Blake Morgan teams in Wales celebrate strong showing in Legal 500 directory

Law firm Blake Morgan is celebrating a strong presence for its legal specialists in Wales in the 2017 edition of the prestigious Legal 500 directory.

The directory, just published, reviews the strengths of lawyers across the UK and recommends them based on how they are seen by clients and their peers.

The Legal 500 lists 16 Cardiff-based Blake Morgan Partners as “leading individuals” – the highest accolade the directory can give. Those named include corporate lawyer Robert Cherry, commercial litigation specialist Allan Wilson, insolvency and corporate recovery expert Paul Caldicott, employment specialist Paula Kathrens, Real Estate expert Geoffrey Reed and Claire Rawle, a health and safety lawyer. A further 38 lawyers are listed as “recommended” by the guide.

The guide rates the firm’s Wales offering in the top Tier 1 ranking in 11 practice areas – among them Public Sector, Corporate and Commercial, Commercial Litigation, Social Housing and Health and Safety. Its Employment, Commercial Property, Construction, Personal Tax and Probate and Charities teams are in the second tier.

The directory notes: “Blake Morgan LLP has deeply entrenched relationships with local companies and the public sector, as well as also benefiting from an extended and enhanced reach following its merger with Blake Lapthorn in 2014. The firm also benefits from considerable public law expertise, of particular importance in relation to work at the nexus of devolved power.”

Emyr Lewis, Senior Partner for Wales at Blake Morgan, said: “Exceptional client service delivered by talented lawyers is at the heart of everything we do at Blake Morgan. The directory results underline our continued growth and success this year and we are proud that the expertise and professionalism of our partners and their teams has been recognised by our clients and peers.”

The Legal 500 placed 33 of the firm’s practice areas across England and Wales in its top-rated Tier 1 ranking – among them Corporate and Commercial, Dispute Resolution, Private Client, Commercial Property, Employment, Health, Education, Pensions, Local Government, Social Housing, Intellectual Property, and IT and Telecoms. A further 40 practice areas were “recommended”.

A total of 38 lawyers from Blake Morgan’s offices in England and Wales were named elite “leading individuals”  and 159 Blake Morgan lawyers were “recommended” – a large increase on 103 in the previous year.

The guide adds that “clients have a deep reservoir of goodwill for the firm as a result of its ‘exemplary service’ code of practice, its heritage and the access it provides to expertise, resource and sector specialisms”.