Blake Morgan Private Client team celebrates success in Legal Directories

Blake Morgan’s private client practice areas and lawyers have been recognised for the strength and depth of their expertise in the latest edition of the prestigious Legal 500 directory and the Chambers & Partners 2020 UK guide.

Both directories review and recognise the strengths of law firms and their lawyers across the UK and recommends them based on feedback from clients and peers.

In this year’s Legal 500, Blake Morgan received 72 rankings and saw 37 practice areas ranked as ‘Tier 1’ – denoting those areas considered best-in-class.  The firm’s private client practice areas received 12 rankings and saw three teams ranked as ‘Tier 1’, including the succession & tax and family teams on the South Coast and Thames Valley.

The directory also recognised the specialist expertise of Blake Morgan’s legal advisers with eight private client ranked lawyers in this year’s edition.  Within its succession & tax team, Arshoo Singh, Partner in the firm’s London office, is described as a ‘Next Generation Lawyer’, while Partner James Greig in its Oxford office is praised for being “very approachable and knowledgeable” and is one of this year’s ‘Leading Individuals’. Also recognised for their expertise in this year’s rankings are fellow team members Alison Craggs, Katherine Woodward (both in Oxford), Nicky Sherrard (in Cardiff) and Jonathan Sleep (on the South Coast). From Blake Morgan’s family team in Oxford, Consultant Christine Plews is named a ‘Leading Individual’ and Catherine Morgan is heralded a ‘Next Generation Partner’ by the directory.

Blake Morgan’s private client team also performed strongly in the Chambers and Partners 2020 UK guide, with the family law team recognised in the directory for their expertise in handling complex family and matrimonial matters. Reflecting their success in the Legal 500, both Christine Plews and Catherine Morgan from the firm’s Oxford office were named as ‘Notable Practitioners’ for their work by Chambers. Christine is described as a “real class act” and a leading figure in the market.  On the south coast, Simon Burge is also named a ‘Notable Practitioner’ and is described as “widely respected in the market and boasts a wealth of experience practicing in family and matrimonial law” and is praised for his “gentle, considerate and clever” approach with clients. Flora Grossman, who is based in the firm’s London office, was also ranked ‘Band 4’ and praised for her exceptional manner with clients.

Helen Bunker, Head of Private Client at Blake Morgan, said: “We are extremely proud of our directory results this year. Our private client teams’ continued dedication to providing a personalised service to each and every client is telling in their testimonials and how many lawyers have received praise.  The teams pride themselves on helping our clients navigate sensitive and complex family, wealth preservation and probate issues. These rankings come directly from clients and peers and I would like to thank our partners and people for delivering an outstanding service to them.

With a number of relatively new and imminent ‘senior’ joiners to the practice (Paula Shea, Partner in the succession & tax team on the South Coast; from 5 November, Susannah Treherne, Partner in the succession & tax team in Oxford; and Jenny Williamson, Senior Associate in the family team on the south coast), the firm continues to invest in its private client practice and we look forward to seeing this reflected in next year’s rankings.”