Capsticks LLP

Capsticks is one of the leading national law firms in health, housing and social care and has an unrivalled understanding of the professional regulatory and emergency services sectors. The firm provides a full-service offering for all of its clients and is well regarded for its practical, market-driven solutions.

The firm: Capsticks acts on the most high-value and politically sensitive cases in the health, social care and housing sectors. This year’s highlights include: advising Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust on its lease of Headley Court near Leatherhead so that the hospital could be used as the first Covid-19 rehabilitation facility, as well as representing London Ambulance Service NHS Trust at the inquest into the death of Kevin Clarke; a high-profile matter before the Chief Coroner of Inner London and the longest jury inquest held post-Covid.

Capsticks’ specialist housing team acts for over 200 registered providers nationwide. Recent case highlights include advising Stonewater on the acquisition of 731 tenanted homes worth £46m, providing homes for vulnerable residents supported by care packages, and assisting Aster Group with taking possession proceedings following a seizure of the largest cannabis production factory in the South West of England taking place at one of our client’s properties.

Current healthcare clients include NHS Resolution, NHS England/Improvement, NHS Employers, Barts Health NHS Trust, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, Frimley Health NHS Trust, Community Health Partnerships, Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust, Sandwell & West Birmingham NHS Trust, North Lincolnshire And Goole NHS Foundation Trust, MDDUS and Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust. The firm also represents professional regulators such as the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Social Work England, the General Dental Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Teaching Regulation Agency, as well as housing associations including L&Q, Aster, Sovereign, Orbit and Metropolitan Thames Valley. The emergency services team acts for the Metropolitan Police and Yorkshire Ambulance Service, among many others.

The firm’s HR advisory services (non-legal) provide an extensive range of consultancy services for all its markets. The team handles day-to-day employee relations, disciplinary issues, investigations, absence management as well as organisational change.

Types of work undertaken: The firm’s work includes clinical law, corporate and commercial, employment, housing, litigation, real estate and regulatory advice.

Clinical law: This department comprises both clinical advice and defence against clinical negligence claims, serious complaints and incidents. The clinical negligence team acts for NHS Resolution and medical malpractice insurers, which involves defending against high-value claims arising from catastrophic injuries and major inquests. The team also handle large-scale public inquiries and investigations, with a focus on protecting client reputation. Our clinical advisors deal with a large volume of patient care, Court of Protection and mental capacity matters such as consent-to-treatment cases and complex decision-making under mental health legislation. The team has a strong reputation for advising on sensitive and high-profile cases and judicial reviews of major service reconfiguration decisions.

Corporate and commercial: The division provides full legal support to the NHS and private healthcare providers, as well as housing associations and social care providers. The team is well versed in landmark transactions, M&A, joint ventures/collaboration arrangements, corporate finance, PFI and capital procurement projects.

Employment and pensions: This department is one of the largest healthcare employment teams in the country. The team has a close working partnership with NHS employers, providing NHS workforce leaders with access to expert HR, legal and business advice and defence in employment tribunals. The team also acts for housing providers, GP Federations and Emergency Service providers, offering HR support including advice relating to organisational change, employee relations and TUPE. It also provides a HR advisory and consultancy service to healthcare bodies nationally.

Housing: The practice advises housing associations and registered providers on a national, full-service scale. Its expertise includes bespoke private developments and regeneration projects, housing and leasehold management (including anti-social behaviour and disrepair disputes), as well as security charging, banking and treasury matters. The practice is well regarded by the legal directories, with all offices being ranked and the team in the South maintaining its place in the top tier for several years.

Litigation: The team specialise in the resolution of commercial and property disputes across NHS Trusts and large housing associations. Clients also include emergency services organisations, local authorities as well as healthcare regulatory bodies and a growing number of non-healthcare regulators, such as the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

Real estate: The division acts for an unrivalled number of public and private sector healthcare clients and housing providers on major property transactions, leases, asset management and estate matters. In addition to complex and innovative joint venture redevelopments, it acts on some of the largest and most politically sensitive hospital developments, NHS surplus land sales and urban regeneration schemes in the country. The firm acts for over 200 housing providers supporting complex development programmes and asset management.

Regulatory: The team conducts hundreds of professional discipline cases each year, including “fitness to practise” matters and High Court appeals. It acts for eight of the ten statutory health and social care regulators, as well as the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Teaching Regulation Agency.