People: Chairman appointed at fast-growing legal tech company; Accountancy firm makes director hire; and more
Clarilis, the Birmingham-based legal technology business, has appointed Richard Haywood as its chairman.
Haywood was a corporate partner at Wragge & Co (now Gowling WLG) for 25 years and served as managing partner of the firm.
He joined RPC as a Partner in 2013 and was a non-executive director of CloserStill Group prior to a successful exit for Inflexion Private Equity and NVM Private Equity.
He is currently a consultant at RPC and deputy pro-chancellor (deputy chair of council) of the University of Birmingham.
Co-founded by James and Kevin Quinn, Clarilis launched its solution in 2015 and has quickly established itself as a leading platform in automated document drafting for the legal community.
NVM Private Equity (NVM) invested in Clarilis in June 2018 to help the Company continue its growth trajectory, with the funding enabling the team to capitalise on the strong market demand.
Clarilis provides clients with efficiency gains in their drafting processes, reducing the time and resource required to produce initial drafts of documents. It counts both corporate in-house teams and private legal practices amongst its customer base.
Customers include firms such as Addleshaw Goddard, Baker McKenzie, Burness Paull, Gateley, National Grid and Travers Smith.
Haywood said: “I first came across Clarilis when RPC became an early customer. I was very impressed. The business combines a proprietary technology platform with an internal team of experienced lawyers and automation staff. This not only provides customers with the software, but
also with the help they need to implement it. Too many software initiatives fail for want of this support.
“Private practice law firms and in-house legal teams are under increasing pressure to be innovative and efficient. Clarilis can help them meet those demands. I am really looking forward to working with the team.”
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Daran Harding, Ann Diggins, Andrew Bentley and Jon Dudley
Accountancy firm Dains has appointed a business development director to its Stoke office.
Daran Harding joins the team following over 30 years’ experience in corporate banking across the Midlands and North West.
During his banking career, he has supported clients with acquisitions, restructures and property purchases in addition to working capital support alongside the funding of trading assets.
Ann Diggins, office partner of Dains Stoke, said: “Daran joins us during an exciting growth period in the region, as we see our staff members and client base increasing. Daran’s banking and funding expertise provides us with an additional advantage and broadens our capabilities in supporting our existing client base and new clients. Daran is already out in the local marketplace sharing the firm’s passion for building strong relationships and adding client value.”
Dains managing partner Richard McNeilly added: “So far this year, revenues have grown by over 20%, following a record year last year for the Stoke office. All business areas are performing ahead of budget and strengthening the business development team will further support this growth.”
Harding joins a growing team of over 180 staff from five offices across the Midlands.
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Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking has appointed an area director to support SME businesses in North Worcestershire.
Aaron Merryweather brings 13 years’ banking experience to his new role, having previously held the positions of SME regional manager, agriculture strategy manager and relationship manager at Lloyds Bank in various locations across the UK.
Based at the bank’s Bromsgrove office, Merryweather will oversee a team of seven relationship managers and directors to support more than 1,000 local firms with annual turnovers of up to £25mi. These businesses span a broad range of sectors, including healthcare, manufacturing and real estate.
The senior appointment comes following a sustained period of lending growth by Lloyds Bank, which has recently pledged to support Midlands businesses with up to £2.5bn of lending throughout 2019.
Merryweather said: “The Midlands is a key area of focus for Lloyds Bank and the broad range of innovative, ambitious businesses here in North Worcestershire play a significant role in the region’s success. It’s therefore important that they have the financial expertise, funding and guidance in place to continue driving confidence and growth, especially during ongoing political and economical uncertainty.
“My team and I will be firmly by the side of North Worcestershire businesses throughout 2019 and as part of our commitment to helping Britain prosper, we’ve pledged to support Midlands businesses with £2.5bn of lending this year.”
