The corporate governance advisory team at Herbert Smith Freehills LLP is led by Gareth Sykes, who was promoted to partner in May 2023, and offers clients ‘exceptional depth and breadth of knowledge, with practical as well as technical understanding’. It acts for a broad range of FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and AIM-listed clients on AGMs, regulatory matters, board-level issues, compliance and ESG matters. Sykes advises listed and private companies on corporate law and governance issues, including reporting matters, continuing obligations under the Listing Rules, and shareholder meetings and directors’ duties. James Palmer and Ben Ward are also key practitioners, while Paul Ellerman handles employment-related matters, such as remuneration and incentives and associate Caroline Hagg deals with annual and climate reports.

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Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

'Their support for the corporate governance industry is second to none, be it through regular briefings as issues develop or updates occur, or whole-day seminars to provide updates on things we should be thinking about.'
'Very responsive to queries with knowledgeable and commercial advice.'
'Gareth Sykes is industry leading in his corporate governance knowledge and expertise, as well as being a pleasure to deal with.'
'The online offerings (webinars, technical briefings etc) have evolved in recent years which is beneficial as a client when working from home.'
'The individuals we work with are highly knowledgeable and provide swift, accurate and comprehensive advice.'
'Nothing is too much trouble, no matter how big or small.'
'Exceptional depth and breadth of knowledge, with practical understanding as well as technical understanding; this combination is invaluable.'
'The team are extremely knowledgeable, providing an efficient and friendly service.'

Key clients

Airtel Africa
Associated British Foods
British American Tobacco
Hiscox
Inchcape
Johnson Matthey
Kin + Carta
N Brown Group
PageGroup
Pearson
PZ Cussons
Renishaw
Severn Trent
The Unite Group
WH Smith

Work highlights

Assisting N Brown Group plc with a review of its corporate governance arrangements following its move from the main market to AIM.
Assisted Associated British Foods plc on its £500m on market share buyback programme.
Advising a large number of listed companies (FTSE 100, FTSE 250, FTSE Small Cap and AIM) including Associated British Foods, British American Tobacco, Hiscox, Jet2, Renishaw, the Unite Group, WH Smith and Wickes on a range of corporate governance issues including corporate reporting requirements, annual general meetings, continuing obligations under the listing regime and day-to-day corporate governance issues.