Senior hire for Leicester law firm

Howes Percival has added to its family law practice with two senior appointments.

Based in the Leicester office, family law partner Justine Flack has been promoted to become the new national head of the firm’s family law department, while Melanie Westwood has joined the Leicester team as a senior associate.

Flack has been part of the family law team in the Leicester office since it began in 2010 and, as head of family law, will have responsibility for the ongoing development of the family team across the whole firm.

Westwood joins Howes Percival from Brethertons Solicitors and specialises in all areas of family law including separation, divorce, financial proceedings, arrangements for children and cohabitation matters. She is a member of Resolution and strives to achieve the best outcome for her clients using a conciliatory approach.

Flack said: “I am delighted to welcome Melanie to Howes Percival, she’s a really strong addition to the team, particularly with regard to high net worth divorces. Melanie brings a great deal of experience, as well as strong technical skills and a great reputation for her work. She is very client focused, which is important to the work we do and the way we like to look after our clients.

“Our primary work is financial remedy on divorce, particularly for high net worth individuals. We tend to manage cases with more complex assets, representing business owners, farmers, entrepreneurs and professionals or their spouses. We also actively promote wealth preservation via pre-nuptial agreements and work with families taking a strategic approach to family wealth.

“We continue to see a steady increase in instructions, which pre-dates the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown. Our plan is for the team to continue to grow across our regions and Melanie’s appointment is part of our expansion programme.”