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Walter Cha, managing partner at Blake Lapthorn, reviews
the firm’s progress during its financial year May 2007- April
2008:
This year has seen us capitalise on the strengths of being a
larger firm, whilst incorporating valuable client feedback, to
continue to develop our specialist services. Now that the merged
firms of Tarlo Lyons and Blake Lapthorn Linnell are fully
integrated, we have renamed the firm Blake Lapthorn, a
well-respected brand that befits our aspirations to be a top
national firm.
We now have a network of five major offices, with London at the
hub, offering highly specialised expertise in areas such as
banking, finance, technology/outsourcing, business recovery and
recruitment. To build on our position as a leading full service
firm, we are continuing to invest in areas such as corporate,
employment, real estate and private client services.
A major highlight this year has been our move to New Kings
Court, a new 57,000 sq ft purpose-designed building close to
Southampton airport, with excellent road and rail links. This has
provided much needed space for growth, as well as enabling us to
group our people so they can work more effectively across teams,
particularly in delivering sector-based services. The building is
now fully operational and we look forward to welcoming you there in
due course.
In February 2008, we obtained the Investor in People award,
formally acknowledging the importance we place on our people in
achieving our success. This is not just about recruiting and
retaining the best people; the development of those individuals is
a major area of investment for us.
This year we promoted eight ‘home-grown’ partners and brought in
a number of highly regarded lawyers to take our business forward,
including Jack Czyzowski and Mark Brassey in Commercial Real
Estate, Fiona Wilson in Family Law, Nish Kanwar in Travel
Litigation and Robert Wassall in Social Housing. We also welcomed
Alan Morgan, previously senior partner at Deloitte, Southampton, as
a non-executive board member, and Andrew Hillman, also from
Deloitte, as our new finance director. I am confident these senior
appointments will help us achieve our expansion plans.
At our 2008 Challenge Lecture, Peter Jay, the BBC’s former
economics editor, spoke about the current economic uncertainty. He
reminded us of the cyclical nature of the economy. After the recent
years of unparalleled stability and growth, most of us are now
experiencing a counter-period of instability. No one has a
quick-fix answer in the current situation, but if there is one
certainty, it is that we will see a recovery and things will
improve.
At Blake Lapthorn, we aim to provide you with unrivalled
accessibility and support in achieving your business or personal
objectives. Even with the challenging times ahead, our spread of
legal expertise, the quality of our people and the strong
relationships we have built up will enable us, and our clients, to
continue to plan for growth with confidence.
The highlights in our annual review 2007/08 are just a
small selection of this year’s activities, demonstrating our
commitment to providing a responsive service, with a working style
that values flexibility, approachability and excellence.
“Blake Lapthorn [Tarlo Lyons] ranks very highly across the South
East region, where it has four offices as well as one in London; it
attracts top tier recommendations in areas ranging from corporate
tax, competition, pensions and IP/IT, to claimant personal injury
and insolvency. In London, strengths include rail and TMT, and it
is newly ranked in financial services and commercial
litigation.”
The Legal 500, 2008
edition
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