People on the move: Keebles; Raworths; Bevan Brittan; Milners; Excello Law

Law firm Keebles has boosted its commercial property team by over 20% in the last six months – bringing the department to 23 strong.

The latest appointments comprise of solicitor Jonathan Gott, who advises on the acquisition, disposal and lettings of commercial and high value residential property and solicitor Hollie Hemmens, who acts for property developers and investors with substantial property portfolios.

Operating across offices in Sheffield, Leeds and Doncaster, earlier this year the Doncaster team was further strengthened with a trio of new appointments.

Its client base includes Harworth Group, Coalfields Regeneration Trust, Lazarus Properties, St. Pauls Developments PLC and Crossbow Investments.

The commercial property department, described in the latest edition of Legal 500 as ‘consistently strong’, is led by Richard Smith.

Smith said: “We have developed a reputation as one of Yorkshire’s biggest and most highly regarded commercial property departments. With a strong pipeline of commissions and deals to deliver to wide-ranging clients, investment in recruiting and developing our team remains a key priority.”

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Raworths Solicitors has made five new appointments to support the expansion of its corporate, family and commercial property units, as well as adding a marketing function.

Ryan Dhinsa and Claire Hunter join as solicitors; Lisa Virdee as a chartered legal executive; Jennifer Webber joins as a paralegal; and Rachel Lowe as a marketing manager.

Dhinsa will support the commercial property team, while Hunter will advise on all aspects of family law. Virdee will join the Trusts Wills and Estates team, one of the biggest in North Yorkshire, and her appointment will take the team to 19 people.

Webber joins the corporate team and will support the team acting for clients in corporate transactions including acquisitions, disposals and mergers.  Lowe brings over 20 years of experience working as a business development professional in the legal sector.

Zoe Robinson, managing partner, said: “We are delighted to welcome these new team members on board. Their addition mirrors our approach which is to provide our clients with a broad offering, providing numerous specialisms under one roof in a trusted environment.”

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Law firm Bevan Brittan has expanded its local government team in Leeds with the hire of David Kitson as a senior associate.

Kitson joins from the in-house legal team of Scarborough Borough Council, where he worked for nearly 13 years as deputy monitoring officer and senior information risk owner.

He has experience providing regulatory and governance advice, training and support to local government, as well as to other public bodies including NHS CCGs, National Park Authorities and Registered Social Landlords.

Kitson advised on conduct and ethical standards; constitutional issues; complaints and investigations; information law such as GDPR and Freedom of Information requests; and governance and the democratic process.

He said: “I am delighted to be joining Bevan Brittan. The firm has a strong reputation built on its extensive credentials in advising local authorities and public sector bodies. My in-house experience means that I will be able to give practical advice reflecting both the political context and the day to day issues in the public sector. I am greatly looking forward to working with my new clients.”

Judith Barnes, local government partner at Bevan Brittan, said: “We are really pleased that David is joining us. His track record and Council experience will give him a strong rapport with our clients and a real understanding of the challenges they are dealing with. He is a great addition to our growing team.”

In addition, the firm has welcomed two new assistant solicitors in Leeds who both join the healthcare property team: Maria Shone who joins from the law firm Langleys, and Gary Wales who moves to the firm from Beaumont Legal.

Shone and Wales join Bevan Brittan’s healthcare property team advising NHS bodies and private healthcare providers on all matters relating to their estates – including disposals, investments and new development projects.

James Atkins, healthcare property partner in Leeds, said: “Adding Maria and Gary to our Leeds healthcare property team is fantastic news. They are both very talented young lawyers and their recruitment will give us even greater capacity to deliver excellent service to clients old and new across the public and private health sector. Our Leeds team continues to advise on day to day NHS estates matters as well as major development and disposal projects.”

The hires come as Bevan Brittan recently announced a strong financial year, with revenues for 2017/18 up 12% to £44m and profits up 23% to £9.6m.

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Leeds-based solicitors Milners has recruited Nicola May to strengthen its commercial property specialism; while Nathan Watts joins its litigation department as a paralegal. Both will be based at the company’s Leeds city centre headquarters.

May, a former graduate of Huddersfield University and the BPP Law School in Leeds ,launched her legal career at Milners in 2015 as a paralegal and completed her training contract at the firm. She re-joins Milners after working for Ramsdens.

As well as pursuing a career in law, May is a democratically-elected local representative, serving the community of Luddendenfoot on Calderdale Council. She is also the appointed event coordinator for the Halifax and Huddersfield Junior Lawyers’ Division.

Watts formerly worked for BC Legal and Ward Hadaway before joining Milners’ litigation team under the stewardship of department head and senior partner Giles Ward.

Milners’ managing partner, Simon Bass, said: “Our programme of strategic growth continues to gather pace – in Leeds as well as our sister offices in Harrogate and Pontefract – and these appointments signal yet another step forward.

“Commercial property and litigation are two of our key specialisms and we are delighted to strengthen both teams with the recruitment of Nicola and Nathan – and their home-grown Yorkshire legal talent.”

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Ben Jenkins, a specialist in commercial and property litigation, has joined Excello Law from Crooks Commercial Solicitors in Wakefield, where he was a partner and director of dispute resolution.

Jenkins has worked as a solicitor in Yorkshire since qualifying in 2007, specialising in commercial and property litigation with experience in ground rent and service charge recovery in relation to commercial and residential property.

He qualified as a solicitor advocate in 2011 and is able to represent clients in the higher-level courts in England and Wales for civil matters. He has represented clients in the Property Chamber, First Tier and Upper Tribunal and the High Court.

Jenkins said: “I am delighted to join the Excello Law team. The calibre of Lawyers who I work with is second to none, and the support staff are also excellent, which translates into a better service for the clients. I am truly excited about what the future holds.”

George Bisnought, managing director of Excello Law added: “We are delighted Ben has joined Excello Law enhancing our commercial litigation and family law services, and bringing significant added value to both colleagues and clients through his qualification as a solicitor advocate.”