sibley is highlighted as able to advise clients on all aspects of commercial property transactions and is “not afraid to tell you that there’s a problem but will always advise what’s in your best interest and how to achieve that.”

The guide describes the Real Estate Litigation Team as covering a broad range of commercial, residential and agriculture property disputes with a niche specialisation in timeshare disputes. One client says: “Fees are competitive and the lawyers turn around work quickly.” Darren Bowen, ranked as band one, is noted to have a broad practice covering contentious probates, agricultural disputes and real estate litigation. One client enthuses: “He is an expert in litigation. He is very good at bringing in the right experts and specialists for different jobs, he displays great customer care and is very tenacious.”

The Litigation Team is described as being known for being a well-respected, commercial litigation practice with a broad coverage. The team is noted to have extensive experience of agriculture, franchising, intellectual property and professional negligence cases with clients ranging from individuals to international corporates. A source is quoted to have said: “Everyone you deal with there is straightforward.” Head of department, Mike Barlow, is said to have a raft of litigation experience including franchising and construction disputes. Clients are said to particularly like his “sound commercial business sense.”

David Richards is highlighted as focusing on critical or catastrophic injuries claims. Clients are said to praise his excellent communication skills.

The Franchising Team is described as a leading franchising practice with complementary property, employment and corporate expertise. The guide outlines that the team advises on all aspects of the field including trade mark registration, franchise agreements and the purchase of property. Sources are noted to say: “They are all very approachable and they are always there. They have a very good name within the British Franchise Association and are known as the franchising agreements experts.” and “Their strength is the speed of communication – they are very quick to deal with queries.” Ed Savory is outlined as a dynamic franchising and licensing practitioner with significant expertise in the global expansion of UK and foreign-based businesses. One commentator remarks: “He impresses me with his knowledge, advice, responsiveness and commitment to making sure all issues are resolved on time.”

Jonathan Chadd is highlighted as an astute commercial intellectual property and franchising practitioner with over 25 years of experience. One interviewee is noted as saying: “I felt in very safe hands with him because he really knows his stuff”.

Mike Barlow is again highlighted in the guide, outlined as having a solid commercial background and dealing well with complex disputes between franchising parties. He is said to be renowned for his work with long-established franchise networks. One interviewee says he “grasps what we tell him, and is always available.”

The Employment Team is noted as active on the employer side and also able to offer experience in representing employee claims. The guide commends the team as a highly reputable player in the local market and also noted for work on behalf of clients at a national level across a full range of employment law matters. One client is outlined as stating: “The team covers the whole spectrum of employment law matters and there have been no problems with the service – we have been very happy.” Highlighted work the team has undertaken includes providing comprehensive employment law advice to a full franchise network which includes providing training and representing the client in any litigation that arises. The head of the team, Dan Chapman is ranked as band one and is acknowledged in the guide for his skills as an advocate before employment tribunals. One source is noted to have said: “He is excellent and very efficient; he can think on the spot and give you both an answer and direction”.

The Insolvency Team is recognised for its technical strength and full-service offering to insolvency practitioners. It is further commended for its complementary expertise in areas such as employment and property law with sources saying “The team provides practical ideas as well as technical solutions” and “Working with this team, you get good, original advice.” The Head of the Insolvency Team, Adam McCaw is recognised by market sources for his “technical expertise” as well as his “detailed, all-round knowledge” of insolvency law; he “will give good, practical legal advice.”

“Associate to watch” Ina Beurich is recognised as a practitioner who is “always willing to go the extra mile” for her clients and the guide outlines that her thorough approach is greatly valued by her clients, for whom she acts in both personal and corporate insolvency disputes.

The Corporate Team has been recognised for its experience in a range of areas including M&A, MBOs and group reorganisations with one source stating: “They are commercial, practical, and they deal with things promptly.” The guide goes on to highlight further positive feedback for this team with another source stating: “I really do feel like the team at Leathes Prior would be able to help in any situation. They understand the time pressures of companies and provide no-nonsense commercial advice.”

The research outlines Peter Sheppard’s practice as encompassing M&A, MBOs and company restructurings. Market observers attest that he is “able to cut through legal jargon and strike a deal.”

The guide draws on research from Paul Warman’s clients including ones in the non-profit sector. One source is noted to have said: “He is creative in dealing with problems and his legal opinion is always strong.”

“Highly rated” Richard Guthrie also receives impressive praise from the market, with one interviewee stating: “He got to the key points of the matter quickly and was very clear about the key areas to focus on.”

The Private Client Team is noted to be known for providing advice on such matters as wills, probate, estate and trust planning and elderly client services, with Hazel Gill highlighted as a key contact.

The Head of the Family Law Team Alisdair Douglas is described in the guide as “well versed in all areas of divorce, cohabitation disputes, financial relief and children work”. He is said to be singled out by sources for his ability to handle matters in an “intelligent and in a constructive way” without “posturing or messing around.”

This year’s Chambers UK guide results, coupled with those from the Legal 500 2014 (see www.leathesprior.co.uk/resources/news/262/), gives credence to the continuing success of Leathes Prior. We would like to pay special thanks to our clients for taking part in the research over the past year; we will continue to strive to ensure that our client’s interests are at the forefront of everything we do.

We celebrated 40 years in business at The Imperial Hotel, Great Yarmouth on Thursday 30th October. With many contacts from the region and far away joining us to toast to our anniversary, there was much to celebrate.

After a presentation at 6pm which involved a few laughs and the story behind the Practice, we unveiled our new branding going forward. Designed by Adam Kimberley at Archant we believe it represents where the Practice is today and what we want to achieve going forward. Thank you to everyone who came along to the evening and we look forward to working with you all over the coming years.

Market-leading energy services company Proserv has reinforced its ambitious growth plans after announcing it has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by major US private equity investor Riverstone Holdings LLC.

Proserv will continue to operate as an independent company under the deal announced today to which Riverstone Global Energy and Power Fund V, L.P., in partnership with Proserv management, has agreed to acquire 100% of the shares of Proserv from Intervale Capital (“Intervale”), Weatherford International (“Weatherford”) and certain minority shareholders.

David Lamont, chief executive officer (CEO) at Proserv, said: “This is the start of an exciting new chapter in Proserv’s successful journey. The leadership team on behalf of the global Proserv workforce, firmly believes Riverstone is the ideal partner, not only because of their sector focus and expertise, but as importantly because of their shared values and vision for the business.

“Riverstone has an impressive track record of backing oil & gas focused companies with their high-profile portfolio including independent operators and energy service companies. The Riverstone management team clearly understands the value proposition that Proserv is delivering to our customers as well as the key market trends that underpin our ambitions.”

John Lancaster, a partner at Riverstone Holdings, said the investment is consistent with the energy and power investment specialist’s strategy of partnering with leading manufacturing and service companies that participate in technically demanding and service-intensive oil and gas operations globally:

“Proserv is a strong and emerging player in global offshore subsea services and equipment sector, where we believe capital spending and activity levels will grow over the long-term as companies like Proserv provide increasingly innovative, cost-effective solutions to offshore oil and gas producers. We look forward to working with David and his team to further build on the company’s success to date.”

Proserv was formed by Intervale Capital, a private equity firm focused on the oilfield services industry, through the integration of several specialty services businesses between 2008 and 2014.

Proserv is a global energy industry specialist with a 40-year track record in delivering bespoke solutions and services particularly in the drilling, production, subsea and marine markets. The company’s global talent pool has grown to more than 2,200 employees worldwide as a result of exceptional organic growth and a series of acquisitions. Its turnover has increased by 168% from $159m to $426m over the past three years.

Mr Lamont, who will continue as Proserv’s CEO, said: “Intervale has been a strong and supportive partner over the past seven years, working closely with the leadership team to develop and grow Proserv to be the company it is today. We are sincerely thankful for the role both Intervale and Weatherford have played in bringing the company to this significant point in our journey.”

Goldman Sachs and Simmons & Co advised both Proserv’s leadership team and Intervale throughout the transaction process. The agreement, which is subject to certain regulatory approvals, is expected to close by the end of this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Managing director of Simmons & Co, Nick Dalgarno, said: “We have enjoyed working with Proserv over the last five years and watched them transform over that period and emerge as a leader of the next generation of service companies. This has been driven by an exceptional management team which has delivered strong organic growth whilst integrating strategic acquisitions to position the business for the next phase of growth. Riverstone is the perfect partner to help them deliver this ambition.”

Wymondham based Swarm Apprenticeships welcomes Shannon Watkins as their newest team member and enterprise apprentice.

Shannon joins the team as the Operations assistant and will be working in all areas of the business but primarily working with our employers to find the right potential young apprentices to fill their vacancies.

“Shannon in her first few days has already proved that she has the mind-set to be very effective and has already starting to take ownership of how she will bring in a return on investment for the business. We look forward to supporting her through developing the role and bringing new creative ideas into the business which will be encouraged as part of the Enterprise qualification. “Says Jessica Juby Operations Manager

Chris Perry Swarms managing Director Comments, “I am really proud that Swarm has grown from what was initially a result of feedback from SME’s in 2013, to now a team of 5 people with a vision to redefine the way business apprenticeships are delivered”

Joining the business on the 22nd October, Shannon has already learnt a great deal and looks forward to the challenge of being a Swarm team member and also a Swarm Enterprise Apprentice.

“Well so far I have constantly been enthralled by everybody’s enthusiasm to get things up and running and it has been quite exciting. I am glad to be in a training position again because I just feel that there is so much more that I need to learn. I look forward to growing the role with Swarm and in helping to grow the business” Says Shannon

ENDS

Let’s face it, Americans love all things British, from the Royal Family to our history and heritage, they just can’t get enough. The American consumer market is no different, as the demand and trust for quality British products has never been higher.

As such, it came as no surprise when a client of ours recently tasked us to turn their product packaging from B2B (Business-to-Business) to B2C (Business-to-Consumer), with the intent to break into the US market.

World leaders in pressure casting technology, our client wanted a brand and logo for their ceramic water filters that not only said something about what their product does, but also had an underlying sense of ‘Britishness’ about it.

We were heavily inspired during the creative process by the Queen’s Guards, a British staple and even went as far as to call the product ‘Coldstream’, a name synonymous with the British Army. A real feature was transforming the ‘A’ in Coldstream into an image depicting the guards, bearskin hat and all. The end result (boasting like a true American) created one of our most on-brief and patriotic branding to date.

The branding followed orders, hit all the right marks and we have received ‘stand to attention’ responses. So if you are looking to add a quality ‘Britishness’ to your packaging, want to march to a different tune, or would like help to stream your brand into international markets, don’t get caught off guard, just drop us a line.

01603 766888https://thelineagency.co.uk/

Any pressure that Sam Lacey, Group Director of Leadership and Engagement at Circle Housing, felt upon returning from maternity leave quickly dissipated, thanks to being offered the opportunity to work part time by her employer. Not only that, but not long after smoothly sliding back into her role, she got a promotion to her current job.

This story is evidence of Circle Housing’s commitment to its employees who deliver essential front line housing and care services to people in the East of England, London, Surrey and Kent.

Eastern Daily Press ‘Best Employer’ Award

Among the accolades the organisation has won for its approach to responsible business is the Eastern Daily Press (EDP) Business Award for Best Employer. Sponsored by Pure Resourcing Solutions (Pure), the award recognises an employer that demonstrates an understanding of engagement such as keeping teams motivated, capturing workers’ ideas and opinions, and charity support.

Pure is the perfect sponsor of this category; the leading recruitment consultancy firm runs its own Best Employer initiative, which promotes and recognises good employers across the East of England. It includes a festival, survey, seminars and its own awards this October – one month before the EDP awards.

Bringing business benefits When Circle Housing scooped the EDP award in 2013, it validated the organisation’s approach to putting people the heart of its business. Sam recalls: “Winning the award was fantastic. It helped underpin our mission, and to demonstrate that Circle Housing is a brilliant place to work, and it helped to build a sense of pride among our colleagues.

“This in turn has helped in our recruitment in Norwich, not only attracting more candidates for each role, but a much bigger range and quality of candidates who perhaps before would not have been attracted to the housing sector.”

News of the award was circulated within Circle and each of its sites was encouraged to celebrate and promote the win in its own unique way. Internal communications included a big thank you to everyone involved in the award application, and a web link to the Mustard TV coverage was emailed to everyone’s inboxes.

Engaging staff to help manage change The judges were impressed with Circle Housing, since despite going through a prolonged period of change, the organisation demonstrated that it is managing the situation well, ensuring that disruption is at a minimum, and that employees are kept informed, involved and that they feel secure.

“Circle Housing recently expanded significantly and quickly, so we need to manage change very effectively,” explains Sam. “We run a number of initiatives to help with this, such as the ’60 Change Champions’. Staff volunteers receive training to engage with their colleagues to give them a voice during the change process, and to provide coaching and support. “Such projects enable staff to develop and use skills that they may not have had the opportunity to use in their everyday roles, while helping to manage change at work.”

Looking after staff and customers Circle Housing takes its responsibility for its work with vulnerable people in local communities very seriously. Its customers include people in need of social housing, care and support, so it is essential that its employees on all levels understand the issues involved, and how to engage with customers in the right way.

The business’ development programme, ‘Customers and People at the Heart’, aims to give staff the know-how to maintain positive customer relationships, and to support engagement between managers and their teams. Both are integral to Circle Housing’s mission of enhancing people’s life chances.

Circle Housing also provides opportunities for secondments, paid sponsorship for professional qualifications and its People of the Year Award recognises an employee who truly makes a difference. The organisation also offers flexible and remote working, long service awards, performance-related bonuses, and free counselling and legal advice.

Sam offers this advice to future entrants: “Be authentic. When the judges came to our office, we provided them with a genuine experience. In fact they visited on a Dress Down Friday – we didn’t ask staff to wear suits since we wanted to show the judges the reality of our workplace. Our staff talked to the judges and because they were relaxed, they talked passionately about our organisation.”

Circle continues to aim high Since winning the EDP award, Circle Housing has succeeded in boosting its Investors in People accreditation, and continues to achieve excellent standards in its employee engagement work. But the hard work is not over for Circle Housing as big changes continue. It plans to support and develop its staff – from apprentices to directors – so it can deliver its crucial services to a high standard despite the deep and ongoing transition.

We would like to wish everyone at Circle Housing the absolute best for the future, and the best of luck to this year’s EDP Business Awards ‘Best Employer’ hopefuls! We look forward to seeing you at the event at the Norfolk Showground on November 6th.

Steeles Law has boosted its busy wills, probate & tax team with the recruitment of a Trainee Legal Executive and a Paralegal.

Cathy Savvas joins the solicitors having completed her Chartered Institute of Legal Executive (CILEx) studies whilst working at two other local firms. Also a graduate from the University of Kent, Cathy specialises in Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorney, probate and Court of Protection applications and is due to qualify as a Chartered Legal Executive in 2015.

Katherine Bearman, a 2014 Law graduate from the University of Lincoln, also joins the team as a Paralegal. Katherine is undertaking her CILEx training and will qualify as a Chartered Legal Executive in 2018.

Stephen Drake, CEO at Steeles Law, commented: “We are delighted to welcome Cathy and Katherine to our long established private client team. As a firm, we’ve always strived to identify and nurture the best young legal talent – ensuring that our firm is future proof”.

In a further nod to investment in the future of the business, Steeles Law has recently undergone a striking rebrand, working in partnership with local agency Armstrong Design.

Congratulations to Ryan Powley of The Hewett School for his winning design! Ryan’s design was chosen for its professional design, simplicity and clever use of our logo and colours. Congratulations also go to George Ribbons of Aylsham High School (2nd place) and Emily Buckle of Flegg High School (3rd place).

In February this year, Petans launched its Helicopter Design Competition at 5 schools in Norfolk (The Hewett School, Aylsham High School, Flegg High School, Sewell Park College and Wayland Academy). Our training helicopter needed a new coat of paint and we invited aspiring graphic designers to give it a fresh new look.

Petans is a registered charity and one of our aims is to invest our time and resources into education and skills. “We are undertook this project to raise awareness amongst school children of the oil and gas and wider energy sector in Norfolk and Suffolk” said James Wortley (Business Manager) “We feel it is important that local children are aware of the industries on their doorstep and the opportunities that are available to them.”

During his internship Ryan produced a new design for our 2015 course calendar which is now live on our website. The new design is consistent with our brand and provides a fresh new look. “I feel like I’ve gained a lot of confidence from the internship, as I was handed an important task and I feel like I completed it to the best of my ability, I also learnt what it’s like to work in an office as part of a larger company and I think these are 2 skills that will really help me in later life” said Ryan.

Ryan’s teacher, Matthew Bilverstone (Faculty of Arts and Design) said “We’re delighted that Ryan won the competition. He produced a really simple design which fulfils the brief perfectly. It was a great opportunity for the students to work in a real life context and to see the results of their work come to fruition. We’re going to use the prize money to buy a new printer for our Graphics and Art students to use.”

We hope the competition and internship provide a platform for Ryan to develop his career in graphic design.

https://www.petans.co.uk/

East Anglia, October, 2014: Aston Shaw, one of the major accountancy and financial services firms practising in East Anglia, are very proud to announce that they have been shortlisted for the Practice Growth of the Year category in the AccountingWEB Practice Excellence Awards 2014.

To qualify for this recognition, the firm had to produce evidence of its past growth statistics and detail the key drivers of its future growth strategy – highlighting the areas that drive sustainable growth and profitability. Over the last 12 years, Aston Shaw has grown ten-fold, and is now a significant competitor in the marketplace, with 5 offices across East Anglia and a team of over 70 staff. The recent merger, re-brand and marketing strategy that have been implemented is set to propel Aston Shaw to new heights, with even greater growth levels forecasted over the next few years.

Dominic Shaw, Director at Aston Shaw commented; “I am absolutely delighted that Aston Shaw have been shortlisted for these awards, particularly as we have been recognised for our significant growth rate which is solely down to us ensuring a high level of satisfaction and loyalty with our clients. One of our core objectives as a firm is to develop quality client relationships which we maintain by consistently delivering a first class, efficient, caring and continuing professional service to our clients.”

The winners of the Practice Growth category will be announced at the Practice Excellence Awards on Thursday 6 November, which will be hosted at Dexter House, Royal Mint Court in London.

For more information: www.astonshaw.co.uk

Innovative Norwich chocolate maker Gnaw is challenging the general public to come up with four exciting new flavours for a brand new range of 50g chocolate bars.

Gnaw owner, Matt Legon, said: “Our chocolate is fun, original, and we have created a host of imaginative flavours such a Lemon Meringue, Banoffee Pie and Chilli & Lime! We want the new 50g bars to be just as enticing – so we thought we would run a competition to ask the region’s chocolate-loving public to put on their creative thinking caps and come up with some funky new flavours.”

Since it opened its creative kitchen in 2011, Gnaw has been phenomenally successful, and become globally recognised as one of the most innovative creators of fun, new chocolate ideas and the leader in its field. And, of course, it’s all handmade in Britain. They now have over 1000 outlets in the UK and export to 25 countries. Gnaw was also the winner of the EDP 2012 Best New Business Award.

With its compelling, colourful packaging and dedicated workforce of ‘squirrels’ who love their craft, Gnaw’s values are simple, but very effective – chocolate should be fun; only the finest ingredients will be used; and they will lead the way in terms of chocolate creativity and innovation.

“This competition is the chance for everyone – young and old – to indulge their wildest chocolate fantasy,” explains Matt Legon. “Maybe people dream of chocolate that tastes of their favourite dessert, or an exotic fruit, or something sweet from their childhood that they loved? We want people to imagine intriguing flavour combinations – so the call to action is; be creative, be innovative, make it fun, delicious and quirky.”

The four winners will each receive a hamper of Gnaw chocolate worth £50. They will also be invited to Gnaw’s creative kitchen in Norwich to see their new flavour being made into chocolate.

Matt Legon adds: “We’d love the public to help us continue to create the most exciting chocolate and be part of our success.”

To enter, send flavour ideas (one per email only) to chomp@gnawfolkchocolate.co.uk. For inspiration, go to www.gnawfolkchocolate.co.uk. Closing date 31 October 2014.

KLM UK Engineering is pleased to announce that it has obtained its FAA Approval this year, expanding its portfolio. KLM UK Engineering is one of the first UK based MRO’s to be certified by the Federal Aviation Administration since the US Department of Homeland Security Transportation Security Administration prohibition stopping the FAA issuing any new foreign repair station certifications was lifted early this year.

Arjan Meijer Managing Director of KLM UK Engineering comments “KLM UKE has always had the expertise and facilities to accommodate the required work. It has been a long process, but now we are very pleased to have obtained FAA certification. This new approval allows us to expand and develop our current maintenance activities and we look forward to welcoming new customers to our hangars”.

ESE Direct are changing the standards of cloakroom seating with their new web-based cloakroom configurator.

With this unique configurator, available from their site www.cloakroomseating.co.uk you can create your own changing rooms completely from scratch with fully customisable room sizes and layouts, allowing you to add benches across their budget, versa and club ranges.

The new software, the brainchild of ESE Direct MD Simon Francis, has been in development for a few months, before being released to the industry at the start of October. When asked about the inspiration behind the configurator.

“Having been manufacturing our benches here in Norfolk since 1990, we wanted to give professionals an effective and easy tool to make the best from our range of cloakroom furniture, and I’m very proud of the results.” – Simon Francis, MD.

The configurator was created with architects and specifiers in mind to create accurate and well thought out changing room designs using our British manufactured benches, enabling fast and accurate specifications to be created.

You can accurately position the benches to scale and once you are have created the perfect layout; you can save, print or share designs, as well as submitting it to us directly for quoting and ordering.

And just so there are no hidden surprises the configurator also generates a list and price of all the materials you have selected, although multi-price discounts are available by contacting their sales team.

Why not give it a go today, visit www.cloakroomseating.co.uk.