Private client lawyer Lisa Law has joined Ledingham Chalmers as partner in Inverness underpinning the firm’s growth plans.
Ms Law takes up the senior role as Ledingham Chalmers looks to double its turnover to £25 million by 2025.
Ms Law is one of only 10 solicitors accredited by the Law Society of Scotland as a specialist in incapacity and mental disability law — and the only one based in the Highlands.
Originally training as a management accountant, Ms Law also qualified as a Scottish law accountant in 2000. She began studying law the same year and is a full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).
Having lived and worked in the Highlands all her life, most recently she was a legal director based in Dingwall and Inverness with another nationwide law firm.
Her appointment is the third hire for the private client team in the Highland capital — and the fourth across Scotland — since Ledingham Chalmers’ acquisition of Inverness legal practice Anderson Shaw & Gilbert (ASG) on November 1 2022.
Senior associate Suzie Falconer in Stirling, as well as senior solicitor Keir Marshall and paralegal Larah Burke both based in York House in Inverness, joined the team shortly after the ASG deal, which created a business with an annual turnover of around £14m.
Ms Law will head the Inverness private client team
Firm-wide since the deal there have been seven new starts in various roles, ranging from administrative support to partner, across teams in Aberdeen, Inverness and Stirling.
Along with partner JP Campbell, Ms Law will head the Inverness private client team with support including advising on contentious trusts and executries, succession planning for high-net-worth individuals, wills, powers of attorney and guardianships.
The growing private client presence complements the estate agency work long-established by ASG with Findlay Boyd as conveyancing partner along with Iain McDonald as director.
Ms Law said: “Ledingham Chalmers’ private client team has earned a reputation for offering trusted, strategic advice to clients on matters such as business succession, estate planning, asset protection and trusts.
“My expertise complements that and includes guiding clients through what can be particularly difficult stages of their life, whether the loss of a loved one, navigating choices around handling adult incapacity or assisting with the — sometimes stressful — guardianship order court procedure.”
Managing partner Jennifer Young added: “Our focus on growth means having the right people in the right place to deliver what we know is a valuable service for clients.
“Lisa’s appointment is the perfect illustration of the way the firm is building on acquisitions, most recently the deal with ASG.
‘Adding more strength and depth’
“Not only is Lisa an accredited specialist in incapacity and mental disability law, but she brings with her an exceptional background in private client law.
“Combined with our other recent appointments, we’re adding more strength and depth to our team to make our growth ambitions a reality. Across the firm, there’s real optimism in what lies ahead.”
Ledingham Chalmers has two offices in the Highland capital.
Its York House premises in Church Street are home to all estate agency, conveyancing, and private client personnel, while the corporate, rural, litigation and employment law teams work out of Kintail House.
The commercial property team is spread across both offices.
Nationwide, the firm has a headcount of 199 including 28 partners and has offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Stirling and Inverness.
Ledingham Chalmers works with public sector organisations and individuals, multinational and national companies, as well as high potential SMEs.
These clients operate across industries including energy, oil and gas, renewables, commercial property, construction, agriculture, leisure and tourism, as well as insurance.
Internationally, Ledingham Chalmers is the Scottish member of Lawyers Associated Worldwide, through which clients can access support in early 200 jurisdictions.
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