 |
|
Lawson Lewis Blakers. Latest News
February 2013 Eastbourne businesses Brufords and Lawson Lewis Blakers have joined a new Home-Start initiative which helps struggling families with young children. They are sponsoring two newly-trained volunteers. Mark Brewer, a trustee for the charity, said “We have a big demand for our service in Eastbourne
January 2013 Lawson Lewis Blakers are pleased to announce that they have been joined by Richard Palmer a newly qualified solicitor specialising in the field of commercial property and business law.
November 2012 Following the merger between Lawson Lewis & Co and Blaker Son & Young the newly merged firm moved into modern, purpose built offices at Sackville House, Lewes. The new offices offer free parking and easy access by lift. The firm is able to offer home visits for those who are unable to travel to our offices.
October 2012 The practices of Blaker Son & Young and Lawson Lewis & Co joined forces in a merger. The partners in the new firm are Jeremy Sogno, Nadine Ashford (existing partners with Lawson Lewis & Co) and Mark Barrett (a partner from the former practice of Blaker Son & Young). At the same time Barbara Macdonald previously an associate solicitor with Lawson Lewis & Co was promoted to partner.
May 2012 Lawson Lewis & Co gained Lexcel accreditation. Lexcel is a quality kite mark for solicitor’s practices. In order to gain this accolade the firm had to undergo a rigorous audit of it’s systems, a review of files and overall assessment by an independent auditor
26 October 2011 Lawson Lewis & Co gained the Conveyancing Quality Mark. This is a quality mark established by the Law Society to recognise excellence in conveyancing services. Lawson Lewis & Co were amongst the first solicitor’s firms in Eastbourne to gain this qualification.
July 2011 Lawson Lewis & Co are delighted to announce that Adrian Sharpin has successfully passed his exams for admission to the Society of Estate Practitioners [STEP]. STEP is a professional body governed by rigorous entry examinations for practitioners specialising in the administration of Estates and Trusts. Admission to STEP is a recognition of Adrian’s expertise in the field of Will drafting, Estate Planning and the administration of Estates and Trusts.
Nadine’s Chestnut Charity Cycle
Nadine aims to pedal the 984 mile route in 2 weeks to raise money for the only children’s hospice in Sussex. Chestnut Tree House, located near Arundel, cares for children and young adults from birth to 19 years of age, with progressive, life-limiting and life-threatening illnesses. The hospice also provides practical, physical and emotional care and support to their families. As it receives very little government funding, it relies almost entirely on the generosity, help and support of the people of Sussex. Nadine is an intrepid charity fundraiser, having previously participated in sponsored events including; a cross-Channel relay swim, North of England coast-to-coast cycle from Whitehaven to Newcastle, and climbs to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and base camp of Mount Everest. Nadine is part of a team of 7 cycling the entire route, accompanied by a support vehicle donated by Choice Hire. The planned itinerary involves covering between 65 to 85 miles a day. These distances are dictated by the availability of stopover accommodation, which in the Highlands of Scotland can be few and far between. Sponsoring the cycle really will help make a difference, enabling the Chestnut Tree House to provide all of its wonderful care services to many more children and their families. Although it has up to 10 beds available for use, its current level of income only provides funding for 6 of these. To make the remaining beds available, their income needs to rise from around £2 million to £3 million per year. To sponsor Nadine and the team online, please visit www.justgiving.com/end2endcycle2011 or alternatively, sign the sponsorship form or make a donation by visiting Lawson Lewis Blakers.’s office at 11 Hyde Gardens, Eastbourne. To find out more about the Chestnut Tree House Hospice visit their website at:
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
July 2010 Rebecca Cole and Jeremy Sogno have been appointed members of the Law Society Advanced Family Law Panel – in Rebecca’s case for her work in the field of child law and domestic violence. Jeremy’s specialism is within financial provision on relationship breakdown and domestic violence. Entry onto these panels is by rigorous open book exam and we believe ourselves to be the only local firm with three members of specialist family law panels.
Law Lords deliver damning judgment against East Sussex The Court of Appeal has handed down a damning judgment against East Sussex County Council in a case involving a child placed by the Authority for Adoption. The child was placed with prospective adopters only 24 hours before the Father’s application was due to be heard by Brighton Family Court on 30 January. The Father had applied for permission to revoke the Placement Order so that he could be considered as a carer for the child. The effect of the Local Authority’s decision was to deprive the Father of his right to a hearing. Refusing the Father’s Application but granting him leave to appeal urgently, Her Honour Judge Coates described the Local Authority’s actions as “outrageous” and “sharp practice”. The Law Lords were even more condemnatory. Lord Justice Wall described the behaviour of East Sussex as “disgraceful”, “a travesty of good practice” and “an abuse of power”, adding that their behaviour “is about the worst I have ever encountered in a career now spanning nearly 40 years”. It was clear, he said, that the Local Authority had “quite deliberately set out to prevent the Father from being heard”. A copy of their Lordships’ Judgment has been ordered to be sent to all Judges who hear adoption cases and every adoption agency in England and Wales so that the “unacceptable” practice followed by East Sussex County Council in this case will not be repeated. The Father was represented by Stephen Cobb QC and Maria Hancock instructed by Eastbourne Solicitors Lawson Lewis Blakers. Their Lordships commented that “the Father’s Solicitors have represented him well and could not have foreseen that East Sussex would abuse their power”. Commenting on the case, the Father’s Solicitor, Barbara Macdonald, said: “Although this case involved a discrete point of law, we knew at once that the human rights implications for other parents caught up in the position of this Father were far-reaching. On that basis alone, we were determined to appeal. Although this Father lost his appeal on the law, we hope this Judgment sends out a stark warning to East Sussex and other adoption agencies who think they can behave in this arrogant fashion in attempting to deprive parents of their right to be heard”. This story appeared in the National & Local Press and Barbara Macdonald was interviewed on
We are able to offer specialist advice. Call 01323 720142 now for a consultation with a specialist Solicitor or a Lawyer at Lawson Lewis Blakers.
Please contact:
|
Whilst many of us may be planning a holiday in Britain this summer, not too many will be seeing quite as much of it as local solicitor Nadine Ashford of Lawson Lewis Blakers. On 23 July, Nadine will begin a ‘downhill’ north to south cycle ride of Britain, from John o’Groats to Land’s End.