Winckworth Sherwood LLP

Winckworth Sherwood is a fast-growing, full-service commercial firm headquartered in London. Having built an exceptional and diverse client base, it has earned a reputation for successfully delivering high-value, high-profile projects that matter both to clients and the public at large.

The firm: Known for its reliability and competitiveness, as well as for being well-rounded and knowledgeable, Winckworth Sherwood is a steadily evolving firm with a strong track record in various projects, including over £3bn of deals.

Its client base includes some of the UK’s largest businesses and institutions. The firm also advises a broad range of investors, entrepreneurial companies, professional partnerships, family offices, charities and wealthy individuals.

Winckworth Sherwood has made a number of significant senior appointments in the past 12 months to bolster the partnership, and new lateral hires at partner level to further expand its real estate, corporate, litigation and employment teams.

Types of work undertaken
Charities and social enterprises: Winckworth Sherwood advises a range of charitable bodies, with particular strengths in education, ecclesiastical and housing.

Church of England and Roman Catholic Church: Winckworth Sherwood’s ecclesiastical practice is the largest in the UK. It advises on parish reorganisations, marriage law, appointment of clergy, the highly complex area of land and property, and more.

Commercial and corporate: the team advises on mergers and acquisitions; partnerships and joint ventures; corporate finance, tax and governance; commercial arrangements, outsourcing and procurement; intellectual property, IT contracts and data protection and management; funding agreements, structures and hedging arrangements; and asset acquisition, management and disposal.

Dispute resolution: Winckworth Sherwood’s experienced dispute resolution team uses a range of methods to resolve matters, including litigation, mediation, expert determination, adjudication and arbitration. It specialises in three main areas: real estate, construction and commercial.

Education: the firm advises schools, dioceses and other trustee bodies, local authorities, universities, colleges, charities, parent teacher associations, teaching unions and consultants.

Employment: the firm’s employment lawyers act for both employers and employees.

Family: the family and matrimonial team prides itself on the excellence of its advice and high-quality service. It advises on separation and divorce; pre/post-nuptial and pre/post-civil partnership agreements; the appropriate jurisdiction for issuing proceedings; cohabitation and cohabitation agreements; issues involving and international enforcement of maintenance and financial orders.

Leisure and hospitality: the firm advises on acquisition, development and disposal of commercial property; alcohol, entertainment and late night refreshment licences; commercial contracts and procurement; expansion strategies; employment matters and more.

Local and central government: the firm has a depth of experience in information management, parliamentary, procurement and public, constitutional and administrative law.

Private client: Winckworth Sherwood advises on attorneyship and the Court of Protection, conveyancing, disputed wills, estates and trusts, estate planning and wills, lease extension and enfranchisement, and private trusts.

Real estate: commercial property, construction, conveyancing, development, environmental, ground rent, institutional investment, lease extension and enfranchisement, planning, plot sales, private rented sector, real estate litigation and regeneration.

Social housing: the firm provides legal services to more than 200 registered providers across the UK in construction, acting for employers, extra care housing, institutional investment, leasehold and housing management, procurement, social housing finance and social housing litigation.

Tax: corporate tax, inheritance tax and estate planning, international, private trusts, real estate tax and tax compliance.

Telecoms and utilities: Winckworth Sherwood has a complete understanding of the interface between telecoms and utility companies, land and property owners, and the public sector.

Transport and infrastructure: the firm has extensive experience in parliamentary and procurement.

Other offices: Oxford, Manchester.