Look out for ‘Watch House’ speciality coffee shops

Watch House Coffee started life at a small yet cosy ‘watch house’ on London’s famous Bermondsey Street, historically a shelter for men guarding St Mary Magdalane Church graveyard at night. Further locations followed at a former spice factory near Tower Bridge and on Fetter Lane in the City, where you can enjoy your coffee under its long grass roof and leafy ceiling.

Partner Charles Hodder has been working with Watch House Coffee over the past two years, advising them on their commercial leases; most recently on the Fetter Lane site.

Menkind’s new pop-up store in Manchester

Menkind started in 2001 as a gift shop that offered ‘I’d-really-like-that-for-myself’ kind of gifts. The gift and gadget store continues to grow and expand with the acquisition of tech brand RED5. The brand now has 66 stores across the UK.

To see what’s instore, or to buy online. Click here.

To hear about similar cases, please contact Terry Fendt

Giggling Squid opens in Cambridge

In September, Partner Stephanie Kierans helped Giggling Squid open their 37th restaurant yet in the Old Library on Wheeler Street in Cambridge.

The opening marks a new chapter for the beautiful building which has been exquisitely decorated by the co-founder, Pranee Laurillard, taking inspiration from Thai traditions. This is the restaurant chain’s largest premises to date and reflects their ambition to continue with their expansion plans.

To find your local Giggling Squid, click here.

Christmas at Sherrards: Supporting our local communities

This year has been hard on all of us, especially so for smaller, local businesses. That is why, this year we have worked hard to ‘shop local’ and make sure that gifts for our staff, clients & friends of the firm are supplied by local, smaller businesses. Buying local means that any money spent goes straight back into our local economy, helping local jobs and helping to save our struggling high street. Are there any ways your business could shop local? With huge thanks to Dylans, Bishops CaveSimmonsBaked by NickyThe White Lotus Cake CompanyGingers Bread House & more for helping us make Christmas extra special this year. Not only have we been shopping local, we’ve also been supporting local charities too. We’ve set up a ‘reverse advent calendar’ and asked staff and friends of the firm to donate food for the St Albans District Foodbank – a collection point has been set up in our reception area, and we plan to drop off the donation before Christmas. If you’re in the area, feel free to pop in and donate! It is set up to be non-contact and Covid-safe. Also, we have once again supported the St Albans knitted postbox trail (our postbox is on Stanhope Road) to help raise funds & visibility for the St Albans District foodbank. Click to find out more about this campaign and ‘The Yarnbombers’ of St Albans! As part of our Sustainable Sherrards group, we have asked staff to donate their old technology for the Computer Recycling Centre in Hertfordshire, who will wipe & sell on old technology, with any profits made going to charity. I found several old Nokias when clearing out my house during lockdown – sadly not many of Team Sherrards recognise them as mobile phones! And finally, myself and Lawrence Levy of Levy Associates, both of us VPs of Rennie Grove Hospice Care, held an informal Zoom chat to launch the Rennie Grove Christmas Campaign. This year, a whopping £30,000 has already been raised. This will fund 1 month of nurse care, providing support and reassurance, so that patients can remain at home together with their loved ones this Christmas.  If you would like to find out more, please click here. Further afield, our international alliance, Alliott Global, have had a very smart rebrand. Alliott Global is a leading alliance of independent accountants, law & specialist firms, which we are proud to be part of. This means we have contacts and good friends, around the globe, to help you and your business anywhere in the world. These professionals are local to their area and truly know their jurisdictions like the back of their hand. If you would like an introduction, do get in touch, or click here to find out more. Finally, I want to wish all of you a very merry Christmas and a happy and healthy new year and thank you for your huge support this past year.

Sherrards are delighted to remain highly ranked in The Chambers &; Partners legal directory 2021

Our litigation team remain ranked with fantastic write-ups for the team as a whole. One client describes the team as containing “skilled and highly competent litigators who are particularly effective” in addition to the fact that “they take a pragmatic approach to litigation and are highly cognisant of, and focused on, their clients’ aims”. They received brilliant individual write-ups too: Karen Dobson is active on contracts disputes and real estate litigation, with further experience in insolvency and banking related litigation. One client explains how “she always takes a pragmatic and commercial approach to cases, and she is very good at thinking outside the box and coming up with creative solutions”. Paul Marmor, Partner and head of the dispute resolution department, and who has a focus on cross-border fraud, banking litigation and experience advising on contract disputes and insolvency, is described as “very bright, tenacious and highly effective”. The corporate team “maintain a healthy reputation acting for clients in the media and entertainment sector” as well as acting on behalf of clients from the charity, manufacturing and technology industries. One source notes “they are great professionals and they are efficient”. “It is a great firm and they are very responsive”. Clients also highlighted Leigh Head as a notable practitioner who has a “broad corporate M&A practice, with additional expertise in restructuring and banking matters. “He is a tremendously cool and organised individual and in amidst the greatest of stressful situations, he will always come through for you. He’s a great asset to have on your side; “he is fantastic; he gets things done, is strong technically and also practical and commercial.” Property also received great commentary with impressed clients remarking how “they act quickly and decisively”. Others reported how “they are very proactive and very pragmatic”. Notable practitioner Terry Fendt has “considerable experience advising on a broad range of commercial property matters, including acquisitions and leases.” “He has particular focus on client from the retail sector”.  Terry is described as being “very personable and reliable”. In the high-net worth guide, Nicole Marmor, Head of the Private client team was ranked highly, and brilliant commentary was also received; a source says that the firm is “first rate- reliable and professional”, “I will use them again without hesitation when a need for legal support arises”. Also ranked in the high-net worth guide is Asha Ngai, Partner in our Residential property team in London. Asha has considerable experience handling the sale and purchase of high-value residential property as well as secured lending matters. An impressed client comments: “She was very professional, knowledgeable and informative regarding the laws around conveyancing. She explained everything in detail and answered all of our questions.” We have also been ranked in the extremely prestigious Chambers & Partners Global Guide for Expertise Based Abroad in France.

Sherrards solicitors remain a Top Tier firm

The firm received fantastic commentary around the ranked teams and have been noted for their excellence and high level of client satisfaction. We would like to thank our clients and friends of the firm for providing such fantastic feedback and helping us to remain a top tier firm.

Please read below for this year’s Legal 500 highlights: Top Tier Departments Our Private Client team were awarded top tier status this year, attributed to their notable international expertise – advising domiciled and non-domiciled clients with interests across North America, Europe and Asia. Head of Department Nicole Marmor, Partner Elizabeth Jones, Senior Solicitor Donna Payne and Senior Associate Nicola Edmondson were all recommended. Clients said ‘They provide top quality technical advice and solutions with the highest quality client service and empathy. This sets them apart from other firms we have dealt with.’ and that ‘We regularly refer our clients to Sherrards for wills, trust, and probate issues – both Nicole Marmor and Donna Payne provide our mutual clients with first-class advice and service. We have received nothing but praise for them from the clients we have referred.’

Commercial litigation advise on ‘an impressive range of disputes covering major fraud, recruitment conflicts, and franchising, retail and bank litigation.’ The team also handles white-collar criminal matters, defending clients in relation to money laundering, regulatory enforcement, and criminal asset recovery. Additionally, it frequently represents international clients, handling CIS-related matters, the enforcement of foreign judgments and other cross-border issues, particularly in relation to China, the US, and French-speaking countries. Head of Litigation, Dispute Resolution and International, Paul Marmor was highlighted again this year as a leading lawyer in the directory  which  is The Legal 500’s guide  to outstanding lawyers nationwide. Partner Barney Laurence was recommended as a ‘next generation partner’ highlighting how much of a difference he makes for the practice. Partner Marta Grieve was recommended and noted for her work in the Russian arena and Associate Greg Pooler was also recommended.  

The Employment team advises a range of clients drawn from sectors including recruitment, retail and leisure on both contentious and non-contentious employment matters. ‘Thoughtful and commercial’ practice head Mark Fellows is an expert in dealing with employment disputes and tribunal cases, covering unfair dismissal and discrimination matters. Mark Fellows is pragmatic and thorough; he’s very good at finding a deal.’ Mark Fellows was recommended as a leading lawyer.

 The Corporate and Commercial team were also ranked top tier and advise local, national, and international clients on M&A and disposals, as well as providing regulatory advice for private equity transactions. Clients have ‘no hesitation in recommending this team to any business associates or friends.’ Head of department Jean-Paul Da Costa, and Partner Leigh Head, were both recommended.

Ranked Departments The Commercial Property teams in St Albans and London were also ranked highly. Clients mention that ‘The practice is very commercially minded and get on with the job at hand in a professional manner and quickly.’ They also highlight that ‘Terry Fendt and Stephanie Kierans are fantastic property lawyers. They advise their clients thoroughly and have very good attention to detail. They work as a great team and can get the deals done in a professional and timely manner.’ Head of department Terry Fendt, Managing Partner Alasdair McMillin, Partners Charles Hodder and Stephanie Kierans and Consultant Martin Halling were all recommended in this year’s directory. The firm were awarded 6 of the Legal 500’s badges of recognition:

Personal tales from the wild side: the lawyers’ survival guide to Covid-19. A summary of a recent IBA Webinar

Sherrards’ Paul Marmor and Sophie Hudson deliver a truly global webinar to over 90 countries.  Paul Marmor is an officer with the IBA’s Law Firm Management Committee and, with the help of Sophie Hudson, he presented a webinar addressing the Covid-19 crisis and covered the impact of the virus on law firms and lawyers across the world, with a live audience from over 90 countries. There were several thousand attendees registering to be on the webinar, making it one of the largest legal webinars of its kind, on any subject. The discussion kicked off with moderator Paul Marmor, LFMC Co-Outreach and Education Officer and Head of Litigation at Sherrards Solicitors LLP, based in London, highlighting the complexity of the current situation and the “challenges at every level” from both a personal and business perspective, impacting those from the top to the bottom of the legal profession – but, as Paul said, there is plenty of support out there, especially from the IBA, which we would consider in this presentation. He then introduced Publishing Editor of the Legal 500, David Burgess, who stressed that despite the doom and gloom, it was important to keep an “element of perspective” given that lawyers are “not key workers”.  However, he was clear on the “absolute chaos” of the current situation and the issue faced by businesses of being unable to effectively plan ahead. David went on to raise two key points arising from conversations with General Counsels and in-house legal teams, namely the use of their trusted advisor law firms and the cross-border element to their work.  He stressed that this is a “critical moment for every law firm in terms of their client relationships” and that “every single law firm has to step up … and make sure they are servicing clients correctly”.  He was clear that while some firms had been responsive and met this challenge “incredibly well”, others had “dropped the ball, were absent and partners not responsive enough”.  He went on to explain that despite clients being unlikely to switch provider in the current climate due to a lack of resources, there would be some who would look to take on different advisors in due course.  David further outlined the business development opportunity presented by General Counsels’ with multi-jurisdictional operations facing issues they would not have faced before. Shifting the conversation to a more macro-focus, Paul asked Moscow-based Robin Wittering, a partner with Egorov, Puginsky, Afanasiev & Partners, for his take on current events in Russia.  Robin outlined that Covid-19, in combination with a recent history of sanctions, meant that Russia faces “a real crisis” in regard to infrastructure, civil order, finance, debt and trading which has only been exacerbated by the recent oil price shock; Lenin’s quote that “there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen” seemed particularly apt.  Asked for his view on what would happen over the remainder of 2020, Robin responded by saying that “country by country, progressively non vulnerable, non-aged parts of the population would go back to work because the global economy can’t take more than two or three months of this” and to anticipate “an emerging markets crisis driven by the oil price”.  He is currently advising clients on “how to get through the next few months” and on how to approach “the next wave of the virus”.  Describing lock-down conditions in Russia, he pointed to people being confined in their homes, requiring a special permit to go out and work and how Russia was still several weeks behind Italy, France and the UK.  Several clients were even building hospitals for their staff, given the essential importance of resources and production to the Russian economy. Crossing continents to North America, specifically to Washington DC, Executive Director of the National LGBT Bar Association, D’Arcy Kemnitz, spoke about the impact of Covid-19 on the LBGTQ+ community and explained that they “are working pay check to pay check” and “are the people in greatest economic jeopardy”.  Paul raised the point of LBGTQ+ persons being forced to return home to families who may be hostile, to which D’Arcy responded by asking “why would we just assume that our families are accepting of who we are?  If they were, we would probably have far less discrimination throughout the world and indeed throughout the legal profession”.  She made clear that while the LBGTQ+ community were “celebrated at the international bar” there was a stark contrast with figures coming from the US which found that while “7% of youth identify as LBGTQ+ … LGBTQ+ youth without homes are 40%” of the total number of young homeless.  She stressed how isolating it was for people to return to homes who might “claim to love you” but who “don’t respect who you are” and the dreadful situation not just in the US but increasingly in less tolerant nations for a community at “huge risk of self-harm and suicide”.  D’Arcy recommended visiting Dr. Caitlin Ryan’s ‘Family Acceptance Project’ for resources relating to the matter.  She further drew a parallel between the current Covid-19 situation and the AIDS epidemic, in that “plagues drive change” and how “compassion and empathy” will serve the LGBTQ+ community now as it did then. Calling on people to take “good care of one another”, D’Arcy was hopeful that “people will choose the side of celebrating differences” and will “tend and befriend” going forward.  Paul reminded us that the IBA is of course an umbrella organisation and that we were pleased to have D’Arcy on board representing the LGBTQ+ community, who are an integral part of the IBA community. Speaking from Madrid, Moray McLaren, Partner at Lexington Consultants, pointed to how less pollution had meant that “weather has changed totally” to continuous rain and that they were now in their seventh week of lock down.  Moray’s view was that it would be a “very difficult process to transition back” to normality without a process of testing and tracing.  On the topic of law firms in Madrid, he characterised them as feeling “cautious but confident” and that they do not foresee redundancies or a need to reshape given their “very good year last year” and having “lines of credit worked out with the bank”. From a global perspective he explained that, depending on a firm’s geographic location, there were two key questions being asked: “how do we work differently?” and one from clients asking firms “how can you help us at this moment?”.  He also found that we are also starting to see that firms entering week two or three of lockdown were experiencing a “cashflow crisis”, with cash flows reduced by “20% – 30%” in some cases.  This was not due to a reduction in work but instead due to clients “holding on to money”.  For those law firms seeking greater stability the questions became “Are there opportunities here? What are the practice areas to promote? How do they think more strategically about where they are going? How do we transition back?”.  Moray also found this was a period which Managing Partners were finding “very lonely at the top of the organisation” and that they were “having to dig into reserves and energy to motivate people around them”. Horacio Bernardes Neto, President of International Bar Association, speaking from the grand setting of The Cathedral Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida in Brazil, talked of the “terrible” situation in big cities “with less resources”, not enough places in hospital and people “dying on the streets”.  However, in smaller cities he affirmed that there had been remarkably few cases if any, which was testament to the success of social isolation. Nonetheless, as a result of Covid-19, Horacio’s expectation was that “Brazil will go backwards by 10 years” and that there were no guarantees things would ever be the same again. Regarding restrictions on travel, Horacio was glad for technology but hopeful that the 2020 Annual Conference would go ahead as planned; he reiterated that the IBA is principally about “gathering people for networking”.  On working life, Horacio stated that “this is the time to be in touch with clients” and to “serve them marvelously”.  As a final positive note, Horacio highlighted that the “IBA has 120 projects going on and everyone is working well”, “membership is increasing” and that the council was in a “very strong” position with “good financial reserves”.  He was also pleased to see that in Brazil there has been “an enormous increase in people helping each other”. Moray followed Horacio by suggesting we were seeing “a more human profession” and that perhaps law will become less hierarchical.  An interesting question was then raised by audience member Bill Barton, Director at Barton Legal Limited: “If change brings innovation then is the coronavirus an opportunity for the legal profession?” Switching to the client perspective, David then welcomed Marilu Capparelli, MD Legal at Google EMEA, based in Milan, who provided an overview of the situation in Italy, noting that they had been the first country to “impose a nationwide lockdown”, had the “highest number of Covid cases after Spain and the US” and at this point could “not be moved into the next stage of easing restrictions”.  Speaking from the experience of Google’s shift to working from home, Marilu expressed that “Covid-19 is not a marketing opportunity for anyone” and that instead “law firms should make themselves useful” and “focus on the needs of stakeholders and customers”.  She reiterated Horacio’s point that this is the “the right time for lawyers to stay touch with their clients” and how much she appreciated “newsletters and emails on Covid-19, relating to new legislation” and on “each aspect of the law that could be impacted by the emergency”. Using the field of litigation as an example, she stated how she had found it very useful when law firms explained items such legislative decrees and new suspensions of terms.  She also mentioned the significant opportunity presented to law firms in the startup and innovation sector, where one could enjoy “an opportunity phase for physical disintermediation and the greater demand for high tech solutions”. David then asked Marilu for her view on the change experienced by law firms relating to working practices.  She suggested that this change applied to all businesses and expected as a client “a boost in the adoption of technology” and that law firms “would seriously consider their digital transformation” which she would consider key in this moment and for the coming years.  It is also important to let people know “which problems you can solve with the technology” and advised that law firms create surveys and questionnaires asking clients to express their legal needs.  On the topic of legal fees, she noted the importance of “working efficiently” with clients and that there would be a need to think about adapting fees to suit the crisis.  Nonetheless she stressed that currently the “the immediate reduction of fees is not my priority”. Talking about the challenges of moving a global firm with 45 offices to remote working, Chris Hinze, Global Head of Communications at Hogan Lovells (also located in Washington DC), mentioned that as the crisis had progressed, the firm had “picked up lessons from each jurisdiction” and had brought into play previous experiences of natural disasters in Japan and the US.  Nonetheless it had been a huge change for Hogan Lovells to transition in ten days from 500 people working remotely to 5,000 people. The move had required major resources across “back-end plumbing and infrastructure”. From a people perspective, the firm’s approach has always been to be “open and transparent”, and in the current crisis that approach has remained, albeit this time concerned with issues such as travel restrictions and office closures.  Chris relayed a report from Edelman highlighting that behind health professionals, employers are the “most trusted organisation to respond effectively” to the crisis.  Therefore, employees were looking to employers “to give accurate, relevant, useful information about what you and your business are doing”.  Trust is therefore “a very high value item” and if you have been trusted by employees before the crisis “they will trust you on this”.  To ensure continued trust, transparency and connectedness, Hogan Lovells have “built from scratch an entire dedicated intranet” which features guides on remote working relating to topics as varied as technology support and wellbeing resources. The firm is also active in relaying briefings between partners and the company CEO to employees and has created social media pages on Facebook and Instagram for employees to share their stories. Paul then introduced the two Co-Chairs of the IBA’s Law Firm Management Committee, Stephen Bowman (Managing Partner of Bennett Jones, Toronto) and Rolandas Valiunas (Managing Partner of Ellex, Estonia).  On personal challenges Stephen spoke about the crisis connecting “everyone together” and when asked about the hierarchies found in law firms, Rolandas expressed the view that while the youngest are “much more capable” regarding IT communications and are subsequently better prepared, “the mature generation” will have no choice but to move towards the challenges of new technology.  Indeed, this move has “already happened”.  Moray cautioned that there had also been a huge learning concerning those firms where lawyers could work from home, but support staff were unable to do so. For those who are isolated at home under local restrictions, particularly those who live alone, Stephen stated that “you need to find the people within the firm who have a connection to them – whether as friends, as colleagues or simply in a purely office working relationship – and encourage them to reach out and keep in touch.” Commenting on the impact on his children, Rolandas felt that they had learnt new skills that meant “they will be much better prepared for life”. Ning Zhu, Managing Partner of Chance Bridge Partners in Beijing, then discussed the situation in China and how serious it had become by early February.  She spoke movingly about how “everyone was worried” and working from home, not knowing what had happened or how long the situation will last.  There was also concern due to the lack of new business, with the only real projects relating to cross border transactions and others “closed down”.  Fortunately, from March, the situation has improved with the government encouraging “business to gradually come back to work” resulting in 30-35% of businesses coming back. Ending the webinar on an upbeat note, Ning had two positive messages, the first being that the number of people who are infected is coming down and secondly, from a lawyer’s perspective, since the start of March her firm has received several inquiries from clients.  This encouragement was reiterated by Paul, who relayed that “while company commercial work was still a bit slower, litigation work was starting to come on board”. The webinar can be viewed at: https://www.ibanet.org/a-lawyers-survival-guide-to-Covid-19.aspx Register for Part 2 of this webinar series which will take place on the 9th June, by clicking here. Written by guest contributor Charles Dew.

From Russia with love – and the odd shareholders’ dispute!

Marta and Paul mapped out the key essentials to include in an international joint venture agreement, and what steps should be taken to protect shareholders, and if things go wrong, Paul and Marta also explained a number of remedies that could be obtained an a British Court in terms of injunctive relief (such as worldwide freezing orders), as well as discussing alternative dispute resolution procedures such as arbitration and mediation. Ekaterina commented: “Our audience really greatly appreciated getting a view from London on the British perspective of handling international joint venture partnerships and what can happen when directors or investors go rogue, which is relevant to what we have to do in terms of following the money, so to speak.” Marta commented as well: “Providing insights from both the Russian and British perspective is what I do, and hopefully I can provide a bridge between the two cultures, on both a business and a professional level.” Paul added: “Having this global reach is vital for our clients, and having the expertise on the ground in Moscow, Russia, really provides us with first-class connectivity.  Our thanks to ASB Consulting for hosting this lunch event and inviting us to speak to such a wonderful audience.” Sherrards Solicitors has got to know ASB Consulting through the Alliott Group international alliance of independent law and accountancy firms, which provides Sherrards with a global reach to like-minded firms, where we are able to provide our clients, contacts and friends of the firm with connectivity just about anywhere in the world – not to mention providing one-stop legal services and support, particularly when it comes to multi-jurisdictional disputes.

Kirsty Limacher is appointed onto the Law Society’s LGBT+ Lawyers Division

The LGBT+ Lawyers Division was established in 2016 and aims to bring LGBT+ lawyers together to improve their experiences in the profession.  Kirsty will sit alongside other legal professionals in the group, who will work together sharing best practice and addressing current issues and challenges in a supportive environment. Kirsty says “I’m honoured to have been offered a position on the committee.  I’ve been always been passionate about providing my peers with support and guidance and welcome this opportunity to use my voice to advocate for others.  We’re in uncertain times at the moment, when our colleagues may require more support than ever, and I’m keen to be able to provide that support to them.”  

The importance of internships for student development and member collaboration

Audalis, Alliott Group’s multidisciplinary member in Germany, attach great importance to their international relations, with all staff being encouraged to take part in their employee exchange and internship programmes. The exchanges the firm undertakes with those within the Alliott Alliance is especially important as clients can benefit directly from contacts made during the visits. Alexander Marmor, son of Paul Marmor, Partner at London law firm member Sherrards Solicitors, was the last secondee that audalis hosted and during his internship he was able to gain deep insights into the working processes at the firm and improve his German language skills. In return Maximilian Block, son of Martina Block, completed an internship at Sherrards in March. A physics student, this was a great opportunity for Maximilian to get to know the country and its people, and a chance to exchange ideas with his peers on an international level. During his time in London, Maximilian networked at a “young professionals” event on the topic of “Wellbeing” and listened to a talk by Anthony Julius, a well known lawyer in the UK, who had presided over the divorce from Princess Diana. Maximilian said: “This visit confirmed my decision to pursue my education abroad. I am very grateful to the opportunity that audalis and Sherrards Solicitors have given me. I would recommend a visit to London for all students and those starting their career.”