Stephens Scown’s status as one of the south west’s leading law firms has been reaffirmed with the publication of the annual Legal 500 guide to the legal profession.The firm, which has offices in Exeter, St Austell and Truro, wins plaudits from clients for the quality of its work across a range of areas. It has retained its number one ranking for family law and seen its litigation and corporate recovery teams move up the rankings for their quality of service.
Stephens Scown chief executive Andy Steele said: “The Legal 500’s recommendations are based mainly on interviews with clients so it speaks volumes to have so many of our lawyers from across our three offices in Devon and Cornwall identified for their quality of service.
“Our family team has justifiability retained its number one position in the region while our litigation and corporate recovery teams have moved up the rankings. To have our lawyers described by our clients as ‘excellent’, ‘exceptional’, ‘brilliant’ and ‘personable’ is the best endorsement we could wish for.”
This year’s Legal 500 includes a number of recommendations for the firm:
Partner Liz Allen, who heads the family law team and specialises in divorce law, is once again singled out as a ‘leading individual’ in the South West, described as ‘speaking in a language clients understand’ and ‘applying the law sensibly’. Her team, which is ranked by Legal 500 as among the best in the region, is described as ‘hardworking and cheerful while remaining professional’.
Stephens Scown’s six-partner commercial litigation team is described as ‘exceptional’, with team leader Chris Harper ‘unfailingly knowledgeable, competent and efficient’, and associate Brian Dolan winning praise for both his litigation and debt recovery work.
The insolvency and corporate recovery team, led by ‘effective litigator’ Matthew Wald, is praised for ‘understanding client issues’ and being ‘easy to deal with’.
The firm’s five-partner corporate practice – which advises a number of ‘Dragons’ regarding their investments from BBC2’s Dragons Den – is recommended, with team leader James Keliher winning plaudits. Keliher is also described as ‘excellent’ for banking and finance work, along with the ‘personable and well-connected’ Robert Camp and the ‘intelligent’ Matthew Wald.
Camp wins praise for his commercial property work as well, and is noted for his ‘no-nonsense approach, and ‘intelligent commercial solutions’, and clients appreciate that they have ‘direct access to senior partners’. Philip Mogridge is described as ‘brilliant in confrontational situations’ and is also singled out for his licensing work.
Stephens Scown’s dedicated rural team is recommended, including team leader Richard Baker for his rural land expertise advising farmers and landowners, including on estate issues.
Baker is also mentioned as part of Stephens Scown’s nationally-recognised mining and minerals practice, as is Camp who sits on the CBI’s Minerals Group, and Ian Lamond for his mining and waste industry planning expertise, and his environment work.
Employment law partner Nigel Moore is recommended for his expertise in advising employees on contentious matters, while private client partner Margaret Lang is recommended for personal tax, trusts and probate work. ‘Experienced litigator’ Philip Snell wins praise for his personal injury claimant work.
