Davidson Chalmers Stewart

Andrew Chalmers

Chair of Davidson Chalmers Stewart and head of the Commercial Real Estate department. Co-founded the firm in 1993. Covers a broad range of commercial property work, primarily focusing on investment, development and landlord and tenant work. Currently involved in a number of developments in the hotel, serviced apartment and student accommodation sectors along with investment purchases and sales. Clients include multinationals, UK financial institutions, funds, major national property developers, retailers and student accommodation operators.

One of the lead partners in the Davidson Chalmers Stewart specialist Healthcare team. First Scottish member of National Association of Specialist Solicitors Advising Doctors (NASSAD). Also Partner and Head of Environmental, Waste and Renewables team. Masters of Law Degree in Construction Law. Property development/projects lawyer with non-contentious construction expertise. Extensive experience in healthcare development, rural business, renewable energy projects and property development. Wide-ranging and varied practice acting for healthcare professionals, landowners, developers, investors, project operators, contractors, consultants, funders and end users. Scottish Specialist Solicitor of the Year (2014).

Partner in the Real Estate team. He has substantial experience across the real estate spectrum. This includes investment acquisitions and disposals, leasing (landlord and tenant), residential development (for housebuilders and housing associations), commercial development and real estate finance. He has developed particular expertise in investment and development within the student accommodation sector. His experience in development work includes all aspects of site acquisition, site set up, funding and development. This includes negotiating agreements for lease or forward sale agreements and the refinancing or disposal of the completed development. Andy works closely with the planning, corporate and construction teams. Andy has acted in numerous cross border transactions working with firms south of the border for both national and international businesses.

Arveen Arabshahi

Arveen is a Partner in Davidson Chalmers Stewart's Corporate team. He advises on a broad range of corporate and commercial matters including mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, joint ventures and corporate restructurings.

Bruce Lancaster

Partner within the firm’s Commercial Real Estate department, with particular emphasis on development (both residential and commercial) and construction. In addition to dealing with a wide variety of property work, including site acquisition, development agreements, leasing and investment contracts, Bruce is involved in construction aspects of development work, including drafting and negotiating building contracts, professional appointments, collateral warranties and other construction-related documents.

Former Partner in the Real Estate department where she headed up the firm’s residential development team. Caroline now supports the firm as a consultant. Many years’ experience of dealing with property development and site assembly, including residential, retail, office and industrial. This includes dealing with longer term land options and JV contracts, as well as planning and infrastructure agreements and all related aspects of property development.

Partner and Head of the firm’s Corporate department, dealing with a wide variety of corporate finance and general corporate matters. Particular expertise in mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, joint ventures and corporate reconstructions. Clients come from a wide range of sectors, but with an emphasis on renewables, healthcare and technology.

Former Partner in the Real Estate department working across the retail and leisure sectors, business space and commercial and residential development and investment, often with a cross-border angle. He now supports the firm as a consultant. Accredited by the Law Society of Scotland in 2005 as a specialist in commercial leasing law and acts for a number of blue-chip retailers, office and leisure occupiers. Active in commercial and residential development and investment, and the student accommodation sectors. Also widely experienced in acquisition/disposal of investment assets, and cross-border transactions/corporate support work.

Henrietta Talbot

Director in Environmental, Waste and Renewables team with focus on rural business. Deals with a wide range of property and rural land matters, including work on forestry plantation agreements, advising on property project contracts, options and leases, property security documentation, acquisitions and disposals, and provides transactional support on the property and project elements of corporate sales and acquisitions. She also conducts property due diligence and advises on financings and sales, including heritable title and Certificate of title for funders.

Jacqueline Cook

Head of Planning Law at Davidson Chalmers Stewart, Jacqueline acts for a wide range of clients on contentious and non-contentious matters. She has experience in all UK planning jurisdictions and routinely advises on consenting strategy, statutory and commercial contracts, appeals and judicial review. Her work includes energy infrastructure, residential and commercial development, landmark retail, leisure and mixed-use developments and specialist aspects of planning, such as heritage assets. Dual qualified in England/Wales (since 2006) and Scotland (since 2009), she has a particular interest in comparative public law and is a regular contributor to Scottish Planning and Environmental Law, the planning law journal of record for Scotland.

Head of the Regulatory Team at Davidson Chalmers Stewart, Laura is an Accredited Specialist in Data Protection law and a Solicitor Advocate. She represents clients who find themselves in trouble with a range of regulators and as a former prosecutor, is well placed to assist with investigations and prosecutions. She is passionate about data protection and information law and was part of the only legal team in the UK to have successfully overturned a DPA fine. She provides contentious and non-contentious advice in this complex area of law across a range of sectors from big tech to charities. She wrote the Law Society of Scotland’s Guide to the GDPR and chairs the Society’s Privacy Committee.

Partner in the Environmental, Waste and Renewables team. Deals with a wide range of environmental and energy issues and commercial projects covering all mediums (water, emissions, waste and resources). Specialism and substantial experience in Environmental law, particularly waste and resource management, consenting, pollution and contamination and enforcement action. She has a varied practice with a wide-ranging client base including developers, landowners, investors, consultants and funders. She deals with due diligence, bespoke contractual drafting, permitting and consenting issues, waste and contaminated land, legislative interpretation, environmental taxes and environmental disputes (including regulator investigations, appeals, tribunals, judicial review and court actions).

Qualified as a Solicitor in 2006 and joined Davidson Chalmers Stewart in 2014, now a Director in the Real Estate team. She has a strong background in general commercial property and is involved in a wide range of property transactions across the team, including the sale and purchase of various types of commercial property, advising both landlord and tenant on commercial leases and dealing with related lending and security aspects.

Partner and Head of Real Estate, also sitting in the Environmental, Waste and Renewables team within the sphere of Renewable Energy. Deals with a wide range of commercial real estate transactions, including asset management, leasing, investment purchases and sales and real estate finance.�� Nicola has specific expertise in student accommodation, care home acquisition and asset management and large scale portfolio sale and purchase. She also has substantial experience in renewable energy projects. Nicola has a varied practice with a wide-ranging client base including developers, landowners, and investors.

Head of Dispute Resolution, with responsibility for the development of the Dispute Resolution team, including Commercial Real Estate, Construction and Employment work. Particular specialism in property related litigation, having been recognised by ‘The Legal 500’ and other directories as a leading specialist in this field for many years. Work highlights include (1) major landlord and tenant issues, including successfully enforcing keep trading obligations; advising on significant dilapidations claims for property investment company and separately for tenants; successfully challenging refusal to consent to retail park changes; and advising on subletting and assignation disputes; (2) real property issues including advice on challenges to land registration decisions by Keeper of Registers for private individuals; advising on lease notice validity, advice on missives dispute in relation to development site and title conditions advice to housebuilders including Muir Group; and (3) commercial litigation including judicial review, arbitrations (including appointment as arbitrator), professional negligence claims against solicitors and surveyors, insolvency and security enforcement, contract enforcement and partnership dispute matters. Appointed as an arbitration property and contract disputer.

Heads up Davidson Chalmers Stewart’s construction team and has, since qualifying as a solicitor, worked exclusively in the construction industry sector. Specialises in all aspects of transactional construction law, regularly advising clients involved in the construction sector, providing advice and guidance on both standard form and bespoke construction contracts, professional appointments, collateral warranties and ancillary procurement documentation. Has considerable experience of advising upon construction aspects of property transactions, including development agreements, pre-let agreements, forward funding agreements and the like.

Stephanie Mackenzie

Director in the Residential Development team. Deals with acquisitions of sites for residential development and also acts for landowners in selling land and granting options for developers. Negotiates complex sale and purchase agreements, overage agreements, planning obligations and security arrangements.

A former Partner in the Corporate department, Stuart now supports the firm as a consultant. Extensive experience from many years of dealing with commercial clients and advising on a wide range of business law-related matters, such as the purchase and sale of companies, corporate restructuring, joint venture arrangements and partnership matters. Also provides opinions and consultancy advice, principally to other solicitors, on a variety of corporate and commercial issues.