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SHROPSHIRE LEGAL NEWS
Shropshire Legal News
LANYON BOWDLER EXPANDS PERSONAL INJURY TEAM
A Shropshire law firm has expanded its personal injury team with the addition of three new legal professionals.
Jo Kneller, Mandy Mason and Miriam Homer have joined Lanyon Bowdler’s personal injury team in Shrewsbury, adding “vital experience” to the department.
Jo Kneller has joined Lanyon Bowdler as a personal injury solicitor leading the firm’s Fast Track Portal Team, following time at a national law firm and then working for a firm specialising in personal injury cases.
Mandy Mason, a Chartered Legal Executive, is now supporting the personal injury team, having worked at the firm many years ago assisting managing partner, Brian Evans, in the litigation department.
Since then, she has been a personal injury claims investigator, working for insurers and within defendant claims teams.
Miriam Homer has just completed her training contract with Lanyon Bowdler and upon qualification will join the Shrewsbury team.
Dawn Humphries, head of personal injury at Lanyon Bowdler, welcomed Jo, Mandy and Miriam to the team. “The key to any successful team is having the right blend of people and skills, so I am delighted that Jo, Mandy and Miriam have joined us to add vital experience to the department,” she said.
“Mandy brings a wealth of knowledge, not only from her time investigating personal injury claims but also as a clinical hypnotherapist, and from many years of specialising in personal injury law.
“Jo followed an unusual path into the legal profession, having worked as a probation service officer before studying law and joining a national law firm where she acted for claimants in personal cases.
“I am delighted to continue to offer career opportunities to our trainees and wish Miriam every success with her new appointment.
“They are all excellent additions to the team and will help to further advance Lanyon Bowdler’s reputation as a firm which will always go above and beyond to secure the best possible outcome for our clients.”
LOCAL FIRM APPEALS FOR HOMELESS DONATIONS
Businessman David Mermod is appealing to regional firms to help support homeless people in the community this Autumn.
David Mermod, owner of local property search firm, X-Press Legal Services Central, will be collecting items for the homeless throughout September, October and November in support of The Shrewsbury Ark, drop-in day centre.
David was inspired to launch the charitable collection having read of the recent closure of two homeless offices by charity Crisis, due to a fall in donations from the public.
“It’s a sad reality in 2023 that homelessness still exists and even more shocking that centres are closing because of a lack of community support,” commented David. “Working within the property sector, homelessness an issue that is always forefront of my mind particularly as the Autumn approaches.
“The Shrewsbury Ark does an incredible job of supporting homeless and vulnerable people locally and never turns anyone away. I am appealing to fellow local businesses and
their employees to gather their unwanted clothing, sleeping bags and toiletries and I will personally collect and deliver them to The Shrewsbury Ark over the coming months.
“We have a fantastic business community here and I’m confident that by pulling together we can make the winter months more bearable for everyone living in our region.”
Items David is appealing for include: three season sleeping bags, winter coats and accessories, comfortable clothing in small and medium sizes (plain leggings, joggers, jumpers, hoodies and t-shirts, rucksacks, deodorants, shampoo and toilet rolls.
Businesses with items ready to collect in Shropshire, Herefordshire, Powys, Coventry, North Warwickshire are invited to call David to arrange collection on: 0330 159 5365.
With locally owned offices throughout England & Wales, X-Press Legal Services is an independent property partner specialising in data and e-conveyancing. To find out more about X-Press Legal Services Central and the expert property searches they supply, please call 0330 159 5365 or visit Profile - XPLS (xpresslegal.co.uk)
LAW FIRM EXPANDS CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE TEAM IN SHROPSHIRE
Shropshire law firm Lanyon Bowdler has expanded its award-winning clinical negligence team with the appointment of three new staff members - and a dog.
Solicitors Martin Hood and Sophie Bridges have joined legal support assistant Nicole Smith as the latest additions to the firm, along with Nicole’s sight assistance dog Shai - Lanyon Bowdler’s first four-legged member of the clinical negligence team.
The expansion comes at a very busy time for the clinical negligence team and is necessary to meet an increase in the ongoing demand for the firm’s services.
Beth Heath, a partner and head of the clinical negligence team, said: “I would like to welcome Martin, Sophie and Nicole to Lanyon Bowdler who are all valuable additions to the team. “Lanyon Bowdler has a proud reputation to maintain within the field of clinical negligence and it is important to ensure we are always able to meet the needs of our clients - people who are going through some of the most difficult times of their lives.
“We are receiving more enquiries for our services all the time and are particularly busy at present as clients seek the justice they deserve.
“Our latest appointments to the team will help us deliver on our client-first commitment and ensure we are always able to provide the highest level of service expected of us.”
Martin Hood joined the firm in May and was previously deputy head of clinical negligence at a Liverpool law firm for a number
of years. He has extensive experience in cases involving brain and spinal cord injury, as well as fatal cases.
He is accredited on the Law Society’s Clinical Negligence Panel, and was the chief assessor of that panel for three years from 2015.
Martin also sits part-time as a judge in the First-Tier Tribunal, where he is assigned to the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber.
Sophie Bridges joined in April and is based in Shrewsbury. She studied criminology and sociology at the University of Liverpool before completing the Graduate Law Conversion at the University of Birmingham.
Following completion of the Legal Practice Course, Sophie qualified as a solicitor in 2015.
She deals with a variety of cases including delays in diagnosis and missed or wrongful diagnosis, surgical errors, fatal claims including stillbirths and neonatal deaths, spinal injuries, obstetric claims, brain injuries, psychiatric cases and cancer cases - including delay in diagnosis.
Sophie was previously chairperson of Wolverhampton and Black Country Junior Lawyers Division.
For advice about any clinical negligence or personal injury case, contact Lanyon Bowdler by visiting the website at www.lblaw.co.uk
SHROPSHIRE LAWYER AWARDED ‘GOLD STANDARD’ ACCREDITATION
An experienced solicitor at Lanyon Bowdler in Shropshire has been recognised with national accreditation for their expertise in legal support for older and vulnerable clients, their families and carers.
Kate Lawson is now a fully-accredited member of Solicitors for the Elderly, the organisation setting the standards for the highest quality legal advice in specialist areas, such as wills, powers of attorney and elder abuse.
To achieve accreditation, lawyers are required to undertake assessment to demonstrate solid understanding of the specific needs and considerations required when safeguarding and protecting older clients’ interests.
Kate said: “I am delighted to have achieved ‘gold standard’ accreditation in an area of law which requires a real human touch in conjunction with sound technical knowledge.
“I have always prided myself on being approachable and friendly, and able to explain complex legal matters in simple terms to clients who can be particularly vulnerable.
“This accreditation from Solicitors for the Elderly will hopefully give extra peace of mind to my clients and their families that I will always work to the very highest professional standards.”
Lakshmi Turner, Chief Executive of SFE, said: “When it comes to planning ahead for later life, getting the right advice is essential.
“An SFE-accredited lawyer is an expert in this area of the law and understands the wider, often sensitive, issues around health, care and family that may need consideration.
“SFE lawyers understand the issues affecting older and vulnerable clients and follow a strict code of practice with respect and dignity at its heart.
“Ultimately, choosing an SFE lawyer means you’ll be guided through this complex and sensitive area of law and will enable you to lay solid foundations to protect you and your loved ones in later life.”
To find an SFE accredited lawyer near you go to: http:// www.sfe.legal
SHROPSHIRE LAW SOCIETY’S PRESIDENT DANNY SMITH ATTENDS THE SUMMER NETWORK EVENT FOR THE JLD SOLICITORS
It was a delight to meet members of the JLD division of the Shropshire Law Society who gathered at Chester University’s Guildhall in Shrewsbury where I was able to provide an insight into the advantages and the disadvantages of referring clients to other solicitors within a firm and providing my experience of training and the future of law firms and in particular within Shropshire law firms.
It was encouraging to see so many solicitor apprentices at the event, their questions were far reaching, and it was also particularly promising that firms like FBC have invested so heavily in the legal education of so many young people with the strategy of keeping Shropshire talent within Shropshire. It was also good for the Shropshire Junior Lawyers Division to speak to each other before and after the event and share their experiences of their training journeys.
I wish them all every success in their future legal careers and hope that they remain in Shropshire for many years to come.
ACCESS TO JUSTICE SHROPSHIRE LAW SOCIETY LEGAL WALK
It was great to see so many of you from the Shropshire legal community walking up the Wrekin to support the charity Access to Justice.
We were lucky with the weather which the rain held off right until the very end. Danny Smith, PCB Solicitors and President of the Shropshire Law Society walked the Wrekin to meet the walkers at the top where we really were blessed with the most amazing rainbow in the background. Sammie Millea of PCB Solicitors lead the walk and organised the same, what a fantastic job she did. There were solicitors from Lanyon Bowdler Solicitors, Clarkes Solicitors, PCB Solicitors and MFG Solicitors were there.
Whilst the walk was really enjoyable, I am sure we all could draw analogy from the strenuous climb up the Wrekin as to the difficulties clients have to access legal aid and in some cases all areas of law. It is particularly prominent in rural legal areas where increasingly legal talent is being driven towards cities, please do visit the Access to Justice website, https://atjf.org.uk/ where you can contribute to this fantastic charity that helps promote and guide service users towards accessing solicitors to service their legal needs. We made over £100.00 for this legal walk and I am so proud of all those that contributed and walked up the Wrekin with me and I hope that you will join me on future walks to support this charity.
LEGAL SPECIALIST COMPLETES RURAL LEADERSHIP PROGRAMME
A legal expert at a Shropshire law firm is celebrating after being among the first-ever graduates of a project to inspire future leaders in agriculture.
The Rural Leadership Programme has been launched by the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society (RWAS), and Nicola Davies, of Lanyon Bowdler Solicitors in Shrewsbury, said it was a valuable experience.
“I was very grateful to have been selected to join the RWAS Rural Leadership Programme, which ran from May 2022 until the summer this year,” Nicola said.
“As a solicitor specialising in dispute resolution in agricultural matters, the course has given me an excellent insight into the farming industry as a whole.
“We met farmers, visited diversification projects and agricultural businesses, undertook leadership and media training and heard from a number of key people in the farming industry, including Senedd members.
“The course consisted of intensive residential sessions over the past year and it was a thoroughly enjoyable and useful experience.”
The programme was supported by the Glamorgan Feature County 2023 and the legacy of Norman Griffiths, starting with a residential session at the Royal Welsh Showground in September 2022.
The group then attended the Nuffield Farming Conference in Cardiff, before a tour of South Wales and Sussex including visits to farm shops, Knepp Estate and NFU Vice President David Exwood’s farm.
Nicola added: “The final residential session was really interesting, taking in a huge variety of agricultural businesses, including Gloucester Services Farm Shop, and then a tour of The Senedd for discussions with politicians about the challenges being faced by the industry.
“I am proud to be among the first cohort to successfully complete the 2022/23 Rural Leadership Programme and have already tapped into my experience when assisting clients with wide-ranging legal issues.”
