Legal News: Aaron & Partners; Mills & Reeve & more
STUART Haynes, a corporate partner at Aaron & Partners in Chester, has been elected to the board of international professional services network Integrated Advisory Group International.
Haynes, who has been involved with IAG for 18 years, was elected at the group’s general assembly in Rotterdam and will serve a three-year term.
He said: “This is a very exciting time to join the board, particularly with the proposed further expansion into the Asia Pacific region, and I’m very pleased to be elected.
“The increasing consumer market in the Asia Pacific region will create far more opportunities for exporting or even setting up businesses there, and with my own and Aaron & Partners’ connections within IAG, we’re in an excellent position to advise clients on how to take advantage of this emerging market and, of course, others.”
IAG’s director of administration, Chris Whitamore, added: “Stuart has many years of experience of the group, and is very well known, liked and respected by all involved. Combining that with his wide professional experience as a senior corporate lawyer, he brings a very valuable combination of qualities to IAG’s management team.”
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NATIONAL firm Shoosmiths has been named Law Firm of the Year at the M&A awards 2015. The awards, held at Victoria Park Plaza in London, recognise and celebrate the achievements of management teams, advisers and financiers who, over the past 12 months, have demonstrated excellence in deal making.
The firm’s corporate team was praised by judges for its work on deals including advising on the sale of Rex Features to Shutterstock Inc; advising Park Holidays UK on the simultaneous sale and acquisition of holiday parks in the South West; advising Peugeot Motor on the sale of Motaquip; and providing expert legal advice on over 20 deals with Octopus Investments.
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KATHRYN Harwood, head of wills & estate planning at Lancashire firm Napthens, has been appointed as panel deputy to the Court of Protection.
Appointed by the Office of the Public Guardian, the courts can choose a deputy from a list of just 68 legal professionals when nobody else is willing or able to act as a ‘deputy’ for the vulnerable person involved. Panel deputies support people who lack capacity in this way by helping them make decisions about their finances.
In her role, Kathryn will primarily work in the geographic area covering Preston to Cumbria, along with Merseyside, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire where necessary. The appointment is for a 10- year term.
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THE Manchester office of Mills & Reeve has made two appointments to its team.
Wendy Latham has joined as a legal executive in the private client departmentand will focus primarily on estate administration. Lathan, who has more than 20 years’ experience in the field, was previously at DWF.
Kate Emms has joined as an events administrator having previously worked at Glasgows Event Management in Preston.
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HILLYER McKeown, has become the first firm to offer a legal apprenticeship programme.
The firm, which has offices in Chester, Wirral and North Wales, was the first practice to adopt the new “Articled Apprenticeship” scheme and has now been joined by two other firms in the region, Rowlinsons and Gamlins Law.
The firms are working closely with The University of Law (ULaw), which has developed the programme to provide an alternative route to qualification as a solicitor.
Successful candidates will be employed by the firms throughout the six-year apprenticeship, while studying ULaw’s part-time LLB course in Chester, a qualifying law degree approved by the Bar Standards Board and Solicitors Regulation Authority in England and Wales.
Richard Burnett, a partner at Hillyer McKeown, said: “We are delighted to be the first law firm in the country to adopt the Articled Apprenticeship programme. We are a firm with big plans and the opportunity to grow our own talent is an exciting one.
“The traditional full-time university route is not for everyone and this pioneering scheme offers a fantastic alternative route to becoming a solicitor.”
