Gardner Leader LLP
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Amy Wilson Weymouth is a Solicitor in the Family Team. Amy joined Gardner Leader in March 2016 as a paralegal in the Conveyancing Team. Amy graduated from University of Surrey with a 2:1 degree in Law with Spanish Law and went on to study the Legal Practice Course at the University of Law, Guildford in which she obtained a Distinction. As part of her studies, Amy undertook a placement year in Spain and speaks fluent Spanish. Amy qualified in to the Family team in February 2019 after completing her first two training seats in Conveyancing and Commercial Litigation. Within the Family team, Amy is based in the Newbury office. During her time in the Conveyancing team, Amy worked largely on Transfers of Equity and Re-Mortgages and has considerable experience in handling these transactions for Family clients. In the Family team, Amy can help with all matters arising out of divorce or relationship breakdown including the divorce process itself and financial remedies. Amy can also help with disputes relating to children.
Andrew is a Partner at Gardner Leader in the Dispute Resolution Team. The main focus of Andrew’s work is commercial disputes. He deals with a range of issues including contractual disputes, debt recovery and shareholder/director disputes. Andrew also deals with intellectual property disputes including copyright and trademark infringement. Andrew has a great deal of experience with insolvency matters and acts for Insolvency Practitioners pursuing book debts, contractual claims and delinquent directors. The other focus of Andrew’s caseload is property litigation. He has acted for a number of clients on a broad range of issues such as boundary disputes, rights of way, construction disputes including adjudication, and landlord and tenant matters, including possession claims, dilapidations and lease disputes.
Daniel Smith is a Solicitor in the Dispute Resolution team. Daniel joined the firm in 2015 as a paralegal after graduating from Oxford Brooks University and completing the Legal Practice Course in Oxford at the University of Law. Daniel’s training has had a significant focus on property, having spent a year in the Residential Conveyancing team. He undertook seats in Residential Conveyancing, Property Litigation and Commercial Property through his training contract. Daniel qualified as a Solicitor in the Dispute Resolution team in January 2020.
Hannah joined Gardner Leader in August 2012 as an Assistant in the Conveyancing team, having received a First Class Honours in Law at University of West of England, Bristol. In 2013, Hannah then decided to undertake her Legal Practice Course at University of Law, Bristol part-time whilst working in the Conveyancing team. She passed the Legal Practice Course in July 2015 and started her training contract in January 2016 in the Dispute Resolution Team. Her second seat was in Inheritance Protection. Hannah commenced her current and final seat in January 2017 in the commercial team.Hannah qualified as a Solicitor in the Inheritance Protection team in August 2017.
Hannah Davies is a Senior Associate in our Corporate & Commercial Team. Hannah joined Gardner Leader as a Solicitor in April 2019 as part of the growing Corporate & Commercial team in the Maidenhead office. Hannah is passionate about developing a close understanding of each client’s business and finding commercially driven solutions to allow a business to accomplish its objectives and more. Hannah has extensive experience of advising businesses, in a broad range of corporate and commercial matters, including commercial contracts, mergers and acquisitions, joint venture agreements, outsourcing agreements, company secretarial, risk management and compliance matters. Previously Hannah trained and worked in London at a leading international law firm undertaking corporate and commercial work for companies and businesses from various sectors including multi-national organisations in the consumer, media and retail sector. Hannah was part of teams which offered a ‘legal hotline’ to some clients, offering swift assistance to legal issues based on the commercial drivers of the client. She has undertaken a secondment in-house at BAA Airports Limited advising on a broad spectrum of commercial matters together with managing BAA’s property portfolio in and around its airports. Hannah was also seconded to the Prague office of the international law firm where she managed a high density of corporate transactional deals.
Hilary Messer is a Senior Associate at Gardner Leader in the Dispute Resolution team based in Maidenhead. Hilary has a comprehensive knowledge of civil litigation and practices in all areas of commercial dispute resolution. She has a particular interest in what may best be described as ‘cause cases’, acting for the individual against bureaucracy and officialdom. Hilary has developed a reputation for having high levels of tenacity and enterprise. These attributes make Hilary a formidable opponent and ensure that she is able to secure the very best outcome she can for her clients. Hilary is not afraid to take on cases from which others shy away. Hilary has a special interest in Shared Appreciation Mortgages (SAMs). Voted one of the Hot 100 Lawyers of 2009 for her work challenging the banks on SAM terms, also Times Lawyer of the Week and Law Society Lawyer of the month for her work on SAMs, Hilary continues to take instruction from those adversely affected by SAMs.
Jo is a Partner at Gardner Leader and is part of the Commercial Team.Jo specialises in commercial property work acting for a variety of corporate clients and public authorities. Her work includes landlord and tenant matters, sales and purchases, secured lending, development and on the property aspects of corporate asset and share sales acquisitions and disposals. Jo has represented a number of banks in respect of refinancing of property and mortgage portfolios.Jo’s commercial and pragmatic approach in dealing with transactions helps clients achieve their end goal.
Judith is a Chartered Legal Executive in the Inheritance Protection team. Judith qualified as a Legal Executive in 1990 after experience in residential conveyancing and probate and wills. She has significant experience in the Newbury and surrounding areas in Inheritance and Estate protection matters. Judith joined Gardner Leader’s Thatcham office in 2019. Judith has experience of acting for individuals and families in inheritance and estate planning matters. She can guide and assist clients through the process of obtaining probate and the administration of estates and trusts. She also advises on and prepares Wills to ensure that clients’ wishes are put in place, including Inheritance Tax advice, if appropriate, and addressing any particular family circumstances. Judith can also prepare Lasting Powers of Attorney so that clients can be assured that their affairs will be properly handled, as well as assistance with registration of Enduring Powers of Attorney.
Kathryn joined Gardner Leader in December 2013 as a Consultant. She began her career in industry and then had a career break to bring up her children during which time she went back to university to study law and qualified as a solicitor. She then spent many years heading a private client department in private practice. Kathryn spends most of her time dealing with the administration of estates, wills, inheritance tax planning and Court of Protection work. She deals with complex estates including those with assets in other jurisdictions throughout the world. Administering large and complex estates Negotiating with HM Revenue and Customs on issues of non UK domicile Obtaining a Court Order to allow Probate to be granted following a loss at sea where no body was recovered and no death certificate issued Drafting wills for couples with complex families Drafting trusts and advising on inheritance tax
Katie is an Associate at Gardner Leader in the Dispute Resolution Team. Katie specialises in complex commercial disputes and financial litigation.
Laura is a Solicitor in the Inheritance Protection team. Laura specialises in all private client matters, including drafting Wills and Trusts, drafting Lasting Powers of Attorney, acting on Court of Protection matters, estate administration, and general estate planning. She offers personable and clear-cut advice with an empathetic approach, which appeals to clients during the most difficult periods of their lives. Laura McDonagh qualified in 2017.
Lucy is a Senior Associate at Gardner Leader in the Inheritance Protection team. Lucy joined Gardner Leader in 2005 as a Member of the Institute of Legal Executives and became fully qualified in 2007. Lucy worked for some years in the Family Team dealing with many of the matters arising from divorce and separation. In 2012 Lucy joined the Inheritance Protection team and now deals with all aspects of planning for the future. She advises on and drafts both simple and more complex Wills considering the implications in terms of tax and the possible payment of care home fees. She advises on and attends to the registration of Enduring and Lasting Powers of Attorney. Lucy also assists with applications to the Court of Protection for Deputyship. She represents and assists families in the administration of estates of all sizes including applying for grants of representation, collecting in assets, dealing with any tax, distributing to beneficiaries and preparing Estate Accounts.
Lucy is a Senior Associate in the Inheritance Protection team. Lucy joined Gardner Leader in October 2005 as a paralegal, she completed her training contract and qualified into the inheritance protection team in April 2008. Lucy became an Associate in July 2013 and a Senior Associate in 2015. Lucy advises clients on all aspects of their inheritance planning including inheritance tax considerations when preparing simple and complex Wills and lifetime gifts. Lucy acts for families and professionals on all aspects of administering both simple and complex estates, the preparation of lasting powers of attorney and the preparation and administration of trusts. She also deals a wide range of Court of Protection matters, advising the elderly with reviewing care home contracts and their ability to receive NHS Continuing Healthcare funding. Some of Lucy’s specialisms include advising individual clients on estate planning for inheritance tax and care fees, working closely with a number of charity clients on estate administration matters and assisting the elderly.
Michael Axe is a Senior Associate in the Dispute Resolution Team based in Maidenhead. Michael is a senior litigator with over 15 years’ experience of resolving Commercial Disputes for his clients, with particular expertise in relation to Professional Negligence, Franchising Disputes, Intellectual Property Disputes & Brand Protection, Tax Disputes, Insurance Disputes, and Commercial Agency Disputes. His clients range from multinational corporations, PLCs and SMEs, to high net-worth individuals involved in national or international commercial disputes against professionals and corporations. Michael specialises in helping potential claimants or defendants to resolve their commercial disputes, either through court proceedings (including proceedings in the Court of Appeal), or through alternative dispute resolution processes, such as mediation, arbitration or informal negotiations. His focus is always on achieving his clients’ objectives in as cost effective and proportionate way as possible. Michael also advises on strategies for avoiding disputes, and helps clients manage their risks effectively, including in relation to cyber-security and data protection/GDPR issues. In addition to general commercial, contractual and tortious disputes, Michael also has particular specialist expertise in the fields of: professional negligence (where he has acted against solicitors, accountants, tax advisors, architects, and surveyors); intellectual property disputes and brand protection (where he has acted for various well-known national and international brand-owners, in relation to trade mark infringements, passing off claims, and domain name disputes); tax disputes (acting for private and corporate clients in a variety of disputes with HMRC, including in relation to EBT/EFRBS investigations, MTIC frauds, and import duty classifications); and franchise disputes (where Michael was an Affiliate Member of the British Franchise Association, acting for franchisors and franchisees). Michael has also acted for clients with insurance disputes relating to coverage and denial of claims, and with claims for compensation under the Commercial Agents Regulations. In addition to UK-based disputes, Michael also advises clients involved in international disputes and arbitrations, particularly in connection with cross-border contractual relationships, and international IPR protection and enforcement.
Niamh is a Partner at Gardner Leader in the Inheritance Protection Team. Niamh has many years of experience as a Private Client Solicitor. She specialises in Will drafting and related Inheritance Tax planning, Probate and Administration of estates, Court of Protection matters, Lasting Powers of Attorney, Enduring Powers of Attorney and capacity issues. Niamh’s niche strengths are working with the elderly and providing them with the specialist advice that they require. She has an empathetic manner whereby she is able to offer excellent advice in a simple and clear way. Niamh is very conscious that not everybody is able to understand and comprehend ‘legal jargon’ and ensures that all of her clients understand her advice. Niamh is particularly interested in capacity issues.
Nicola is a Senior Associate at Gardner Leader in the Family team. She is based in the Newbury office.Nicola is experienced in dealing with all aspects of family law including divorce, financial matters arising from the breakdowns of relationships and disputes relating to children.Nicola is also experienced at advising on and drafting Pre-Nuptial Agreements, which aim to protect assets on marriage or civil partnership. In addition, Nicola is experienced with emergency applications and injunction work.As a member of Resolution, Nicola is committed to assisting separating couples and families to reach an agreement amicably and adopts a non-confrontational approach where possible. However, she recognises that this approach may not work in every case and is able to assist in the event that court proceedings cannot be avoided.
Penny is a Partner at Gardner Leader in the Inheritance Protection team. Penny qualified as a solicitor in 1999 and has wide-ranging experience of acting for individuals in relation to their Wills, estate planning, trusts, powers of attorney, probate and inheritance tax planning. Penny’s charity law specialism includes setting up and registering new charities; advising on trustee responsibilities and governance issues; dealing with Charity Commission on regulatory matters; compliance with the Charities Act requirements; dealing with charity assets including permanent endowments; advising on mergers, reconstructions and winding up charities.
Richard is based in our Thatcham office. Since qualifying as a solicitor in 1987, Richard has specialised in estate planning work. He advises clients on how to protect their wealth and also guides them on the most appropriate methods of transferring that wealth, both during lifetime and on death.Richard is an expert in advising on and drawing up wills – these often include trusts to reduce Inheritance Tax, minimise the impact of care fees or protect vulnerable beneficiaries. In his line of work he will ensure that pension funds, death in service benefits and life assurance policies are dealt with in accordance with the client’s wishes and as tax efficiently as possible. Richard is also experienced in advising on the taxation consequences of lifetime gifts and whether a trust should be considered, including setting up, restructuring and terminating trusts. He also deals with trust administration and is personally named as a trustee in some cases. His experience in Probate and administration of estates includes post-death tax planning to minimise Inheritance Tax. Setting up and registering powers of attorney is also an area of Richard’s expertise.
Richard is the former senior partner of Heath Buckeridge Solicitors Limited which has merged with the practice. He is currently a Partner at Gardner Leader in the Commercial team and is based in the Maidenhead and Newbury offices. Educated at Hereford Cathedral School and Durham University with a degree in classics he was admitted in 1980 and has been advising businesses both locally, nationally and internationally for thirty years. Richard lives with his family in Marlow. He is a committee member of Marlow Regatta and a trustee of several local charities and a school governor. Former president of the local chamber he is now a member of the IOD. The practice area was praised in the Legal 500 (2016) stating that “Gardner Leader LLP’s [Corporate/Commercial] team ‘exceeds all expectations’. Key figures include… Richard Buckeridge, who advises on various acquisitions and disposals. The recent Legal 500 (2016) rankings also stated Richard was a ‘key contact’ in commercial property. Richard specialises in business acquisitions and disposals, companies, partnerships, joint ventures, employment and contractual and commercial property matters of all kinds. His early experience of general practice in the fields of private client (with particular reference to trusts, Wills and inheritance tax) and litigation, family work and property enables Richard to give rounded and complete advice in his specialist areas.
Robert is a Partner at Gardner Leader in the Inheritance Protection Team. Robert advises clients on all aspects of their inheritance planning including trusts, wills, inheritance tax, estate administration and lasting powers of attorney. He specialises in advising clients on trusts and regularly helps clients establish new trusts as well as to administer existing trusts. He frequently acts as professional trustee and executor. Robert’s role is frequently that of a trusted adviser and he works closely with his clients and other lawyers in Gardner Leader to ensure that the client receives the legal advice they need.
Simon Fisher is a Partner and Team Leader in the Family Team based in the Maidenhead office. Simon Fisher joined Gardner Leader in January 2018 having worked as a specialist family law solicitor for over 15 years. He is a member of Resolution and a former member of the Law Society Family Law Accreditation Scheme. Simon studied Law at the University of Wales, Swansea and qualified as a Solicitor in 2007. He also has a Master’s Degree in Sports Law and Practice. Within the partnership, Simon’s role as Client Care Partner means that he is responsible for ensuring that clients are fully satisfied with the service they receive from Gardner Leader. Family Law Simon is experienced in a range of family law issues including divorce, financial matters, nuptial agreements, cohabitation disputes and children matters. Simon has dealt with many complex cases with international aspects, often involving assets and issues from many different jurisdictions. He is highly skilled at drafting complex nuptial agreements and cases surrounding limited companies. He has acted for many mid to high net worth clients. Simon is hard working and prides himself on seeking the best outcome for his clients. He is committed to resolving issues in an amicable manner whenever possible. Simon is also a Collaborative trained lawyer, which is an alternative way of resolving family issues. Simon has been recognised in the Legal 500 directory as a key lawyer since 2020.
Stephanie is a Senior Associate at Gardner Leader. She is based in the Maidenhead office.Stephanie is well known within the Home Counties. This is reflected by the fact that her workload primarily comes from recommendations made by past or current clients. Stephanie is a member of Resolution a national organisation of family lawyers committed to dealing with divorce, separation and other family problems in a non-confrontational manner. She seeks to finds solutions for clients with sensible discussion and negotiation wherever possible.Outside the office Stephanie has a keen interest working within the community. She spent five years with girls aged from seven to eleven on a voluntary basis developing the girls’ self-awareness, confidence and leadership skills. She has also assisted with Business Enterprise within a Local Secondary School.
Stephanie is a Solicitor at Gardner Leader in the Family team. She is based in the Newbury office. Stephanie advises clients in relation to all matters arising out of divorce/relationship breakdown. Having previously undertaken public law children work as well as private law children work, Stephanie has extensive knowledge of children matters to assist parents with the arrangements for their children following relationship breakdown. Stephanie can also assist with the protection of assets through Pre-nuptial, Post-nuptial and Cohabitation agreements.
Stephanie is an Associate in the Family Team. Stephanie joined Gardner Leader in November 2016 having graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a 2:1 degree in Law. Stephanie subsequently studied the Legal Practice Course at the University of Law, Guildford in which she obtained a Distinction.
Suzanne is a Chartered Legal Executive in the Inheritance Protection team. Suzanne qualified as a Legal Executive in 1994. She has worked in the legal profession in Thatcham for 30 years starting as a secretary. After qualifying as a Legal Executive Suzanne worked in Conveyancing for many years.
Suzy is a Partner in the Family team.Suzy has wide ranging experience in all aspects of family law and is also an experienced collaborative lawyer.Suzy is a member of Resolution and is committed to their code of practice and to resolving issues in a constructive and positive way. Suzy is supportive and empathetic and this, together with her pragmatic approach, means that much of her work comes from personal recommendation.
Tim Blackman is a Senior Associate in the Real Estate team. Tim’s work covers several areas of commercial real estate, including acquisitions, disposals and landlord & tenant matters. He also acts in connection with rural, equestrian and agricultural land matters, plus transactions involving secured finance. Tim’s clients include individuals, SME’s, financial institutions and regional charities. Tim always aims to provide clear, pragmatic and commercially astute advice, and prides himself on the relationships that he builds with clients.
