In the latest edition of The Legal 500 Westwater Advocates has received 32 recommendations in 11 of the 12 categories:
Commercial Litigation
Nick Ellis QC has ‘a fantastic ability to assimilate and make sense of voluminous cases, and to really understand very complex technical issues’.
Jonathan Brown ‘thorough, sharp, and tough’.
Greg Sanders ‘one of the best around for insurance contract disputes’.
Company and Insolvency
Charles Cowie “is recommended for commercial instructions.”
Crime
Gavin Anderson “is recommended for white-collar crime and regulatory matters.”
Employment
James Peoples QC “(‘very thorough and committed’), Juliette Casey and Alice Stobart are all recommended.”
David Hay “has particular expertise in complex equal pay litigation facing Scottish local authorities.”
Donald Cameron’s ‘communication skills are second to none, and he always speaks with knowledge and authority’. Donald recently joined Westwater Advocates.
Family & Childcare
Lynda Brabender is ‘very much a leading senior junior in the childcare field’.
Ruth Innes is ‘an extremely able family lawyer; very careful and meticulous’.
Mary Loudon and Margaret Hodge “are recommended for financial and children law.”
Maggie Hughes “is noted for her constructive approach and ‘her skill at reaching resolution’.”
Robert Hayhow “is recommended for financial provision litigation.”
New members of the stable who have been ranked are:
Janys Scott QC is described as a “key figure in family law matters.”
Kirsty Malcolm is ‘a leading expert in cohabitation claims’.
John Speir “is ‘nothing short of excellent’ in high-value financial provision and complex child-related matters.”
Health and Safety, and Regulatory
Gavin Anderson” is recommended for fatal accident inquiries.”
Intellectual Property and Information Technology
Iain Artis “is recommended for branding and copyright issues.”
Personal Injury, Medical Negligence and Professional Negligence
Westwater Advocates “is ‘highly recommended, particularly for its personal injury work and its extremely high quality of clerking’. The stable has built on its excellent reputation for clinical negligence representation to establish a wider multi-practice area medical group.”
Andrew Hajducki QC is ‘very efficient, and a first choice for difficult civil jury trials’.
Gordon Lamont is ‘very clever and very able, and can make a silk purse out of a pig’s ear’.
Kenneth Christine is ‘always thorough and prompt, and his advice is consistently sound’.
Laura Wray “is also recommended.”
Planning, Environmental and Licensing
Gavin Anderson “is recommended in environmental matters.”
Property, Construction and Agriculture
Sir Crispin Agnew QC “is ‘approachable, responsive, practical and client friendly’, and is recommended for agricultural matters.”
Calum MacNeill QC has ‘an excellent and insightful understanding of construction law’.
Nick Ellis QC, Greg Sanders and Charles Cowie “are also recommended for property and construction work.”
Tax, Trusts and Pensions
Laurence Cunningham “has particular experience in trusts and succession law.”
Clerk Sheila Westwater said “These are wonderful results for the stable, which underlines the strength and depth of the expertise at Westwater Advocates over so many disciplines. The stable is committed to providing our clients with the best possible service and advice and this recognition from The Legal 500 is particularly encouraging in the current economic climate.”