This week’s North West appointments

Nine appointments, Vincents Solicitors

Vincents Solicitors has welcomed three new fee earners, five support staff and a new apprentice to its growing road traffic accident (RTA) department.

The newcomers are:

• Sara Kiran (solicitor)
• Anthony Harrison (paralegal)
• Tasneem Shaffa (paralegal)
• Rachel Varrie (litigation executive)
• Michelle Mitchell (litigation executive)
• Simon Waller (litigation executive)
• Holly Nihill (administration assistant)
• Alison Smith (administration assistant)
• Ben Greensmith (apprentice)

Cath Pearson, the head of Vincents’ PI-RTA department, said: “We have grown and are still growing. We bring in new people and almost immediately we need more.

“It’s a great position to be in and it means we’re getting the pick of some excellent, highly experienced candidates.”

She continued: “The nature of personal injury work is that it is not limited by location, and we have clients from all over the country, in particular from the Eastern European and Bangladeshi communities with whom we have built some very strong relationships. Our local Lancashire-based business is also increasing as word spreads about the team’s success rate in securing compensation for our clients.”

Phillip Gilmore, the managing partner at Vincents, said he is confident that, under Cath’s leadership, the department will continue going from strength to strength.

He continued: “Where there are results, so follows investment and we are happy to continue to support the team’s growth. She is developing some excellent junior executives and attracting some great senior heads.

“We’re hoping the next round of recruitment will continue in that vein and will be looking to appoint new fee earners to the team within the next few months.”

Rachael Allen, Hill Dickinson

Law firm Hill Dickinson has appointed Rachael Allen to its property and construction team in the role of senior associate.

Rachael gained her experience in dealing with real estate transactions while at law firm Nabarro. She first joined the company’s Sheffield office as a newly qualified solicitor in 2005.

At Hill Dickinson, Rachael will advise clients on areas of property such as sales, acquisitions and landlord and tenant matters, as well as due diligence, corporate and banking support work.

Rachael said of her appointment: “I am really pleased to be returning to Liverpool, the city where I went to school, college and university, and where my family still live.”

The head of the property team at Hill Dickinson, David Swaffield, commented: “Rachael brings over a decade of property law experience to the firm and joins us at an important time as this dynamic team builds on its recent success and plans for further growth in 2017.”

Image L-R: Emma Palmer, Paul Gallagher, Hayley Catherall, Nicola Harris and Brad Armstong

Five appointments, MSB Solicitors

MSB Solicitors, the Liverpool-based law firm, has announced the appointment of five new partners.

As of March 1, Brad Armstrong, Emma Palmer, Hayley Catherall, Nicola Harris and Paul Gallagher will join the firm’s nine existing partners.

Brad Armstrong started at MSB last year and manages the expansion of the company’s plot sales department.

Paul Gallagher, who leads MSB’s Crown Court litigation, joined the business when it was established in 1988.

Nicola Harris, meanwhile, obtained her law degree at the University of Liverpool in 2004 and started her training contract at MSB the year following. Prior to her appointment, she worked as an associate in the company’s matrimonial department.

Emma Palmer has worked at MSB since 2007 and has expertise in women’s and children’s matters.

Lastly, Hayley Catherall has been a member of the MSB team for over 10 years. She qualified as a legal executive in 2000 and a Fellow in 2002, after starting out an assistant in a solicitor’s office when she left school.

The head of MSB’s family team, partner Emma Carey, said: “I am beyond delighted that three of my team have been invited to be partners with the firm.

“Not only is this testament to their hard work, commitment and capability – but also to the firm’s promise to support, enable and promote all members of staff.”

She added: “I’m incredibly proud to be part of a firm that has succeeding in creating an environment where all our staff can achieve their potential.”

Paul Barber, R3

R3, the insolvency and restructuring trade body, has taken on Paul Barber as its new North West chair.

Paul is a partner at the Manchester office of corporate recovery firm Begbies Traynor and will replace outgoing chair Richard Wolff.

He will be supported by R3’s new vice chair, Allan Cadman, who is a partner at insolvency practitioners Poppleton & Appleby.

Paul said: “Insolvency professionals have become highly skilled at rescuing ailing businesses, with the North West leading the way.

“R3’s research shows that the region has the highest rate of business rescue in the country with 52% of businesses declared insolvent surviving in some form.”

He continued: “Change brings both challenge and opportunity, but businesses need to be alert to the market signals, ready to react swiftly and restructure their operations where required.

“Where firms do get into difficulty, the key is to address the issues at an early stage. In most cases calling in help at the right time, especially from professionals experienced in change management, can save the business and the jobs of its employees.”

Chelsea Slater, Amanda Follit (pictured) and Ian Finch, Liverpool City Region Digital & Creative Board

The Liverpool City Region Digital & Creative Board has taken on three new members.

The organisation has appointed Chelsea Slater from the Liverpool Girl Geeks network along with Amanda Follit and Ian Finch from digital agencies Amaze and Mando (respectively).

The board was established by the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) with the mission of driving, promoting and accelerating the City Region’s position in the world’s growing digital and cultural industries.

The chair of the Digital and Creative Board, Kate Willard, said: “Liverpool City Region is a thriving, creative digital hotbed working with global clients on a ground-breaking portfolio of work.

“This City Region has the second fastest growing technology start-up cluster in the country with around 3,500 businesses making an annual GVA contribution of almost £900m – we want to grow this.”

She added: “We are not a board that will be making decisions behind closed doors – we want to get out there and work closely with businesses to help make the Digital & Creative sector even bigger and better than it already is.”

Michael Stockton and Siân Riley, Slater and Gordon

The Chester office of law firm Slater and Gordon has added to its team with the appointment of Michael Stockton and Siân Riley.

Joining the firm from HHB Law, Michael has experience in wills, trusts, tax and probate, including the preparation of wills, trusts, the administration of estates and powers of attorney.

Siân Riley has previously worked for a number of large law firms, including Weightmans and Irwin Mitchell. At Slater and Gordon, Siân will deal with a variety of private client work, including drafting wills, lasting powers of attorney and inheritance tax planning.

The leader of the firm’s wills, trusts, tax and probate teams in Chester and Wrexham, Phil Appleby, said: “Surging house prices have greatly increased the value of people’s assets and, as a consequence, their potential tax liabilities.

“This, combined with the growing number of second marriages and cohabitation, means financial and estate planning is far more complicated now than it used to be.”

He added: “Clients are increasingly turning to our specialist legal advice on issues, such as tax and care home fee planning.”

Four appointments, Liverpool BID Company

Liverpool BID Company has hired four new ambassadors.

Katie Rainford, Barbara Fox and Mark Williams will join the ambassador team as the organisation seeks to look after a wider area of the city centre, including Cavern Quarter, Bold Street, Clayton Square and St Johns.

Sue O’Neill, meanwhile, will join existing ambassadors Nathan Marsh and Michael Jaeger in Liverpool’s commercial district.

The chief exec of the Liverpool BID Company, Bill Addy, said: “The ambassadors have been our eyes and ears in the Commercial District over the last 12 months and the information that they have provided has been invaluable for us to deliver the best service possible.

“Based on their reports, we’re able to directly address any issues or do more of what people like to help make the area the best place to live, work and socialise. Now we hope to see equal success on the high street as we extend the programme.”

Image L-R: Stuart Thompson, Lynne McCadden Alice Birdwood and Alexis May

Four appointments, Salford Professional Development

Salford University subsidiary Salford Professional Development (SPD) has promoted two of its staff to director roles and appointed Lynne McCadden to lead its new creative and digital business unit.

Alice Birdwood, formerly SPD’s head of event management, is now director of programmes, while Stuart Thompson has moved from his position as head of sales to sales director.

Lynne, who has over 25 years of senior experience in digital and media roles, spent 10 years with the BBC working as a presenter, producer and reporter in TV and radio. She currently runs her own advisory consultancy, Morra.

Alexis May, who previously served as a divisional director at the London Business Conferences Group, will become head of event management following Alice’s promotion.

The deputy chief executive of SPD, Paul Bolton, said: “As SPD has expanded, so has our portfolio of training courses and conferences. The scope of these events is set to grow further over the next few years.

“Alice will be leading the programmes team as they engage different public sector and industry speakers to ensure our content remains cutting-edge. She will also be building strategic relationships with the university and links with industry partners for the benefit of our delegates and university students.”

He continued: “Stuart has made a tremendous impact since he joined SPD in 2014 and now manages a five-strong team which delivers sponsorship revenues for company conferences.

“These appointments reflect our commitment to staff development within SPD. Stuart and Alice have worked hard and deserve these promotions.”

Speaking further, Paul said he believes Lynne’s “wealth of experience and knowledge” will make her an “excellent addition” to the team.

He added: “With her input, we will be able to build a stronger suite of digital and creative products and support the university to deliver its objective of working more with industry. We are also pleased to welcome Alexis to the company.”