The Legal 500, a leading UK legal directory, has announced its results for 2027. B P Collins is delighted to share that it has achieved 32 rankings overall – in 13 practice areas and for 19 individual lawyers – with its construction practice ranked for the first time.
The commercial litigation, commercial property, employment, family and private client practices all continue to retain their Tier 1 rankings. Contentious trusts and probate, corporate and commercial, criminal, environment, property litigation all continue to be highly ranked by the directory.
First time ranking for construction
The construction practice, led by partner, Steven Smith, gains a new ranking with one testimonial noting that it has “heavyweight construction clients” and “very experienced, wise construction litigation lawyers.”
The team is renowned for its expertise in high value, complex construction defect claims in the High Court, particularly relating to cladding and fire-safety defects.
Another client notes that, “Craig Williams (in the team) stands out as a lawyer who gives wise counsel. He clearly has years of valuable experience that he leverages to provide strong advice…”
New individual rankings
Leading Partners
The Legal 500 has given one of its most significant titles of ‘Leading Partner’ to two additional B P Collins lawyers – bringing the total to eight – property practice group leader Alison Taylor and head of the family team, Laura Mortimer.
According to the directory, Alison leads a team, which has seen strong departmental growth this year, and supports, “…clients across a range of sectors, including the environment, manufacturing, and healthcare spaces,” and she, “…is known for… advising clients on lease agreements, disposals and acquisitions, and landlord and tenant transactions.” Alison is also recognised for managing multi-party, cross border and complex negotiations for global corporates.
Laura, a neurodiversity specialist in family law, is reported as leading a team that is, “…exceptionally able to give the best support to their clients. The partners are incredibly experienced and provide great service…”
Next Generation Partners
Partners Emma Leavesley, a family lawyer who specialises in high conflict divorce; Emma Hurrell, a private client lawyer with expertise in estate planning and trusts, who advises high net worth individuals based in the UK and overseas; and Rajiv Malhotra in dispute resolution, are all recognised as Next Generation Partners for the first time. This is supported by strong testimonials. For example:
“Emma Leavesley …is very experienced and able to handle challenging client situations adroitly. She has an excellent rapport with her clients and is great at guiding them during a very stressful time in their lives. Clients hold her in high regard.”
“The whole team is great, but in particular, we work with Emma Hurrell and Naadim Shamji who are both excellent. We work with them for client matters, and they are prompt, proactive, and commercial, getting to know the clients and their needs.”
“What I enjoy most about working with the B P Collins’ commercial litigation partners, (of which Rajiv is one), is their intellectual capacity. They know their stuff, make wise judgments, and give sound advice. That is at the heart of what litigation clients are looking for.”
Recommended lawyers
New ‘Key Lawyers’ have also been listed including Emily Halley, property senior associate; Greg Clark, employment senior associate who specialises in disability discrimination and dealing with AI drafted claims in the workplace; and in the construction practice, partners Rajiv Malhotra and Simon Carroll; senior associate, Mike Elliott and solicitors, Dharum Basra and Heather Burch.
Simon Deans, B P Collins’ senior partner, says:
“The latest Legal 500 results are a testament to the trust our clients place in us and the strength of the relationships we’ve built with them. I’m delighted to see our teams recognised for their expertise and the clear, practical advice they provide. My thanks go to our clients and legal professionals for their continued confidence in us, and to everyone across the firm whose hard work made these results possible.”
B P Collins’ rankings and client feedback are available to view on The Legal 500 website.
