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Lawrence Stephens announces a series of senior appointments, including that of  Johnny Nichols as Chief Operating Officer, and Ajoy Bose-Mallick as Head of Banking, as of 1st September 2022.

Johnny Nichols, previously Head of Business Services Projects at Allen & Overy and HR Director at Bird & Bird for 14 years, has project-managed and held senior positions within the Magic Circle. Johnny also established US law firm Keller Lenkner’s London office, where he acted as COO and led the growth of that office to 85 people in two years.

Johnny’s appointment follows a surge of growth at Lawrence Stephens that has necessitated the engagement of a COO to drive the operational and strategic side of the business. Johnny’s role will extend across the operations, HR, culture and business development aspects of the business and will prioritise growth, people and technology in 2023.

Ajoy Bose-Mallick joins from a Top 200 UK law firm where he was Head of Real Estate Finance for 5 years. Ajoy specialises in Banking and Real Estate Finance having also undertaken a secondment at Lloyds Banking Group. Mr Bose-Mallick will join the Real Estate Finance and Banking team at Lawrence Stephens, taking the lead in the Banking department whilst Gregory Palos will continue to head up the firm’s Real Estate Finance team.

Steven Bernstein, Senior Director comments: “We are proud to say that Lawrence Stephens has experienced rapid growth and expansion across virtually all departments in recent years. We are delighted that both Johnny and Ajoy are joining us and bringing with them a wealth of Magic and Silver Circle expertise. The continued drive and unparalleled commitment to client servicing by our people has resulted in the fantastic scope of work we deliver. We have no doubt that Johnny and Ajoy will be integral components of our team and trust them to lead their respective business areas through a sustained and exciting period of growth”.

Johnny Nichols, COO, Lawrence Stephens comments: “I’m delighted to be joining Lawrence Stephens. They are a firm with momentum and an exciting growth agenda. They have asked me to accelerate their modernisation programme whilst maintaining excellent client service and to do that without losing sight of the desire for all their staff to enjoy themselves”.

Ajoy Bose-Mallick, Head of Banking at Lawrence Stephens comments: “I look forward to heading up the ambitious Banking department at Lawrence Stephens. My professional values are closely aligned with the rest of the department, in that there is a real focus on making clear recommendations to clients, underpinned by solid rationale and expert insight. I have a track record of complex and high value investment and development finance transactions which will be a natural fit at Lawrence Stephens, and I’m keen to continue and build on the growth of the department”.