Wallace Property Teams Receive Glowing Reviews in New Edition of Chambers UK
December 2009
Wallace has once again received a positive report in the annual legal guide, Chambers UK: A Client’s Guide to the UK Legal Profession. The independent analysis conducted by Chambers over a period of several months, which included interviews with clients, is compiled in the form of rankings divided by practice area, with editorial commentary written by Chambers journalists.
Wallace received particular praise in the Real Estate Litigation and Commercial Real Estate (Mid Market) categories. The following accolades were awarded to Wallace:
Real Estate Litigation
This compact West End firm is known for its talents in leasehold enfranchisement, where it has a dedicated standalone practice. It acted for Westbrook Partners in contentious negotiations to acquire the freehold of the Dolphin Square building in London.
Sources say: "Client-partner contact is considerably higher than at other firms, and the lawyers are certainly switched-on."
Real estate litigation practice leader Simon Serota is lauded as "tough and succinct."
Commercial Real Estate – Mainly Mid Market
This full-service real estate team earns praise for its efficient and direct approach. The firm covers a range of areas, including acquisitions, development, investment, property management, planning and environmental matters, construction and property litigation. Its broad client base includes The Freshwater Group and well-known property investor Tony Khalastchi and his family’s companies; the team has also attracted a number of new clients in the hotel and leisure sector. It recently advised a client on a compensation claim against the London Development Agency following the compulsory purchase of a property on the Olympic site.
These distinctions come at the end of a busy and successful year for Wallace’s commercial property and property litigation departments. Earlier this year, Wallace was short listed for the London Enfranchisement Solicitors of the Year award at the inaugural Enfranchisement Awards, held by News on the Block magazine. This followed the formal launch last year of Wallace’s leasehold enfranchisement department and the naming of a new co-head of department, Samantha Bone. Simon Serota continues as co-head but also dedicates time to running the firm’s property litigation team. The firm has specialised in leasehold enfranchisement matters for many years and is one of the first firms to form a designated department leveraged off its expertise in leasehold enfranchisement; the formal launch of the department was in response to growing client demand in this area and followed the recruitment of a number of lawyers who are dedicated solely to enfranchisement. The niche practice has traditionally included elements from both property litigation and commercial property and Wallace is one of very few firms who can claim true expertise in this area.
In 2009, Wallace was part of a legal panel advising on the largest collective enfranchisement claim to date. The commercial property team also continues to act for a broad range of businesses, property companies and individual investors. This year the team handled the sale of an industrial estate for redevelopment as part of the Olympic Site, and also acted on the purchase of properties around the current Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as part of the site assembly for the new stadium. Meanwhile the property litigation team has recently acted for Bourne Group, Martin’s Properties, Prideview Properties, Tufnell Park Properties, Groupe Chez Gerard Restaurants, Penna Consulting, Comfort Hotels, Hays Specialist Recruitment, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club and Caffe Uno Brasseries.
Simon Serota said: “Our property litigation and leasehold enfranchisement teams continue to go from strength to strength as the market continues to wake up to the opportunities that exist under leasehold reform legislation. Landlords and tenants alike continue to consult us on how to use the law to their advantage and there are still many who have not yet realised the full potential of the opportunities. The next twelve months will be an important phase as landlords and tenants realise they need to seek legal advice to assess their options in relation to enfranchisement – in many cases people are sitting on a proverbial gold mine and they don’t know it.”
Rex Newman, managing partner at Wallace, commented: “We thank our clients for their ongoing support and we look forward to another busy and productive year. We continue to grow and evolve with our clients and ensure our teams are equipped to meet their needs.”