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Lawrence Stephens announces four Director promotions

Posted on: April 1st, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Leading full-service law firm, Lawrence Stephens, is pleased to announce the promotion of Asim Arshad, Anna Christou, Sarah Gallagher and Ausra Triantafyllidou to Director,  effective from 1 April 2025.

These promotions follow a year of continuing growth for Lawrence Stephens in response to increasing client demand. Director numbers have increased from 28 to 45 and this 60% increase also includes lateral hires in key areas of growth as well as a team of eight Directors recently recruited from Memery Crystal.

  • Asim Arshad becomes a Director in the Disputes Resolution team, specialising in commercial litigation. In particular, Asim has extensive experience handling disputes involving crypto assets, including acting for individuals seeking to recover lost or stolen crypto assets. In addition to contentious matters, Asim’s work has included advising on cryptoasset regulation and compliance, token issuance, NFT projects, and acting for one of the industry’s leading mining platforms and token issuing entities
  • Anna Christou becomes a Director in the Real Estate Finance team. She joined Lawrence Stephens as a trainee solicitor in 2011. She currently acts for leading UK buy-to-let lenders, bridging lenders, challenger banks and building societies, dealing with both regulated and unregulated loans on commercial and residential property portfolios.
  • Sarah Gallagher becomes a Director in the Residential Real Estate team. She heads up Lawrence Stephens’ team of specialists in the new build sector. Her primary client base is formed of purchasers of both leasehold and freehold new build properties, inside and outside of the Greater London area and developers selling plots at a variety of developments. Whilst Sarah’s specialism is largely new build work, she also acts for those selling and purchasing residential properties of all varieties, including shared ownership, HNW and UHNW.
  • Ausra Triantafyllidou also becomes a Director in the Real Estate Finance team. She acts for a number of long-standing investors with large commercial, residential and mixed-use portfolios. Her primary focus is on secured lending transactions including investment and development finance matters.  She advises clients on landlord and tenant matters including acquisitions, disposals, lettings, transfers of portfolios to corporate structures and finance transactions. 

Steven Bernstein, Managing Director at Lawrence Stephens, commented: “With these four Director promotions, we are proud to be recognising growth from within our own people. We continue to demonstrate Lawrence Stephens’ growth in traditional sectors and expansion into emerging ones. Asim, Anna, Sarah and Ausra’s specialist expertise reflect the full-service approach we take at Lawrence Stephens, and how we are able to deliver the best outcomes for our clients.”

 

Lawrence Stephens Directors named in Spears’ Property Indices 2025

Posted on: March 20th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Whether handling commercial properties, mixed-use developments or the most exclusive super-prime residences, the very best property lawyers are trusted by HNW clients to provide expert guidance throughout the often lengthy, intricate, and high-stakes process of buying, building, and selling real estate.

We are delighted to announce that Stephen Messias, Director in our Commercial Real Estate team, and Goli-Michelle Banan, Head of Residential Real Estate, have been named top property lawyers in Spears’ Property Indices 2025.

“The advisers selected for the Spear’s Property Lawyers Index 2025 demonstrate not only an extraordinary depth of knowledge but also an ability to navigate the evolving landscape of property law with skill and precision.”

To read the full list, click here

 

Lawrence Stephens launches tax offering with key Director hire

Posted on: March 19th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Lawrence Stephens is delighted to announce the appointment of Director Leigh Sayliss, who will be heading up a brand-new Tax practice for the firm. Leigh joins from Memery Crystal where he was a Partner in their highly-respected Tax department.

Leigh is a Chartered Tax Advisor with particular expertise in property, corporate and employment taxes. He advises on the tax aspects of a wide range of property and corporate transactions, including incentive arrangements for key employees.

At Lawrence Stephens, Leigh will primarily be working alongside the well-established Corporate & Commercial team, as well as other related departments such as Real Estate and Private Wealth to provide integrated Tax advice.

Leigh is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT), Chair of the CIOT Property Taxes Committee and a member of HMRC working groups in relation to Stamp Duty Land Tax and construction matters.  He is also a Chartered Engineer and uses his previous experience in industry to ensure that his advice is not only technically accurate but also is of practical help to his clients.

Speaking on his appointment, Leigh commented: “It is a pleasure to be joining an excellent and dynamic team at Lawrence Stephens, particularly during such an exciting period of growth for the firm.

“I look forward to working alongside friends old and new, heading up this new practice for the firm to providing cross-departmental expertise to Lawrence Stephens’ valued and loyal clients.”

Managing Partner Steve. Bernstein commented: “Leigh’s experience and expertise perfectly compliment that of our growing team and we are delighted to welcome him to the firm. 

“With Leigh’s appointment, we are also excited to launch our brand-new Tax offering which will allow us to provide our clients with truly integrated legal advice, while building upon our existing suite of services.”

Leigh’s appointment follows that of Directors Steve Clinning, John Aynsley, Chris Cagney, Matthew Hind, Nickhil Mandora and Sam Silverman, who all recently joined the firm from Memery Crystal.

Celebrating gender equality on International Women’s Day

Posted on: March 7th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Supporting women in the progression of their careers is important to us at Lawrence Stephens. We are proud to have established a Gender Equality Network (GEN) to drive equality initiatives forward. In its first year, GEN has developed a toolkit of supporting resources, held a panel event to explore allyship, arranged the provision of sanitary protection in the loos in our building and invited speakers to discuss topics from effective communication to hormone health. 

With International Women’s Day approaching, we decided to widen the conversation to mark GEN’s first anniversary. Over the last few weeks several members of the GEN committee and the wider firm were interviewed on the topic of equality in the workplace. Many interesting insights were shared, including the things we would say to our younger selves and what we would like to see change in the next decade. We put them together in a short film which was premiered at our International Women’s Day party yesterday. We look forward to sharing a shorter version of this video with you soon. We hope you enjoy watching it and that some of our insights resonate with you. 

This International Women’s Day we celebrate our brilliant female colleagues and our wonderful male allies with whom we continue our efforts to move towards greater equality at work and in society. 

 Who inspires you to use your voice to strive for greater equality?

 

Will Bowyer and Angelique Richardson named in first cohort of ISC 30 Under Thirty Awards

Posted on: February 28th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Lawrence Stephens is delighted to announced that William Bowyer and Angélique Richardson Richardson from our Sports team have been named in the first cohort of the International Sports Convention‘s 30 Under Thirty Awards. These awards have been created to celebrate young professionals who have demonstrated exceptional talent, innovation, and dedication within the sports, media, and entertainment industries.

Will has been recognised as “one of the go-to advisors in the field of talent representation, sponsorship and image rights” while Angelique is described as “one of the UK’s leading sports lawyers”. 

Nigel Fletcher, CEO of the International Sports Convention, highlighted the importance of recognising young talent: “The ISC 30 Under Thirty Awards celebrate the next generation of sports industry leaders. We are committed to supporting career development and acknowledging those making an impact behind the scenes of the sporting world.”

The full announcement can be found here.

For more information on our Sports and Entertainment services, please click here

 

Supreme Court confirms the scope of Section 423 Insolvency Act 1986

Posted on: February 20th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

On 19 February 2025, the Supreme Court handed down its judgment in El-Husseiny and another v Invest Bank PSC which concerned itself with the construction of section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (transactions defrauding creditors) (“Section 423”).

Section 423 is a powerful tool which provides recourse for creditors where a debtor transfers an asset for no consideration or at an undervalue for the purposes of putting the asset beyond the reach of creditors.

The fact that Section 423 is contained in the Insolvency Act 1986 is a red herring as it does not require the debtor to be insolvent or in an insolvency process to apply, and it can be brought by office-holders as well as a ‘victim of the transaction’. Furthermore, unlike other provisions in the Insolvency Act 1986, a transaction under Section 423 does not need to be within a specified period of time before the commencement of insolvency proceedings.

In the case of El-Husseiny the appellant attempted to argue that Section 423 could not apply as the property that was transferred belonged to a corporate vehicle and not himself. The Court disagreed and concluded that Section 423 is sufficiently wide to apply when a debtor causes their company to transfer the company’s assets at an undervalue, thereby resulting in the diminution of the value of the debtor’s shares. If this was not the case, it would prejudice a creditor’s ability to enforce a judgment against a debtor.

This judgment then went further and expanded the definition of ‘transaction, which is also found under sections 238 and 339 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (transactions at an undervalue with respect to administration, liquidation, and bankruptcy), thereby aligning the definition with Section 423. This was reached as it would be “impossible to think of circumstances in which a transaction was held to be within section 423(1) when it would also not appropriately fall within section 238 and 339” [para 64], and there is “no good reason for giving different meanings to transactions at an undervalue in section 238, 339 and 423” [para 72].

This is a welcomed decision for insolvency practitioners as they now appear to have greater scope from which to pursue debtors who may otherwise seek to hide behind corporate structures. It will also allow insolvency practitioners to look to set aside transactions under Sections 238, 339 and 423 even though the asset transferred was not beneficially owned by the debtor. We agree with the Court’s decision as had this decision not been reached, it would have undermined the purpose of Section 423.

The full judgment may be found here: https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2023-0080#judgment-details

For further information on our restructuring and insolvency services, please click here

 

 

 

 

Lawrence Stephens advises Tri Capital on two commercial property sales

Posted on: February 19th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Lawrence Stephens have recently advised long-standing client Tri Capital Properties in relation to two commercial property sales which have completed within a week of each other.

The first comprised a partially let property in Thornton Heath where contracts were exchanged within ten working days of receipt of agreed terms. The second transaction was a complicated sub-lease of part of premises in West London. 

The transactions were led by Commercial Real Estate Director Craig Mullen who commented: “It was a pleasure to assist Tri Capital with these disposals.  The team at Tri Capital are always proactive and driven to achieve agreed deadlines.  A special mention must also go to the selling agents at Henshall & Partners, Acorn Commercial and Estate Office Property Consultants who were on hand at every step of the way.  I look forward to working with them all again very soon.”

For further information on our Commercial Real Estate services, click here

Lawrence Stephens strengthens Banking and Real Estate Finance teams with the appointment of Steve Clinning and team from Memery Crystal

Posted on: February 18th, 2025 by Hugh Dineen-Lees

Lawrence Stephens is delighted to announce the appointment of Steve Clinning as a Director in the Banking department.

Steve joins from Memery Crystal where he was a Partner in the Banking and Real Estate Finance team.

He advises both borrowers and lenders on a range of transactions including general property finance, corporate acquisition work, hotel finance, trading business finance, development finance and asset finance, and has established long-term partnerships with several high-volume lending clients.

Associates Alex Duncliffe-Vines, Asal Saferabadi and Paralegal Montgomery Chapman will join the Real Estate Finance team, and Paralegal Timothy Shannon will join Steve in the Banking team.

Head of Real Estate Finance Greg Palos, commented: “I have known and admired Steve’s work for many years and we are delighted to welcome him and the team to our firm. Their arrival brings the number of Directors in the Banking and Real Estate Finance teams to 11 and a total complement of 42, making it an even more significant player in the Real Estate Finance and Banking ecosystem. Their practice perfectly complements our own and we all look forward to working with them on their arrival.”

Lawrence Stephens appoints Memery Crystal Real Estate team

Posted on: January 31st, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Farringdon based full-service law firm Lawrence Stephens is pleased to announce the appointment of Directors John Aynsley, Chris Cagney, Matthew Hind, Nickhil Mandora and Sam Silverman to their Commercial Real Estate department, who all join from the highly regarded Real Estate group at Memery Crystal.

John Aynsley was previously Head of Real Estate at Memery Crystal, specialising in the acquisition, disposal, development, regeneration, financing, and management of high-value assets in commercial real estate. He acts for clients ranging from international real estate funds and listed house builders to private investors.

He is joined by fellow Directors:

  • Chris Cagney, who has extensive experience in a range of commercial real estate matters as well as advising on development projects and property finance transactions.
  • Matthew Hind, who specialises in general commercial real estate with a mixture of investment, development, finance, occupier, and management work. He also has considerable experience dealing with distressed real estate on behalf of banks and insolvency practitioners.
  • Nickhil Mandora, who acts for a wide variety of clients ranging from retail landlords and tenants to institutional lenders and property developers. 
  • Sam Silverman, who has acted for major international and domestic clients including developers, funds, corporate occupiers and supermarkets within the office, industrial and retail sectors.

Commenting on his appointment, Director John Aynsley stated: “We are very pleased to join Lawrence Stephens at this important moment for the firm. Their extraordinary growth over recent years is evidence of their ambition and can-do attitude, which we share and clients clearly love. We look forward to building on what are already strong foundations and working closely alongside the rest of the Lawrence Stephens team.”

Managing Director Steven Bernstein commented: “We are delighted to welcome John and his team to Lawrence Stephens. Their arrival coincides with a period of exciting growth for the firm and will provide both bench strength to our existing team as well as extending the range of expertise and experience we can now offer to both existing clients and new prospects.”

Jake Cohen recognised in The Lawyer Hot 100 2025

Posted on: January 28th, 2025 by Natasha Cox

Senior Associate Jake Cohen has been featured in the 2025 edition of The Lawyer Hot 100. This highly anticipated annual list recognises the successes of lawyers from in-house, private practice and the Bar, as well as those who are shaping the legal profession. The 100 lawyers on the list are selected for the excellent work they are doing at the present moment, with talented rising stars rubbing shoulders with eminent lawyers who have years of success behind them.

Jake’s entry highlights his ground-breaking work in the field of sports law, with The Lawyer noting that “Cohen has been advising many athletes since they were academy players and the trust relationship he has with these high-net-worth individuals is such that word of mouth regularly brings new instructions — such as a popular grime artist who is now on the books. Institutional relationships with clubs complement the work for individual athletes: new American owners are another big client base. There’s plenty more market share to go at. This team is set to grow and grow.”

Commenting on his recognition, Jake said: “I’m delighted to be included in a list filled with so many brilliant colleagues who are doing genuinely incredible work. Any personal recognition I receive is a direct result of being very lucky to have an incredible team at Lawrence Stephens – Mo Pasricha, Will Bowyer, Angelique Richardson, Andy Wallis and Anna Chasioti-Metson) and amazing clients who have trusted us with the privilege and responsibility of advising them.”

For more information on the work of our Sports and Entertainment team, please see here

Three Lawrence Stephens directors ranked in the 10th Edition of Spears 500

Posted on: January 23rd, 2025 by Hugh Dineen-Lees

The latest edition of the Spear’s 500 is out now and we’re delighted to report that Goli-Michelle Banan, Lawrence Kelly and Stephen Messias have been included.

This is the 10th edition of the Spear’s 500, which is the original and most in-depth guide to advisers to ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices. The rankings are compiled by the Spear’s Research Unit and are based entirely on merit.

Congratulations to all those included on this recognition of their expertise and dedication to clients.

Swift completion of £5.9million loan secured over prime residential blocks

Posted on: January 20th, 2025 by Hugh Dineen-Lees

In a recent financial transaction, a £5.9 million loan was secured over three multi-unit residential blocks located in London and Hemel Hempstead. This deal involved multiple linked refinancing transactions of the commercial elements, showcasing the complexity and efficiency of the process.

Anna Christou represented YBS Commercial Mortgages, while Paul Marsh acted for the Borrower. The transaction was completed within an impressive nine working days from the issuance of the Offer, highlighting the dedication and expertise of the teams involved.

A special mention goes to Katie Peck and Amy Bristow, at YBS Commercial Mortgages, whose pivotal role ensured the smooth and timely completion of this significant transaction.

This achievement underscores the importance of collaboration and precision in high-stakes financial dealings, setting a benchmark for future transactions.