People: Promotions and appointments at EY; Bevan Brittan hires partner from DLA Piper; and more

EY has made two appointments and several promotions to further grow its Transaction Support team in Yorkshire and the North East, underlining its commitment to building its deals business in the region.

Louise Smith has been promoted to director, having been a key member of the Transaction Support team for 12 years. Louise, who recently completed a secondment at Manchester Airport Group and assisted on the sale of Bournemouth Airport, has worked on deals in Yorkshire and the North East and across the UK, with particular strengths in industrial and building products and also capital markets.

Ben Coggin and Jason Kenneally have both joined as assistant directors.

It is a welcome back to Yorkshire for Coggin who, having spent the early part of his career with EY in Leeds, has relocated back to Yorkshire from EY’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) team in London. He brings with him significant experience of TMT sector transactions and divestiture advisory services.

Kenneally has strong relationships across the region having worked in and around the Yorkshire deals market for five years, and has cross-sector experience on buy-side, sell-side and refinancing due diligence assignments, as well as working on capital market transactions such as IPOs for local corporates to multinational PLCs. His focus will be on mid-market private equity, a buoyant part of the deals market..

The wider Transaction Support team continues to grow and develop with Tom Holroyde being promoted to manager, Fiona Godfrey being promoted to executive following the award winning completion of her professional exams, the internal recruitment of Auryn Jones from the audit practice, as well as a new graduate Fiona Sopp, starting recently.

In January, EY appointed partner Mark Allcroft as its new head of Transaction Support for Yorkshire and the North East. Mark, who previously spent 18 years at KPMG, relocated back to Sheffield with his family, having lived in London for the last 13 years.

Allcroft said: “I really am delighted by the progress we’ve made in the local market in such a short space of time both with our clients and in our ability to attract talent such as Ben and Jason. Both are full of energy, enthusiasm and bring wealth of experience to the team, having worked on many high profile transactions regionally and across the UK.

“The promotions of Louise, Tom and Fiona are pleasing for me personally – each is thoroughly deserved and reflects their commitment to growing our business, being present in the market and the excellent client work they’ve delivered over the last six months.  Each of them have a great deal to be proud of and I look forward to seeing them flourish in the months and years ahead.”

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Law firm Bevan Brittan has appointed Judith Hopper as a litigation partner in its Leeds office. Judith joins from DLA Piper.

Hopper specialises in commercial litigation with a focus on PFI/projects disputes, contentious construction and professional negligence. She also has extensive experience of commercial and contractual disputes, corporate disputes including breach of warranty and shareholder disputes, and breach of confidentiality claims.

Notable cases she has worked on include advising Birmingham City Council in a dispute arising from a £2.6 billion PFI contract for the repair and maintenance of a road network, and advising Highways England in a dispute with Connect Plus over a £6 billion PFI contract for the management of the M25 motorway.

Hopper works nationally but has extensive knowledge of the marketplace in the North, having been based in Leeds for the last sixteen years. After qualifying at Walker Morris in the city, she then joined Irwin Mitchell followed by DLA Piper, where she worked for ten years and was a director.

Hopper said: “I am very happy to be joining Bevan Brittan. It has a reputation for undertaking high quality, complex work and has great strength in depth across both the public and private sectors. The firm is growing and has serious national ambitions. I greatly look forward to working with clients and colleagues here.”

Bevan Brittan has also taken on two new trainees in the Leeds office. Lyndsay Mair and Rory Budworth recently took up two-year training contracts as they work towards qualifying as solicitors. Lyndsay begins her training in the Commercial & Infrastructure team while Rory starts in Property.

Michael Boyd, Head of the Leeds office at Bevan Brittan, said: “We are very pleased that Judith has joined us. Someone of her calibre does not come along very often. Her arrival represents another step-change in the development of the Leeds office, taking the team here to eleven partners and extending our litigation capability. Judith will work with clients locally and nationally as part of the firm’s busy and growing litigation, advisory and regulatory practice. I am also delighted to welcome Lyndsay and Rory as trainee solicitors and hope they will find their training with us a rewarding experience.”

Duncan Weir, Managing Partner of Bevan Brittan, said: “I am delighted that Judith has started with us at the firm. The Leeds office is an important part of our national capability and its success in its early years has been pleasing to see. Judith’s appointment carries on the momentum.”

Bevan Brittan recently announced an expansion of its Leeds office in the centre of the city to accommodate an expected doubling in headcount over the next 3-5 years.

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Solicitor Chelsea Martin has been appointed a trustee of Older Citizens Advocacy York (OCAY).

Martin is a member of the private client team at Langleys Solicitors, York. She advises on all aspects of private client work including inheritance tax planning, the preparation of wills, trust documents and lasting powers of attorney.

OCAY supports people over the age of 50 by providing a free and independent advocacy service, enabling them to have a voice in issues that affect their lives.

Martin said: “OCAY’s focus is on giving older people a voice and providing them with practical support and advocacy. This overlaps so well with the legal advice and guidance that we provide to our clients at Langleys and I am looking forward to the experience I will gain in my role as a trustee.”

The board of trustees praised her ‘personal skills of clarity, calm thoughtfulness and analysis and excellent communication skills’ as well as her ‘expertise in areas relevant to our clients and potential future development’.

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New Guard Coatings have appointed Steve Law as Group Business Development Manager. The appointment comes at a time of growth for New Guard Coatings with an increase of clients and a rise in sales.

Whilst primarily based from their Wetherby head office, Law will oversee work and ensure cohesion between all of New Guard’s offices both in the UK and abroad. The appointment is with immediate effect.

With 39 years of experience in the print and paper industry, Law felt the time for a new challenge was right. He said:  “I knew Ben and New Guard very well after ‘cold-calling’ them almost 10 years ago and soon afterwards becoming client and supplier” Steve added “Having seen the group grow incredibly, now having branches throughout the UK, Ireland, Europe and the USA. I didn’t have to struggle to appreciate that the role I was being offered was incredibly exciting”.

With a growth in clients over the last year, New Guard continue to improve their product range as well as the service that their customers receive.

Ben Cooper, Managing Director of New Guard Coatings said: “We continue to have very ambitious growth plans for the group, and there is nobody better to fill our business development as part of the group expansion jigsaw than Steve.”