He works in both the St Albans Office and London Office. 

The Sphering Group is a front-line player in flue and air care in Europe with a renowned expertise in design, manufacturing and distribution of innovative high-quality chimney and ventilation systems.

The Sphering Group wanted to expand its European presence with a location in the UK and targeted a competitor, SFL Ltd, previously part of the Stamm International Corp. who was the No. 2 manufacturer of flues and chimneys in the UK with well-established distribution in the USA and Far East.

Sherrards were introduced to Sphering Group via the London division of the French Chamber of Commerce and were quickly instructed to assist on the targeted acquisition of SFL.  

This was Sphering Group’s first targeted UK acquisition of a trading business, and the deal took almost two years to complete due to the cross jurisdictional nature and complexities in the company raised during the research phase and resulting in a complicated escrow fund held by J P Morgan on behalf of the parties and to cover against potential and significant risks of claims associated with the trading business. 

The acquisition was eventually successful and adds R&D capabilities and a sixth manufacturing plant to Sphering Group’s industrial capacities already operating in France, Italy, Belgium, Germany, and Poland. With the integration of SFL teams, the Group now employs 800 people across Europe.

 

To find out more, contact the Corporate team. 

 

 

Sherrards coordinated directly with Donlim and acted alongside a major law firm in China, as the transaction was subject to extensive negotiations, including requiring approval from the Chinese government. The transaction was completed in March 2023.

Donlim is headquartered in Shunde, Guangdon, China, and is a major manufacturer of home kitchen appliances and other electrical products, with over 28,000 staff and revenues of RMB 14.9 billion in 2021. Donlim wished to expand its portfolio of international brands by acquiring Morphy Richards, a well regarded British brand established in 1936, and for whom Donlim had been manufacturing products under contract for some time.  MRCA was, before the transaction, owned by Glen Dimplex, an Irish company, and has substantial operations in the UK in addition to other major markets in China, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. Glen Dimplex retained the rights to the Morphy Richards brand in other key international markets. The transaction received significant press coverage in the UK and Ireland.

Following completion, Donlim has acquired a permanent presence in the UK and will use this as a platform to expand its consumer appliances offering in the UK market, as well as now having the benefit of an esteemed British brand to use in its operations overseas.

To find out more, contact James Crook. 

What is the significance of the Chambers and Partners submissions?

Sherrards Solicitors have been ranked in the Chambers and Partners legal directories for the last 10 years, with individual team members being ranked for even longer.

The importance of the Chambers and Partners submissions is to help build the reputation and work of our lawyers, the firm as a whole, and showcase the support we offer to our clients.

Each year we contact clients and key contacts of the firm to act as “referees” in our submissions. This means our clients kindly give up their time to take a call from the Chambers and Partners’ researchers to answer questions and give testimonials towards our team members. Our rankings could not be as successful as they are without the help of our lovely clients and contacts, we can’t thank them enough for their honesty and kindness.

Internally the Chambers and Partners rankings helps us retain and attract talented business professionals and lawyers to the firm. In order to continue our services, we want to attract the best and continue to offer a range of services at the highest standard for all our clients – old or new.

An insight into the results:

The Litigation team have been ranked highly for another year running. The team is a respected and reputable team known for their strong track record for handling fraud, banking, and financial litigation cases. They are also experienced in serving clients from a range of industries and handling international cases across multiple jurisdictions.

One client said that “The team are able to quickly get to the bottom of complex situations and explain these in straightforward terms to ensure a full understanding and that appropriate action is taken in a timely fashion.”

Head of the department & Partner, Paul Marmor has been ranked individually as well where he has been described as “exceptional in all respects” as well as a “depth of knowledge”.

Similarly, Karen Dobson, Partner in the Litigation team has also been ranked where she was described by a client as “a sensible and safe pair of hands” as well as notably being stated as “honest, empathetic and efficient.”

The Employment department have continued ranking in the Chambers and Partners for their exceptional services. One client has noted that “Sherrards have consistently handled our business promptly and with discretion”.

Head of Department, Mark Fellows was individually ranked as well, where he was described by a contact as “thoughtful and considerate” as well as “consistent”.

The Commercial Property department ranked highly in the Chambers and Partners, with Department Head, Terry Fendt continuing his individually ranked streak. Terry has developed his proactive and pragmatic approach over the years, which is reflected in his continuously great ranking, year on year.

The Corporate and Commercial team also received a great ranking in this years Chambers and Partners. One client has stated “Sherrards have a technically strong team with an eye for detail and the ability to advise on complex instructions.”

Head of Department, Leigh Head was a recognised in this year’s submission, and  individually ranked. One source said that Leigh is “very good to deal with and blends responsiveness with a keen eye for detail”. 

These successes follow our ranking in the Chambers & Partners High Net Worth guide, earlier in the year. Our Private Wealth team continues to remain highly ranked, with Nicole Marmor, Partner and Head of the team, ranked as Band 1.

To read more about Nicole and the Private Wealth’s ranking in the high net-worth guide, click here.

 

These rankings sit alongside the Legal 500 rankings which were published earlier in the year, in addition to the members above, includes other team members such as Barney Laurence, Marta Grieve, Greg Pooler, Charles Burrell, Louise Stradling, Emma O’Meara, Jean-Paul da Costa, Stephanie Kierans, Shane Knight, Guy Morgan and Caroline Turner.

You can read the Legal 500 press release for more detailed information, by clicking here.

Abroo Khan, has now qualified from the Sherrards Training Academy and will be joining the Private Wealth team as a Solicitor.

Abroo has been a trainee with the firm now for just over two years, where she has been working alongside various departments, such as Commercial Property, Dispute Resolution, Corporate and Commercial, in order to grow her knowledge and understanding of the legal world.

Partner and Head of Private Wealth, Nicole Marmor, says, “It is brilliant news to have Abroo join our growing team. We have seen how hard she has worked throughout her time as part of the Sherrards Training Academy and we look forward to seeing her grow in her career with us.” 

With regards to our Trainee Solicitors,

Max Marmor joins the Commercial Property team as a Trainee Solicitor in London, after working alongside the Dispute Resolution team and  Commercial Property team as a paralegal for the past year.

We also congratulate Mike Jenkins who is promoted to Trainee Solicitor in the Commercial Property team in St Albans, after working alongside the team there for the past 10 months.

Lastly, we welcome Gabriel Cooke as a Trainee Solicitor to the Corporate and Commercial team in St Albans. Gabriel has been working alongside both the Employment, and Corporate and Commercial teams as a legal Admin Assistant for the past 7 months.

Sherrards Trainee Academy Partner, Michael Lewis says, “It is fantastic to see the Trainee Academy grow and see three excellent members of the team stay with us to begin their career as lawyers. We look forward to supporting them on their route to becoming Solicitors. I am also delighted that Abroo is qualifying with the firm after a highly successful training contract with us.”

We asked Jon Hussey, Director of Financial Planning at Lumin Wealth Management to sit down with us and talk about working alongside the teams at Sherrards.

Jon kindly played ball and also left us a glowing review!

“[Alasdair] has a good professional team around him, which makes things easy.”

Here, Jon talks about our Managing Partner Alasdair, their long relationship, and the Commercial Property teams who have supported Jon, his business, and its clients for nearly thirty years.

To find out more about Lumin Wealth, please click here.

We asked Anne-Maree Dunn, Client Partner and Head of Tax at WMT to sit down with us and talk about working alongside the teams at Sherrards. This comes as part of our client testimonial video project to showcase the Sherrards teams, the people we support and how we support them.

Anne-Maree advises business owners and individuals on tax opportunities and challenges and works closely alongside many of the team from Sherrards including our Corporate and Commercial, Commercial Property, Employment, Residential Property and Private Wealth teams.

These videos were filmed by Pearldrop Video Production at The Hub on Verulam.

To find out more about WMT and Anne-Maree Dunn, click here.

We asked Geoff Kent, Managing Director of Kent Family Nurseries Ltd to sit down with us and talk about working alongside the teams at Sherrards.

Geoff kindly played ball and also left us a glowing review! So, enjoy!

Here is Geoff talking about our Corporate, Employment, Immigration, and Commercial property teams who have supported Geoff and his business for coming up to ten years.

Leading food manufacturer, Around Noon, has acquired the Soho Sandwich Company to create an enlarged group with 800 employees.

Partner in the Corporate & Commercial department at Sherrards Solicitors, Leigh Head, supported the Soho Sandwich Company through the acquisition alongside Senior Associate Emma O’Meara from our Employment department who dealt with the Employment aspects.

They worked alongside WMT Chartered Accountants, ensuring a smooth deal.  

Around Noon was created over 30 years ago in Northern Ireland, and is now one of the major food producers and distributors in the UK.

The company will remain to be overseen by its current Managing Director, Daniel Silverston, as the company will continue to operate under its own brand inside the Around Noon group.

Daniel Silverston announced the deal in London on the 7^th of June 2023, where the story has now been released on BBC news and other various food article websites.

Click here to read the press release from The Food Manufacture

Click here to read the press release from Just Food

Minton Care Homes is a family-run and specialist provider of residential and dementia care in the Hertfordshire and Norfolk areas.

The Sherrards Corporate team supported Minton Care Homes in the targeted acquisition of their second care home, Thurleston House, based in Ipswich, and the operating business which has since been added to Minton care Home’s growing portfolio.

The team at Sherrards assisted with the transfer of the home from the previous care provider to Minton Care Homes as well as notices and correspondence with CQC.

The team worked closely with colleagues across departments in both our Employment department and our Commercial Property department, to help our clients and ensure the acquisition was a success.

To find out more about Minton Care Homes, please click here.