Thomas Horton strengthens family and childcare team

WORCESTERSHIRE law firm Thomas Horton Solicitors has appointed Sam Gilbride as an associate within the firm’s Family and Childcare team.

Based in the firm’s Bromsgrove office, she will support families by helping them to resolve problems when conflict arises through achieving the most amicable outcome for all parties concerned.

Her role will include representing parents and other family members in private law proceedings concerning children-related arrangements and providing advice when Children’s services become involved.

She will work alongside Richard Hull, Head of Criminal Legal Services at Thomas Horton, representing clients at police stations and magistrates courts.

Originally from Walsall, but currently living in Leamington Spa, She has worked as a legal adviser to the Justices since qualifying 10 years ago, assisting the Justices and advising them on legislation, sentencing guidelines and best-practice procedures.

Matthew Horton, Managing Director at Thomas Horton, said: “Sam is a great addition to the team and her experience and expertise is highly regarded in the industry. Her knowledge in family matters is invaluable to our team and to our clients and we are happy to finally have her on board.”

Irwin Mitchell quartet approved as Specialist Brain Injury Lawyers

FOUR senior lawyers from Irwin Mitchell are among the first in the country to receive official approval by the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) to become accredited as Specialist Brain Injury Lawyers and assessors of the new APIL brain injury specialist accreditation scheme.
 
Colin Ettinger, Head of Personal Injury and Amanda Stevens,  partners at Irwin Mitchell’s London office; Philip Edwards, partner and Head of Serious Injury in Birmingham and Jo Darlington, Associate and Head of Serious Injury in Bristol, have all been recognised for their dedication to helping those who have suffered life-changing brain injuries.
 
APIL accreditation provides a quality mark of competence and specialist expertise for solicitors and barristers dealing with personal injury claims which helps those looking for legal help to recognise expertise within the profession.
 
Stuart Henderson, Managing Partner of Personal Injury at Irwin Mitchell, said: “This recognition is testament to the experience, dedication and innovation of the serious injury team at Irwin Mitchell.”
 

Wright Hassall promotes from within to build core services

WRIGHT Hassall  has announced five internal promotions as part of its strategy to build its core services.

Russell Spencer has been promoted to associate in the residential development team. He has worked for the firm for the last 13 years, while Mary Rouse has been with the company for 21 years and specialises in debt recovery and residential property disputes, acting for social housing clients, lenders, private landlords and large corporate clients.

Also in the property dispute resolution, Claire-Elaine Arthurs has secured a new role as an associate after two years with the firm. She deals with commercial, residential and agricultural property issues, as well as supporting social housing providers. Her clients range from multinational PLCs to local individuals.

Peter Dixon has been promoted to legal director in the firm’s business immigration team. Mr Dixon has more than 20 years experience in immigration law and primarily works with corporate clients, advising them on the relocation of key staff to work in the UK from overseas.

Finally, Rita Rajput has been promoted to the role of associate in the corporate team. She has six years of experience within the firm, working across transaction services and investments for SMEs and larger corporates.

Senior partner Nick Abell said: “We have such a wealth of expertise within the firm and it’s wonderful to be able to reward the hard work and loyalty of our staff through a series of promotions.

“To have promoted five members of our team in such as short timescale is a real testament to the breadth and strength of our service offering and proves that we are a firm that is moving forward in terms of our strategy for growth.”

Pictured, from left: Russell Spencer, Rita Rajput, Nick Abell, Mary Rouse and Peter Dixon, all of Wright Hassall.