HOWES Percival’s Northampton office has seen a period of steady growth over the past 12 months, with new legal experts appointed over a variety of practice areas, a series of notable deals and panel appointments as well as an increase in instructions.
In January, Haydon Simmonds joined the Corporate, Commercial and Banking team as a partner. An experienced finance lawyer and former Head of Banking & Finance at Spearing Waite, Haydon’s appointment boosts the firm’s banking capability. Alongside Haydon, Harriet Rogers joined the team as an associate also specialising in banking. The team was further bolstered by the appointment of Marianna Ryan, a specialist in company and commercial matters. Marianna brings with her international expertise and is also a Russian qualified solicitor.
In April, the firm strengthened its Private Client team with the appointment of wills, probate, tax and trust specialist, Alexandra Hornsby, who joined as a director. Specialist regulatory lawyer Robert Starr was appointed as a director in June, bringing with him extensive experience of representing clients under investigation by enforcement authorities, including the HSE, CQC, Environment Agency, police and fire authorities.
In September, Sobia Ahmad joined the office’s Employment team as a newly qualified associate. In the same month, four trainees were appointed to support the Commercial Property, Insolvency, Property Litigation and Corporate, Commercial and Banking teams as part of one of the four six-month seats they will undertake during their training contracts.
Throughout the year, several associates were promoted to director level, including Erica Gradus (Commercial Property), Hannah Pryce (Employment), Jenna Bruce (Intellectual Property), Alexandra Kirkwood (Commercial Property) and Matthew Thompson (Corporate).
The new appointments can be attributed largely to an increase in instructions, panel appointments and a growing client base.
In April, Howes Percival was re-appointed to The Insolvency Service’s £16m legal panel for England, Wales and Scotland for a further two-year period. This follows another recent Government legal panel appointment – in 2018, the firm was appointed to the Government’s Crown Commercial Service (CCS) Full Service panel for England and Wales as part of a consortium.
Over the year, the firm advised on a series of high-profile deals, including Euro Food Brands Limited’s disposal of the UK illy division distribution business to Italian coffee company, illycaffè SpA, and the sale of Moulton Park-based toy distributor DKL to Spanish toy giant Beysil.
Howes Percival’s Senior Partner Gerald Couldrake said: “It’s great to see that, in a landscape where mergers and acquisitions among professional service firms are becoming increasingly common, Howes Percival continues to thrive. The firm has always had a strong presence in Northamptonshire, and we feel privileged to be able to service such an economically diverse region.
“Our focus has always been to provide quality, commercial advice coupled with bespoke personal service, which we feel our clients really value. As we continue to receive a steady stream of instructions in spite of the uncertain economic climate, I am confident that the firm will continue to grow in 2020.”
Contact Howes Percival on 01604 230400 or visit www.howespercival.com