People: Leeds United Football Club; York Central; Gordons; and more
A Yorkshire lawyer is returning to his roots following his appointment as executive vice chairman of Leeds United Football Club.
Peter McCormick, founding and senior partner of McCormicks Solicitors of Harrogate, is leaving his role as chairman of the Football Board and Legal Advisory Group of at the Premier League to take up this new post.
He said: “In some ways I have come full circle as I was on the Board at Leeds in the 1990s.
“I then went to the Premier League which meant I could no longer play an active role at Leeds.
“I am happy to be back and look forward to being able to use the skills and experience I have gained over my time at the Premier League and the FA to benefit Leeds.”
McCormick has worked with the Premier League for 11 years and before that as lead external adviser to the Board from 1996.
He was interim chair of the league twice, most recently for the seasons in 2021/22 and 2022/23.
Premier League chief executive, Richard Masters, added: “He has been a trusted and valued member of the team for many years, and we are very grateful for his significant contribution over that period.”
In addition to his many roles at the Premier League, McCormick was vice chair of the FA for six years and chair from 2020 to 2022.
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Anastasija Clayton has been appointed by McLaren Property as senior project manager of York Central, one of the UK’s largest city centre regeneration schemes.
Clayton, who is very familiar with York Central having held the position of project manager for the scheme, on behalf of Homes England, will now join the York Central delivery team, working with Tom Gilman, managing director of McLaren Regeneration, and working alongside Allan Cook, founder of Arlington Real Estate, the strategic development partners of York Central.
A senior development and regeneration professional with over 16 years’ experience working client side, Clayton brings experience of delivering residential, mixed-use and complex multi-phase development projects involving both public, private and affordable housing sectors.
Forming part of the development team, she will work alongside Karen Stafeckis, Jack Widdup, and Joseph Young, as well as partners and stakeholders to lead and support the overall delivery of the York Central Masterplan project, including co-ordinating overall masterplan design, planning and delivery, to ensure the vision for the project is realised.
The expanded team will drive the transformation of one of the largest brownfield sites in England, working with Homes England and Network Rail Property, as well as key partners including the City of York Council and the National Railway Museum.
Tom Gilman, managing director of McLaren Regeneration, said: “It’s great to have Anastasija on board, joining a strong development team for York Central, bringing together experience, expertise and knowledge, from across the public and private sector.
“The broad spectrum of skills will be invaluable in the delivery of our vision for a new city quarter of York and for what is a significant project for the UK.”
Clayton added: “I am excited to be part of the delivery team driving this transformational project forward.
“We have made great progress with my former colleagues at Homes England and Network Rail in unlocking the delivery of York Central whilst working collaboratively with local partners.
“I am excited to build on that success and ensure that this former railway site is transformed into a place that people of York can be proud of.”
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Law firm Gordons has strengthened its regulatory and property disputes teams with the appointment of two experienced lawyers.
Rachel Little joins the firm’s regulatory practice from Lupton Fawcett where she advised clients on a range of issues including environmental, health and safety, licensing and trading standards.
Before becoming a lawyer, she spent almost seven years working as an environmental, health and safety advisor in the chemicals industry, managing compliance and conducting incident investigations.
Joining the property disputes team from Hagen Wolf is Dominic Titherington who has experience of handling complex cases for residential and commercial clients.
His specialisms include boundary disputes, easements, adverse possessions alongside lease renewals and dilapidations.
Managing partner, Victoria Davey, said: “Our regulatory and property disputes practices are both performing well through additional instructions from existing clients and new client relationships being established.
“Rachel and Dominic are enhancing their teams’ service offerings and therefore giving our clients added value in their areas of expertise.
“They are highly-regarded, personable lawyers with a reputation for delivering commercially astute, practical advice.
“Those are attributes our clients value highly and we look forward to Rachel and Dominic playing their part in the continued expansion of our regulatory and property disputes services.”
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Two brothers who harnessed their passion for sport to build a business in the UK occupational health market have become the latest appointments to the board of the Super League club which first sparked their ambitions.
Jack and Sam Latus have joined the line-up at Hull Kingston Rovers with a pledge to drive the further growth of the club they served as players.
Board chair Paul Sewell, who is also chair of Sewell Group, said: “This is a milestone in the drive for the sustainability of our club.
“Just as the first team needs a pipeline of fresh young talent, so does the board and we have been working towards this from the start of the transformation.
“That Jack and Sam are Hull business people who have been fantastically successful at a young age is great, but their former association with the club as players makes it towards perfect.”
Jack, Sam and third brother Will launched Latus Health in 2017.
Jack Latus, CEO of Latus Group, said: “It feels like a good time for us because if we are going to put time into something, we want to know that we have the skill set to be able to add value.
“I think the lessons we have learned on the journey to build the Latus Group healthcare brand put us in a good position to help move the sport and club forward.
“The ups and the downs of our time at the club and in the sport helped shape us to who we are today. It feels like a full circle moment to now be invited to join the board to help steer the strategic direction of the club to continued success.
“I am excited at the opportunity to be able to have the impact that I always hoped I would as a player, but this time from the safer side of the whitewash.”
Sam Latus, the company’s chief commercial officer, added: “We were attracted by how far the club has already gone, what the board has already achieved and how we can be a part of driving that forward to make a lasting change.
“It’s a privilege to be around them and we want to emulate the type of success that they have enjoyed in business, the impact they have made locally and nationally and the ambition they have instilled into the club. It was a ‘pinch me’ moment when we sat down at our first meeting.
“We’ll take a bit of time to learn more about the club and we hope our playing experience will be of benefit and help to maintain the strong connection between the board, the back office staff and the team.
“So much has changed since we played here – all for the better – and crucially they have maintained the essence of the club and looked after the heart of it.”
Paul Lakin, chief executive of Hull Kingston Rovers, said the appointments were the culmination of a series of chats to get to know each other over the last year.
He said: “We got together again earlier this year and things moved forward very quickly. I think having two successful young men who have both played the game and have a keen passion to make a difference will bring a different angle.
“Walking around our stadium with them as they engage with the staff, players and management it’s clear they are steeped in the club, the people and the potential.”
