People: Clarion adds to corporate recovery team; Restructuring partner moves to KPMG from Deloitte; Trio of hires for architecture practice; and more

Clarion’s corporate recovery and insolvency practice is seeing further growth with the appointment of Ashley Armitage as a senior associate.

Over the past eight years, Armitage has worked at international law firms in both London and Leeds, advising on a number of high profile insolvencies.

Specialising in all aspects of contentious and non-contentious insolvency, she also provides advice on corporate restructuring. Armitage has acted for office holders, company officers, creditors and potential buyers regarding companies in distress and insolvency procedures.

She also works on investigations relating to potential claims by office holders against company officers and third parties, and any subsequent litigation, as well as advising on claims by creditors.
Armitage has advised clients on insolvencies in a number of sectors, including retail, sports, hospitality, leisure and construction. She has also attained the Certificate of Proficiency in Insolvency enabling her to advise clients on points which are not solely ‘legal’, but also on practical aspects of matters.

Ryan Millmore, joint managing partner and head of Clarion’s corporate recovery and insolvency team, said: “With demand for our services in both contentious and non-contentious insolvency continuing to grow, it’s vital that we carry on investing in the team in order to ensure we are able to maintain the swift response and technical expertise for which we are renowned.

“As we build on a very successful 2018, we are bringing on board more talented young lawyers and Ashley is a welcome addition to the team.”

:::

Business advisory firm KPMG has bolstered its restructuring practice in the North of England with the appointment of including James Clark as associate partner in Leeds.

Based at the firm’s Sovereign Square office, Clark comes to the firm’s restructuring practice from Deloitte, where he undertook a mix of corporate insolvency and advisory work at the upper end of the midmarket.

During 18 years at Deloitte,he worked on a number of high-profile insolvency cases, including HMV and Comet, and established the firm’s specialist education team.

Kenny McKay, restructuring Partner at KPMG in Leeds, said: “Corporate insolvency figures are starting to tick-up quarter-on-quarter. High profile insolvencies, both regionally and nationally, since the start of the year provide a reminder of the challenges faced by companies as they grapple economic and political uncertainty and tougher trading conditions.

“The appointments of Rick and James are the latest in a string of investments we’ve made in our market-leading restructuring practice in the North. Combined, they have more than 30 years’ experience supporting businesses in times of stress and distress. We’re confident their arrival will help us continue to be the strongest team in the market and win some of the highest profile mandates in the UK

:::

Miho Sugiyama and Jonathan Neal with Tim Chesnutt who have all joined Brewster Bye Architects.

A Leeds-based architecture practice has made three appointments following a number of residential project wins.

Brewster Bye Architects has appointed Part 2 architectural assistant Tim Chesnutt and junior architectural technologists Miho Sugiyama and Jonathan Neal.

Brewster Bye’s managing director, Chris Austin, said: “Tim, Miho and Jonathan are really talented, enthusiastic and technically very sound individuals who have all worked for many years to achieve their goals. We welcome them to our thriving practice and will encourage and support them with their future development.”

Brewster Bye’s UK-wide portfolio includes residential property work for private developers, house builders and social housing providers, commercial buildings in both the office and industrial sectors, community projects for the education, health, community enterprise and arts sectors, as well as a number of significant projects within the sports and leisure sector.

The firm  employs a team of 24 people.

:::
Sheffield-based marketing agency Diva Creative has appointed a new senior account manager after securing several contracts.

Henry Tyce brings extensive experience to the company, having previously co-founded a digital agency and since worked in various roles related to e-commerce.

At Diva, he is working with clients including UK Steel Enterprise, Sandwell Children’s Trust, the Office of the South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, and Transport for London’s LoCITY project on a range of digital, social media and public health campaigns.

His appointment follows recent contract wins with East Riding of Yorkshire Council, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, and Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council.

He is the fourth new team member to join Diva in the last six months as the agency continues to expand its in-house skills and services.