Movers & Shakers: South East

2019

December

• Rix and Kay has recruited private client partner Bruce Clarke from Lee Bolton Monier-Williams
• Nick Hatchett has been promoted to partner at Pinney Talfourd, effective from 1 November 2019.
• PDT Solicitors has appointed Robert Kenyon as a partner in its dispute resolution team.
• Thomson Snell & Passmore has opened its new head office at Heathervale House, 2-4 Vale Avenue, Tunbridge Wells.
• Slough firm Owen White has taken over the specialist franchise practice of David Bigmore who has retired.
• Birketts has appointed Caroline Nicholls as a senior associate in the firm’s corporate team.
• Veale Wasbrough Vizards has announced a number of promotions. In the firm’s Watford office Victoria King (commercial property) and Zeena Asghar (corporate) have been promoted to senior associates and Oliveen Elliott (residential conveyancing) has been promoted to associate.
• Essex firm Thompson Smith & Puxon has appointed solicitor Nicola Rout to its corporate and commercial team.
• Rix and Kay has appointed four new associates. Ravinder Barn (corporate team)  Anthony White  and Sacha Bolourchi (residential property team) and Maria Steele- Williams (family team).
• Solicitor Natasha Ord has joined the Reading office of Stowe Family Law LLP.
• Guildford-headquartered Setfords has welcomed a number of solicitors to its UK network. Graham Peebles has joined the firm as a consultant. Lucy Milton Downs joins the firm as a consultant. Senay Talat joins the firm as a senior consultant and joining as a consultant solicitor is Lawrence Chellenbron.
• PDT Solicitors has appointed Liam Mulvee as a senior associate in the healthcare team.
• Warner Goodman has appointed Natasha Young as external training and HR manager.
• Moorcrofts has appointed Joe Hughes as practice manager.
• DMH Stallard has appointed partner Ian Greenfield from asb law to joins its property team.
• Brain Chase Coles and Phillips Solicitors are to merge on 1 February 2020.
• Thomson Snell & Passmore has appointed corporate tax lawyer Nitzan Cohen, to work as a consultant.
• Chris Burnett has joined Birkett Long’s new intellectual property team as a patent attorney.
• Laceys Solicitors has appointed solicitor Charlotte Mitchell to its corporate commercial team.
• Camilla Haggith-Khonje has joined Lennons Solicitors as a private client solicitor to head up the firm’s wills, probate and life planning team.
• Callie Tuplin, a lease extension specialist, has joined Holmes & Hills.

November

• Osborne Clarke has appointed Jane Park-Weir as a partner in its commercial disputes team.
• Andrew Yates has been promoted to partner at Debenhams Ottaway to lead the corporate team.
• Herrington Carmichael has welcomed Adrian Taylor as a partner in its dispute resolution team.
• Womble Bond Dickinson has promoted a number of managing associates and associates. The new managing associates are David Wathen, Luke Andruszewski, Rosie Gaisford, Amy Hodge, Ben Duxbury, Krish Dholakia, Josie Williams, Hayley Moore and Charlotte Russell.
• Irwin Mitchell has recruited a new associate, Vicki Rawlins, to its family team in Southampton.
• Field Seymour Parkes has appointed Imelda Reddington as a senior associate and head of its immigration law practice.
• Furley Page has announced that Ellie Boreham has qualified as a solicitor and has joined the dispute resolution team on the successful completion of her training contract.
• Churchers has appointed Leanne Gray as a child law executive in the Cosham office.
• A number of solicitors have accepted full-time positions at MW Solicitors, following the completion of their training contracts with the firm. The newly qualified solicitors include Mabelline Appiah, Katie Garcia, Sini Kumaran, Zainab Qaisar, Lauren Rigby, Stephanie Clark and Tanvir Sandhu.
• Barwells Solicitors, a QualitySolicitors firm, has welcomed newly-qualified solicitor Rob Vince to the firm’s commercial department on the successful completion of his training contract.
• Brachers has welcomed new partner, Claire Williams to its corporate and commercial team.
• Irwin Mitchell has appointed Naomi Neville as a senior associate in the firm’s national tax, trusts and estates team.
• Birketts has welcomed finance lawyer, Devreaux Gravell, as a legal director in the corporate and banking team based in Chelmsford.
• Gardner Leader has appointed Laura Sentkovsky as a solicitor in the inheritance protection team.
• Neves Solicitors has appointed family lawyer Heidi Fleming as a senior associate in their Harpenden office.
• SA Law has welcomed newly-qualified solicitor Elton Morina to its real estate team.
• Gordons Partnership LLP has appointed Susan Hunneyball as consultant solicitor in the firm’s healthcare team.
• Brachers has welcomed two new solicitors to its corporate and commercial team, Clara Bakosi and Raul Hernandez.
• Kent firm Furley Page has welcomed newly-qualified solicitor Heather Dunlop to its private client team.
• Thompson Smith & Puxon has appointed solicitor Laura-Pauline Adcock- Jones to its dispute resolution team.
• Setfords has welcomed consultant solicitor Nicola Anne Wilkins to the firm.
• Lester Aldridge has welcomed Daniel Coleman as a solicitor to the firm’s restructuring and insolvency team.

October

• Mundays LLP has promoted Neale Andrews to managing partner.

• The Southampton office of Clarke Willmott has appointed Richard Eldridge as a partner.

• Samantha Jago has joined DMH Stallard as a partner in the firm’s family team.

• Yavan Brar will succeed Frankie Tierney as the managing partner at Herrington Carmichael.

• Thomson Snell & Passmore has appointed Mollie Ferguson as a solicitor.

• Tracy England has qualified as a solicitor at Birkett Long.

• Field Seymour Parkes has appointed Jeremy Hopkins as head of client services.

• Veale Wasbrough Vizards has appointed Zaheer Nabi to the corporate Law team.

• Judge & Priestley has appointed contentious probate solicitor Nasima Ansary.

• Capsticks has expanded its housing team with paralegal, Faith Rose, senior solicitor James Chaplin, and paralegal Luke Corbyn.

• Mairead McErlean, a senior litigator, has joined the dispute resolution team at Debenhams Ottaway.

• Churchers Solicitors has appointed Maxwell Green as a solicitor in the commercial property team.

• asb law has appointed Mark Diamond as a legal director in the corporate finance team.

• Attwaters Solicitors has welcomed solicitor Belinda Strange as an associate in the firm’s family law department.

• Thompson Smith & Puxon has been joined by Hayley Weston as a solicitor in the wills and estates team.

• Setfords has made a number of consultant appointments including Thowheetha Shaah, Annabel Ntow, Simon Daniels, Divya Patel and Angie Dooling.

• Solicitor Gita Patel has joined the employment team at SA Law.

• Lester Aldridge has welcomed newly qualified solicitor Rebecca Bright to the international private client team.

• Blandy & Blandy has made a number of senior appointments including Emily Riesco, Helen Stott, Sophie Clark and Holly Cook.

• Former Judge Peter Ralls QC has joined Hampshire based law firm Paris Smith LLP.

• Josh Parton has qualified as a solicitor into the tax & estate department at Whitehead Monckton.

• PDT Solicitors has welcomed newly qualified solicitor Oliver Parsons to its real estate team.

September

• Blake Morgan has appointed a new property partner in its Reading office,  Zoe Wright.
• John Banky has joined the real estate team at Harrison Clark Rickerbys in Reading.
• Robert Knight has joined Keystone Law’s probate and estate planning team.
• IBB Solicitors has appointed Jennifer Cartledge as a senior solicitor in the new homes team.
• BP Collins has announced that solicitor Jemimah Fleet is re-joining its family team.
• Gardner Leader has welcomed corporate and commercial solicitor Hannah Davies, and Clare King, a solicitor in the commercial property team.
• Brachers has appointed Thomas Hall as chief operating officer.
• Birkett Long has appointed Jonathan Perlmutter as head of intellectual property.
• Kennedys has appointed Kathryn Oldfield as a partner in the public liability practice based in the Chelmsford office.
• Lawson Lewis Blakers has announced that chartered legal executive Nicola Davies has been appointed as a director.
• Coffin Mew has announced the promotion of Emma Stevens and Ben Loosemore to senior associate.

August

• Lester Aldridge has announced the promotion of Claire Long from associate to partner in the real estate group.

• Birkett Long has welcomed the return of Julie Temple as head of the employment team after 15 years.

• Palmers solicitors has appointed Sean Callaghan as its new head of commercial property.

• Nockolds Solicitors has made a number of principal associate promotions. Sam Cook joined the firm’s dispute resolution team in 2016. Rachel Davis joined the firm in 2006 and works in the employment team and advises employers and employees.  Elena Nicolaou has been a member of the firm’s commercial property team since 2016.

• Essex firm Birkett Long has promoted solicitor Muntech Kaur to associate.  Tim Field has been promoted to associate in the commercial and corporate finance team.

• Senior solicitor Niamh McCarthy has joined the Esher office of Stowe Family Law LLP.

• Rebecca Crane has joined the commercial real estate team at Furley Page.

• Blake Morgan has appointed Zoe Wright as a partner in its property litigation team in the firm’s Reading office.

• Lester Aldridge has welcomed Dean Drew as a partner in the corporate and commercial team.

• Gardner Leader has made a number of senior promotions, including five new partners. Joanna Bullard is a member of the commercial team.  Michelle Challis is a member of the residential property team.  Chris Dale is also a member of the residential property team. Simon Fisher is a member of the family team. Richard Mead is a member of the inheritance protection team.

• Judge & Priestley has announced the appointment of Kavitha Rajah as a partner in the residential conveyancing department based in the Bromley office.

• asb law has announced the appointment of Chris Dodd as legal director and head of the corporate finance team.

• Attwaters Jameson Hill Solicitors has made three partner promotions. Leanne Philp specialises in contentious probate, breach of contract claims and building disputes, as well as civil and commercial litigation. Tony Brownlie joined the firm in 2012 and is a specialist in private client law. Salvatore Amico is a specialist in town and country planning.

• Lamb Brooks has promoted Sue Squires, Hayley Emmerson, Karen Bristow and Rob Parker to partners.

• Gardner Leader has made a number of senior promotions. Stephanie Buckeridge, Emma Jones, Lucy Savage and Nicola Weeks all become senior associates, and Katie Dyson has been promoted to associate.

Downs Solicitors has promoted Jo Glenister and Gemma Taylor to senior associate in the residential property team. In the commercial property team Alisa Maclean has been promoted to associate.

July

• Gateley Plc has made a number of promotions across the firm. Reading-based Mark Metcalfe (corporate) has been promoted to partner.

• BLM has welcomed a new partners to the firm. Bilal Mirza joins the catastrophic injury team in the Southampton office.

• Thomson Snell & Passmore has announced a number of senior promotions at the firm. They include: Brian Bacon (Court of Protection) , Matthew Grogan (commercial property) has been promoted to equity partner. Penelope Edgar (commercial property) has been promoted to partner.  Laura Keatley (commercial property) also promoted to partner, Kate Turnham (commercial property) has been promoted to partner.  Kim Connolly (residential conveyancing) has been promoted to partner.  Oliver Chapman (clinical negligence) has been promoted to partner. Mark Steggles (dispute resolution) has been promoted to equity partner and James Cradick (dispute resolution) has been promoted to partner.

• Moore Blatch has announced a number of promotions firm-wide. Katherine Maxwell (head of employment), Trevor Sterling (head of the major trauma team), Rob Evans (head of professional negligence) and Archie Sherbrooke (partner, real estate) – all existing partners – have been promoted to senior equity leadership positions within the partnership. There have also been two new promotions to partner - for Emma Edis (employment law specialist) and Thomas Clark (corporate law specialist).

• BP Collins has announced the promotion of Chris Brazier to partner in the firm’s employment team where he also leads its business immigration practice.

• Gateley Plc has appointed Charles Cantoni as a senior land acquisition lawyer.

• Setfords has announced that Sonal Rabheru has joined as a senior property consultant solicitor.

• Verisona Law has welcomed newlyqualified solicitor Harvinder Pahal to the firm’s employment division.

• Warner Goodman has promoted Lucy Smith to team leader of the residential conveyancing department.

• Thomson Snell & Passmore has announced a number of promotions at the firm. Amy Wilford has been promoted to senior associate in the dispute resolution team. Her focus is contentious will, trust and estate disputes alongside related professional negligence claims. Verity Cutts, Catherine Linsell and Nicole Priestley have all been promoted to associates in the commercial property team and Anna Woodhoo has been promoted to associate in the family department.

• Meanwhile, Natalie Butler and Danielle Rogers have joined the Court of Protection team as newly qualified solicitors, HarryGolding has joined the family department and Christina Mallery has joined the clinical negligence and personal injury department as newly qualified solicitors.

• Moore Blatch has announced a number of promotions firm-wide. Promoted to associate solicitors are Mea North (community care and public law), Marina Clinnick (professional negligence), Kirsty Bowyer (corporate law) and Paul Kingsley (medical negligence).

• BP Collins has announced a number of promotions. Dominic Ibbs, a specialist in the creation and administration of trusts, and Tom Bird, who is experienced in estate planning for high net worth individuals, have been promoted to senior associate and associate respectively within the wills, trusts and probate team. Emily Halley has also been promoted to an associate in the property team.

• Moorcrofts has made four new hires since the start of 2019. They are employment solicitor Lindsey Abbott; corporate solicitor Adam Forder; and technology solicitors Sven Cornelsson and Majid Mahmood .

• PDT Solicitors has welcomed Aimee Hunter as a member of its debt recovery team.

• Veale Wasbrough Vizards has appointed private client partner Daniel Church.

• Lamb Brooks has welcomed Andrew Maidment to the firm as an associate solicitor.

• Downs Solicitors has announced that Liz Dalgetty, consultant solicitor & notary public, has qualified as a mental capacity (welfare) accredited legal representative.

• Blandy & Blandy has promoted Pippa Lee to associate solicitor in the firm’s dispute resolution team with effect from 1 July 2019.

• Blandy & Blandy has welcomed newly qualified solicitor, Eleanor Waters, as a member of the dispute resolution team.

June

• Clyde & Co has announced its partner promotion round. Armstrong and Eleanor Coates have been promoted to equity partners in the firm’s marine practice in Guildford.

• Kennedys has made a number of partner promotions, including Richard Whybrew in the Chelmsford office.

• Cripps Pemberton Greenish has announced a number of promotions across its legal and business services teams. Four individuals have been promoted to partner; Sally Ashworth from the real estate development team, corporate lawyer Craig Bowers, planning law expert Beth Gascoyne and Richard Mencner who heads up the tax and trusts team.

• Blake Morgan has expanded its private client team in Southampton with the appointment of partner Paula Shea.

• Lester Aldridge has promoted Melia Hirst to a partner in the restructuring and insolvency team in Southampton.

• IBB Solicitors has promoted Harriet Jones to partner in the corporate and commercial practice.

• Pinney Talfourd has promoted Edward Garston, a company and commercial specialist, to partner.

• Furley Page has appointed partner Jeremy Ferris as its new head of property dispute resolution.

• Stevens & Bolton has announced a number of internal promotions. Andrew Dodds (banking and finance), James Hardaker (private client) and James Lister (contentious trusts and probate) have been promoted to partnership.

• Cripps Pemberton Greenish has announced a number of promotions across its legal and business services teams. Rosa Doval (residential real estate), Kate Hughes (commercial real estate), Lowri Jones (corporate), Simon Schipper (commercial real estate), Christobel Smales (commercial real estate), Tom Trowhill (commercial) and Alison Ward (private client) have been promoted to legal director.

• DMH Stallard has appointed Sara McGrigor to its private client team in Guildford as a senior associate.

• Warners Solicitors has made three senior appointments. Cate Silvester and Keith Unger have joined the family law team in Sevenoaks and Tracy Sales has joined the private client team in Tonbridge.

• CJCH Solicitors has appointed Lauren Powell as a conveyancing solicitor in the Cardiff office.

• BLM has made a number of promotions from associate to partner, including Gemma Parker (large loss & technical) in the Southampton office.

• Irwin Mitchell has made a number of partner promotions. Liz Beadsley from the firm’s Chichester office’s tax, trusts and estate team has been promoted. Also in the Chichester office, Brian Dowling (real estate) and in the Gatwick office, Nicola Gooch (real estate) have both been promoted to partner.

• Thrings has appointed Douglas Smith as a partner.

• Jacksons has recruited agricultural law specialist Nicola Neilson as a partner.

• Mark Grant has joined Moore Blatch as a partner in its land development team.

• Kent firm Judge & Priestley has appointed Nitika Singh as an equity partner.

• Clifton Ingram has announced that Anne Deller has been elected as the firm’s new managing partner.

• Brachers Solicitors has promoted Emma Anderson to partner in the firm’s commercial property team. It has also announced a number of promotions. Justine Sloover (private client) has been promoted to director. Harriet Humphrey (healthcare/clinical negligence) and Tim Turner (corporate & commercial) have been made up to senior associates, while Joanna Simpson (commercial property) and Sarah Hewitt (corporate & commercial) step up to become associates.

• Ellisons has promoted Susan Ryan to partner.

• Horwich Farrelly has introduced an associate partner position at the firm and has appointed six members of staff to the new position. In the Southampton office, Zoe Kirby (motor and casualty) has become an associate partner.

• HRJ Foreman Laws solicitors has appointed Andrew Dongworth as a senior associate solicitor in the company and commercial department in Welwyn Garden City

• Corbett & Co has announced that Jo Clarke has become a director at the firm.

• Ellisons has announced a number of promotions. Joe Brightman (dispute resolution, Colchester), Michelle Lamm (private client, Frinton-on-Sea), Patrick Logan (residential property, Colchester), Antony Mao (commercial property, Colchester), Ceri Rogers (dispute Resolution, Colchester) and Edward Weaver (insurance litigation, Colchester) have been promoted to senior associate while Hayley Songhurst (insolvency, Colchester) and Sarah White (private client, Harwich) have been promoted to associate.

• Debenhams Ottaway has promoted Michael Kerrigan and James Brawn to senior associate.

• Glanvilles has made two senior appointments. Thomas Oliver has been appointed as a solicitor in the civil litigation and dispute resolution team.  Alexandra Brannigan has joined the wills, trust, LPA and probate team as a fellow legal executive.

May

BPE has promoted Jo Bewley to head of property services, advising clients on both commercial and residential property matters.

Coffin Mew has promoted Adrian McClinton to partner. McClinton joined the firm’s Brighton office two years ago as a property litigation specialist with extensive experience of real estate disputes and landlord and tenant law.

Moorcrofts has appointed two new partners. Julia Ferguson joined the firm in 2016 and became head of the commercial property team in January 2019.  Tim Astley joined the IT and IP team in December 2015 and acts for a range of clients from start-ups to SME IT/telecoms providers to multinationals, particularly in cloud services, telecommunications, IT service provision, software licensing, intellectual property and data protection matters, as well as undertaking general commercial drafting and negotiation.

asb law has welcomed a new associate and two new solicitors. Associate, Mourad Greiss joins the commercial team.  Solicitors, Duncan Crossey and Sophie Hillier join the property services team.

BPE has promoted Dianne Devlin, Peter Knibbs and Angharad Doyle to associate solicitors.

Fisher Jones Greenwood LLP has promoted Jody Williams to associate.

SA Law has appointed Claire Saffer, a planning specialist, as a member of the real estate team.

Coffin Mew has promoted Hannah Rowlatt to associate. Rowlatt qualified as a solicitor in 2016 after completing a bespoke Court of Protection training contract with the firm in Portsmouth.

Joe Taylor has qualified into the commercial property team at Warner Goodman in Portsmouth.

Nockolds LLP has welcomed agricultural specialist Christopher Hill as a senior associate to its residential property team.

Two newly qualified solicitors have joined the team at Owen White Solicitors. Catherine Morris and Kelly Van Der Watt will be working with the franchising and corporate and commercial teams.

Paul Drench has been promoted to partner at Field Seymour Parkes.

Amanda Mehlin has been appointed managing partner of CWJ.

Blaser Mills Law has promoted senior associate Joe Da Silva to partner.

Barker Son & Isherwood has promoted of Zoë McManus to partner.

Stowe Family Law LLP has appointed Laura Webster as a solicitor in the St Albans office.

Whitehead Monckton has promoted Emma Palmer and Richard Hearne to associate directors.

Clifton Ingram has appointed Tatiana Haigh as a legal executive in its dispute resolution department.

Kit Mordaunt is set to join Cripps Pemberton Greenish.

Gadsby Wicks has welcomed specialist medical negligence solicitor Nimisha Bhayani.

April

Pearson Hards has announced that Emma Rothstein, partner and head of the family department, has achieved Resolution accreditation specialist status in complex financial remedies.

Helen Maddison-White has joined Thomson Snell & Passmore as an associate in the probate team.

Freddie Jackson, a property dispute specialist at Cripps LLP, has been made chairman of Women in Property’s South- East branch for 2019.

Warner Goodman has welcomed newly qualified solicitor Joe Taylor to its commercial property team in Portsmouth on the successful completion of his training contract.

Boyes Turner has appointed Stephanie Brown as an associate in the development and house building team.

TWM Solicitors has appointed partner Simon Brew as a partner in its dispute resolution team.

Brachers Solicitors has welcomed partner Alex Cosgrove to its corporate and commercial team.

Irwin Mitchell Private Wealth has recruited a new associate to its residential property team in Chichester. Diane Nicholls returns to the firm where she previously worked following its merger with Thomas Eggar.

Experienced conveyancing lawyer, Caroline Chandler, has re-joined the property team at Bonallack & Bishop Solicitors based in the Fordingbridge office.

Kayleigh Chapman has joined the planning & environmental law team at Blandy & Blandy as a solicitor, having completed her training contract at the firm.

Gardner Leader has appointed solicitor Shipla Khanum to its corporate and commercial team. Khanum qualified in 2016 after training at Meade King in Bristol.

Thomson Snell & Passmore has welcomed Monika Byrska as a contentious probate partner in the firm’s dispute resolution team.

Cooper Burnett has appointed Glen Webb as an associate solicitor in the residential property team.

Boyes Turner has recruited newly qualified solicitor Shehnaz Rahman to its development and house building team.

March

Taylor Rose TTKW has announced the appointment of two partners in the South East: John Appleton and Malina Gupta.

Rix and Kay has announced the appointment of family and divorce lawyer Janet Raeburn who joins as partner and will be based in the firm’s family team in Uckfield.

Slough firm Owen White has announced that Jane Masih will succeed Richard Keen as managing director of the firm on his retirement.

Irwin Mitchell has made a number of senior appointments. In Chichester Samuel Knight (real estate) and accountant Chrissy Leach (tax, trusts & estates) have been promoted to associate. In Gatwick Alison Bruce (restructuring and insolvency) and Laura Over (residential property) have been promoted to associate and Hannah Nix (real estate) has been promoted to senior associate.

Abigail Maino has joined the employment group at DMH Stallard in Guildford from asb law.

Eleanor Hobbs has joined Thomson Snell & Passmore as a paralegal specialising in employment law.

Barlow Robbins has announced the appointment of Charlotte Brackley as a senior associate in the residential property team.

Blandy & Blandy has promoted Gemma Kemp to associate solicitor in the family team.

Loureen Palmer has joined Whitehead Monckton as a senior solicitor in the employment team based in Maidstone.

Sara-Jayne Fildes, a senior solicitor with 20 years’ experience in all aspects of family law, has joined Verisona Law.

Birkett Long has announced the appointment of Victoria Gratton as a solicitor in the Court of Protection & inheritance disputes team.

Mehar Patel has joined Shoosmiths’ real estate team as a partner.

Duncan Lewis has announced that director of public law and immigration, Trevor Hatton, has been appointed as a fee-paid judge at the First-tier Tribunal of the Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

Bromley firm Judge & Priestley has announced the appointment of Kelly Sharman as a partner and head of family law.

Furley Page has appointed Rayma Collins as a new partner to head its family law team.

Womble Bond Dickinson has appointed Stephen Anderson as a legal director in the firm’s commercial team in Southampton.

Gateley plc has made a number of recent appointments in its Reading office. They include legal directors Andrew Annette in the residential development team, Vanessa Gardiner in the family team and Mary-Ann Orr in commerce, technology and media.

Furley Page has appointed real estate lawyer Darren Philpot as a senior associate. Philpot specialises in residential property and rural and agricultural matters.

Katie Gibson-Green, a member of the agriculture & estates team at Birkett Long, has been promoted to associate.

Gardner Leader has welcomed newly qualified Amy Wilson Weymouth to its family team on the successful completion of her training contract with the firm.

February

Cripps LLP has announced the appointment of Dominic Filleul as a partner in its real estate team.

Cooper Burnett has promoted Gemma Gillespie, head of the firm’s family and matrimonial department, to partner.

Veale Wasbrough Vizards has made a number of partner promotions, including Madeleine Wakeley and Samantha Chaney in the Watford office.

Lester Aldridge has expanded its personal injury team with the appointment of clinical negligence and community care specialist Paula Barnes as a partner.

Trethowans has promoted Mihiri Gajraj to partner.

Ellisons has appointed Catherine Abbott as a new partner in its commercial property team in Colchester.

Downs Solicitors has appointed David Seals as its new head of employment.

Dispute resolution solicitor Emma Jenkins has joined Birkett Long based in Colchester.

Fisher Jones Greenwood LLP has promoted Leon Pascal to associate in the commercial property department based in the Chelmsford office.

Chartered legal executive James Pantling-Skeet has joined the community care team at Lester Aldridge in Southampton.

Nicola O’Dwyer has been promoted to senior associate at Downs Solicitors.

Dutton Gregory has appointed Nicky Marsh as an associate solicitor in the residential property team based in the Southampton office.

Holmes & Hills has appointed Natasha Narad as a solicitor in the commercial property team.

January

Cripps LLP and Pemberton Greenish have confirmed the completion of their merger. Headquartered in Kent, the newly merged firm has offices in Tunbridge Wells, Kings Hill, the City (Cannon Green) and Chelsea. Gavin Tyler and Clare Hyland remain at the helm as managing partner and senior partner respectively, with Kerry Glanville (senior partner at Pemberton Greenish) heading the firm’s Chelsea office.

Thomson Snell & Passmore has announced that Simon Mitchell has joined the firm as a partner.

Morrisons Solicitors has announced that it has acquired Oxted based firm Harrops & Hepburn Solicitors.

Judge & Priestley has acquired Beckenham firm PJH Solicitors (formerly Pritchard, Joyce & Hinds).

Ellisons Solicitors has opened a third office in Colchester in The Bath House building which is located on the former Le Cateau Barracks site. Leading the Bath House team will be Robert Jones, partner and head of insurance litigation.

Irwin Mitchell has appointed Dipal Patel as an associate in the family law team.

Gateley has appointed Mary-Ann Orr as a legal director in its Reading office.

Will King has qualified into the corporate team at Furley Page.

Novum Law has promoted Lynn Yeates and Peter Hilditch to directors and members of the senior management team. They are based in the Southampton office.

Wortley Byers has merged with Tees Law.

Birkett Long has appointed Perdeep Grewal as a solicitor in its Chelmsford office.

SA Law has welcomed newly-qualified solicitor Richard Marshall to its real estate department.