What Chambers Guide to the Legal Profession 2007/2008 says about L'Estrange & Brett...

"Banking & Finance" (Band 1)

The Firm: One of the top firms in Belfast, L'Estrange & Brett fields a cross-disciplinary banking unit that acts for a wide variety of borrowers and lenders in the banking and financial services sector. The lawyers are "good operators who are commercial and can turn their hands to any type of transaction,"interviewees report. The group advises on all aspects of lending, borrowing and corporate finance. Notable work includes advising Northern Bank as senior debt provider on the acquisition of GE Robinson by leading Northern Irish building supplies company Haldane Shiells. The team also advised Bank of Ireland on financing Munro Horticulture's acquisition of Wessex Horticultural and Growing Success Organics. On the real estate side, the team advised Ulster Bank on the acquisition funding of the Bridgewater Park retail outlet centre and the Fosse Park shopping centre. The team is "service-focused and has great strength in depth," sources agree.
The Lawyers: An "excellent and seasoned practitioner," Brian Henderson is head of the firm's banking unit and advises on all aspects of banking and secured lending. He has a particular focus on real estate finance and led the Bridgewater Park retail outlet centre and Fosse Park shopping centre transactions. "Pragmatic, reasonable and unflappable," Sinead McGrath deals with general banking and real estate finance. She advises both lenders and borrowers on all aspects of traditional secured and unsecured lending and bank regulatory issues. She advised Northern Ireland-based pharmacy group Medicare on acquisition funding matters. Richard Gray is a "great banking lawyer and corporate practitioner who gets deals done." He focuses on corporate, banking and projects work. His highlights include advising Ulster Bank, as the senior debt provider, on the management buyin of Maybin Support Services (NI).
Clients/Work Highlights: Notable work includes acting as Northern Ireland counsel to Dresdner, the agent for a syndicate of banks that provided debt funding to Arcapita for its acquisition of Viridian Group, the Northern Irish electricity company. Other clients include Barclays; RBS; HSBC; Citibank; GE Capital Bank; Rabobank and Deutsche Bank.

Construction (Band 1)

The Firm: Solicitors from the property and litigation departments of L'Estrange & Brett come together to create a solid construction team that is both "efficient and effective. It's a forward-thinking firm with strength and depth at all levels."
The Lawyers: When it comes to contentious work, Sam Beckett is a force to be reckoned with. His broad practice encompasses a wide variety of work, and recent topics of dispute have ranged from defective flooring and mechanical engineering contracts, to terminations of contracts and final accounts. The team has also built up a strong reputation in the PFI field, where "it has a high degree of expertise," and it is currently advising the Belfast Education and Library Board in relation to construction aspects of a PPP project. Andrea McIlroy-Rose has significant experience in both PFI and other non-contentious construction work. "Enthusiastic, confident and very much to the point,"clients find her to be "most effective," and "couldn't ask for more."

Corporate Finance (Band 1)

Dispute Resolution (Band 1)

The Firm: This seven-strong team is equipped to handle any type of litigation and it receives a healthy flow of instructions in shareholder, insolvency and company disputes. Its expertise in IP ensures that it is strong in copyright, trademark and patent claims, and it also acts for professionals in partnerships disputes. Specialist insurers regularly engage the group in professional negligence claims brought against architects, financial advisers and surveyors among others. Judicial review and alternative dispute resolution are also notable sources of work for the team, and it recently acted for a local construction company in mediation with a statutory body. Accredited mediator Sam Beckett regularly advises clients on both judicial review and mediation. Agency and distribution disputes also feature heavily in the group's workload: during the past year it was engaged to handle the termination of a distribution agreement for the sale of wines in Ireland between an Australian listed company and the team's client. David Kirkpatrick is the partner with the most expertise in this field.

Employment (Band 1)

The Firm: This firm is "considered a top brand by the business market as well as the government" and leaps into the top tier following enthusiastic market feedback. The "highly regarded and supportive" solicitors in the employment group offer a comprehensive mix of contentious work and high-end strategic advice with a "quick turnaround time." The unit thrives under the command of the "extremely sharp and client-focused" Adam Brett. It is regularly involved in TUPE matters and advised Belfast Institute for Further and Higher Education on TUPE issues arising from the merger with Castlereagh College of Further & Higher Education. Other high-profile recipients of the firm's expert advice include Sainsbury's and Coca-Cola Bottlers (Ulster), and additional clients span the IT, pharmaceutical and academic sectors.

Intellectual Property (Band 2)

The Firm: This sturdy outfit of "responsive and commercially oriented" lawyers offers a mix of corporate support for complex M&A and joint ventures, and advises companies from the start-up stage to fully fledged businesses on the exploitation of their intangible assets. It has drafted and advised on application service provision agreements; provided detailed advice on the ownership and protection of IP rights relating to undocumented business collaboration; and formalised collaboration and shareholder arrangements involving product development, marketing and exploitation of software.
Clients/Work Highlights: The team advised a number of start-ups and smaller scale businesses including i-Path Diagnostics on exploitation of IP, and leveraging funding. It has also advised on a number of IP matters for Kerr Henderson.

Licensing (Band 2)

The Firm: Competitors speak very highly of this licensing team, which acts for clients drawn from all sectors of the industry, including off licences, restaurants, public house operators and hotels. The group has a strong foothold in the sale and acquisition of both licences and licensed premises, and acts as counsel to Wine Inns, an industry leader in the province with a portfolio that now includes around 130 on-sale and off-sale licences. Lawyers also make applications for, as well as oppose, new licences, and recently obtained a new permit for the Royal County Down Golf Club following an extension and refurbishment of its clubhouse. A number of well-known clients have instructed the firm, including Sainsbury's, PizzaExpress and Ladbrokes. "Knowledgeable, sound and sensible,"Sam Beckett is in charge of handling licensing applications.

Partnership (Band 1)

The Firm: This "professional and committed" firm spent a busy year working on a significant number of LLP conversions and partnership agreements for firms of accountants, estate agents and surveyors. In addition, the group advises on partner moves, and provides partnership advice to the medical sector. The team is applauded by clients, who believe it "always delivers," and one of its recent highlights was advising Patton Group on an LLP for a large property development in Kent.
The Lawyers: Leading the partnership team, Paul McBride impresses clients with his dedicated approach. Sources describe him as "courteous, organised and extremely responsive."

Private Client (Band 1)

The Firm: This four-lawyer private client team acts for high net worth individuals, leading banks and charities, particularly on trust and estate matters. The practice complements its private client work by drawing upon the firm's property and commercial capability. The group is retained by Camelot to advise lottery winners on their wills, among other matters. Alan Hewitt now acts as a consultant; he is widely esteemed for his knowledge of inheritance tax planning, wills, estates and trusts.

Projects & Energy: Energy & Natural Resources (Band 2)

The Firm: As part of the firm's corporate/commercial department, the energy and natural resources team comprises "solid, switched-on and well-respected"specialist lawyers. Encompassing a broad spectrum of disciplines, such as regulatory, competition, renewables and planning, the group has built a strong reputation for its work in the local energy market whilst demonstrating increasing flair in its projects expertise. It advised the project lenders on Northern Irish legal aspects of the Moyle Interconnector linking electricity connections between Scotland and Northern Ireland, and on the Scotland to Northern Ireland gas pipeline, in each case using a non-profit purchasing mechanism via the bond markets. As with most firms practising in this area, the team has been involved in the implementation of the Single Electricity Market, and the implications of this reform for its clients.
The Lawyers: Projects lawyer Adrian Eakin is the primary contact.
Clients/Work Highlights: The team has added new clients Phoenix Natural Gas and Calor Gas to its healthy client base, which already includes RES and Veridian Group.

Projects & Energy: PFI/PPP (Band 1)

The Firm: This Belfast-based firm continues to enjoy a comfortable position at the top of the rankings this year. It works on all major Northern Irish projects, and also receives instructions for work in England. In the past year this included an instruction from Northgate to advise on the first Building Schools for the Future scheme to close in Bristol. The team has also been chosen to advise the public sector on the first three hospital PPP projects to be launched from the Strategic Investment Board's strategy for Northern Ireland.
The Lawyers: Adrian Eakin elicits superlatives from all corners of the market. Two of his main qualities were considered to be his "superb knowledge of the law relating to large projects" and his ability to negotiate in a way that "enables him to get the point across without making the other person feel as though they have conceded it." The "commercial and practical" Richard Gray is respected for the accuracy of his legal advice, which is "always on the money."

Real Estate (Band 1)

The Firm: L'Estrange & Brett fields one of the biggest and most varied property teams in Belfast. In recent years it has expanded its horizons beyond pure property transactions into PPPs and projects, and has cultivated an interesting mix of public and private sector clients. The property department is highly esteemed for the "fantastic resources" it can deploy on public sector schemes, winning particular praise for its role on the Workplace 2010 project. The team also acts for some of Northern Ireland's most high-profile developers, landlords and retailers, as well as companies looking to invest from outside of the region. Ladbrokes has engaged the group to manage the property aspects of its strategic acquisition of North West Bookmakers, its first entry into the Northern Ireland market. In addition to real estate law, the team advises on the planning, construction, banking and environmental aspects of transactions. Ian Huddleston is experienced in planning and environmental law as well as real estate. His practice concentrates on development work and the property aspects of PFI and PPP transactions. He is leading the Workplace 2010 team, and has also handled major projects for Invest Northern Ireland. Senior partner Brian Henderson heads the firm's banking unit and enjoys a varied practice of banking and real estate matters. Clients say Andrea McIlroy-Rose "cuts through the waffle and gets to the salient points." Interviewees also applauded her hard work and efficiency. As one remarked: "She can churn through work and multitask like no one else." She is especially skilled at commercial leases and shopping centre developments, and is also well versed in construction matters. McIlroy-Rose is currently acting on the development of the Junction One Factory Outlet Centre, the only centre of its kind in Northern Ireland.

Restructuring/Insolvency (Band 1)

The Firm: Interviewees place much faith in this group’s established presence and expertise in the sector, declaring it a “standout team for anything particularly complex or large-scale.” The team’s “clearly presented documentation” and “professional attitude" are emphasised, and much praise is awarded a service that is “partner-led from start to finish.” The majority of the group's instructions are derived from IPs, although a significant proportion of work is sourced from lenders and banks, which also consult the team on related issues such as the implementation and enforcement of security. Thanks to its substantial corporate client base, the team is often involved in a number of the province’s small pool of formal insolvencies. The group also advises these companies on the purchase of distressed businesses. Lawyers recently acted for Littlewoods in the acquisition of a home delivery business and advised Lagan Construction on buying up a piling business from receivers. Applauded for being “highly competent” and “easy to deal with,” the team is able to provide a holistic insolvency service by calling on the firm’s experts in litigation, property and TUPE-related employment law. In 2006 the team dealt with two transactions for liquidators Grant Thornton, advising on the winding-up of SERE Group and Brookney Limited. In a landmark case, lawyers also successfully acted for State Securities in its application (as a qualifying floating charge holder) to appoint an administrator to Strategic Packaging Solutions. This was the first usage of new laws permitting a qualifying floating charge holder to undertake such an action.
The Lawyers: An “enthusiastic and proactive” team leader, Kieran McGarrigle was recently promoted to partner. He always takes a “thoroughly hands-on role” in the group’s leading deals. He specialises in all aspects of corporate recovery and insolvency, with a particular emphasis on the sale and acquisition of distressed businesses. Clients are impressed with his “responsive and practical skills” and “willingness to discuss all options.” One declared: “Frankly, if I have to look for someone in the insolvency market, he will be my first port of call." Brian Henderson is a leading banking expert who regularly turns his hand to insolvency, where his “logical approach” is keenly sought. He advises banks on applying security to transactions and investments.

Trusts & Personal Tax (Band 1)

The Firm: This four-lawyer private client team acts for high net worth individuals, leading banks and charities, particularly on trust and estate matters. The practice complements its private client work by drawing upon the firm's property and commercial capability. The group is retained by Camelot to advise lottery winners on their wills, among other matters. Alan Hewitt now acts as a consultant; he is widely esteemed for his knowledge of inheritance tax planning, wills, estates and trusts".