THE SPEAR’S 500 Legal


James Ferguson Boodle Hatfield


FOCUS Complex divorce and high- value matrimonial finance disputes


jferguson@boodlehatfield.com +44 (0)20 7629 7411 boodlehatfield.com


James Ferguson heads Boodle Hatfield’s family team. He specialises in separation and divorce, civil partnership dissolution, financial proceedings, children matters, pre-marital/pre-civil partnership and separation agreements. Ferguson crosses paths with his


clients at the most difficult moments of their lives. His rapport with clients stems from his pragmatism and cool-headedness; he is described by peers as a ‘supreme strategist’. ‘As a family lawyer, I am very alert to the complexities and sensitivities of proceedings and always focus on finding an effective solution for my clients’ problems through strong technical know-how, experience and tenacity in getting the right result,’ he says.


Adviser profile James Ferguson is a Partner and Head of Boodle Hatfield’s Family team. He advises international and UK based high-net-worth individuals on all matters arising from the breakdown of a marriage/relationship. James’s legal practice includes separation and divorce, civil partnership dissolution, financial proceedings, children, and pre-marital/ pre-civil partnership and separation agreements. James has significant experience advising on big money financial remedy claims where the family assets often comprise shares in private companies where value and liquidity are difficult to determine, assets held in trusts whether onshore or offshore, inherited wealth or wealth generated before cohabitation starts or after it ends.


Emma Gill Vardags


FOCUSHigh-asset-value cases


contact@vardags.com +44 (0)16 1956 3838 vardags.com


‘I am defined by my straight-talking approach,’ says Emma Gill, the head of Vardags’ Manchester office, who also promises ‘empathy and directness’. ‘No one wants to hear nonsense when they are separating and facing the most challenging and difficult financial decisions they have ever had to make in their lives.’ Gill specialises in the fields of divorce, financial remedy, children disputes and nuptial agreements, particularly where complex international clients are involved. She says she rarely tackles a case that is valued at less than £15 million. The solicitor prides herself distilling complicated legal issues into ‘digestible ideas for the most distressed of clients’.


Adviser profile Gill brokers deals with the complexity and value of the largest corporate demergers whilst also offering emotional wraparound support, which she states ‘means there is no time for jargon’. She is known for her legal insight, dedication and tireless attitude to securing her clientele the very best possible outcome. When they are unable to fight for themselves, Gill fights for them to achieve excellent results. Gill is regarded as the ‘go to’


family lawyer for all media, including TV, print and radio. In just one day she made 18 press contributions on the Bill and Melinda Gates divorce, including 13 appearances on BBC radio and two TV interviews, as well as commentary for The Guardian, The Mail and The Telegraph.


Robert Gilmour SKO Family Law


FOCUS Cohabitation, surrogacy and reproductive technologies


robert.gilmour@sko-family.co.uk +44 (0)13 1322 6669 sko-family.co.uk


‘You can learn from others, but you can only be truly successful by finding your own voice,’ says Robert Gilmour, specialist family lawyer at SKO. He describes being inspired by his clients, saying that ‘the humour, resilience and generosity of people in the most trying of circumstances is a constant source of inspiration’.


Gilmour advises individuals in relation to all types of complex legal issues arising from adult relationship breakdown; parent/child relationships; and family relationships more generally. He is also an accredited family law mediator and arbitrator. One challenging area of Gilmour’s work arises from the increasingly global and highly mobile nature of HNW families, which makes for complex cases across multiple jurisdictions.


Adviser profile Robert is a Partner at SKO Family Law Specialists and is accredited by the Law Society of Scotland as a specialist in Family Law and as a Family Mediator. He is also a Family Law Arbitrator. Feedback from clients has described Robert as ‘calm, considered in his opinion, wise, reliable, efficient and professional’. Robert’s practice covers the full


range of family law matters including divorce, dissolution, cohabitation claims, financial provision, residence and contact, specific issue orders and relocation. He has a wealth of courtroom experience, conducting proofs, debates and other contentious hearings for clients. He also regularly receives appointments from courts to act as a court reporter and curator


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ad litem in cases involving children and vulnerable adults. Robert leads SKO’s surrogacy and assisted reproduction team, and is widely recognised as the leading practitioner in this field in Scotland. He advises intended parents undergoing surrogacy journeys at home and overseas. He has been consulted by medical professionals and individuals in relation to Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act matters arising from the HFEA legal parenthood audit in 2014. He regularly writes on and provides commentary to the media on these subjects. Robert is also recognised for


particular expertise in cohabitation claims, having acted for the successful applicant in the ground- breaking, and widely reported, Supreme Court case of Gow v Grant. Robert is a very experienced mediator and has a busy practice both mediating alone and, as the only male accredited mediator in Edinburgh, co-mediating in cases where a gender balance is desired by clients.


Nicola Harries Stevens & Bolton


FOCUS HNW financial remedies, Surrey


Stevens & Bolton is one of the leading law firms in Surrey, and head of family Nicola Harries is one of its leading lights. ‘The last year has been very busy, with a marked increase in litigation,’ she says. Harries’ caseload ranges from prenups for partners at Magic Circle firms to cases with assets of circa £80 million. The court system worries her:


‘The courts are on their knees. We are using private options more and more. This is fine for our clients, but it is leading to a two-tier system.’ Her career highlight? ‘Calming down a client before she gave evidence in the High Court and encouraging her not to drink too much of the pre-mixed G&T that was masquerading as Evian.’


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