Russell-Cooke is recommended by Legal 500 across 24 practice areas with 31 lawyer rankings

The Legal 500 UK 2023 has once again recognised Russell-Cooke’s breadth and expertise across a broad range of practice areas. In total, the directory has recommended 89 lawyers across 24 practice areas, with 30 lawyers ranked as leaders in their field (one ranked twice).

The Legal 500 is an independent guide to the legal sector, ranking law firms and lawyers across legal specialist areas and geographic regions. The rankings are based on a series of criteria and highlight the legal teams who are providing 'the most cutting edge and innovative advice'. Research is based on written submissions from law firms, interviews with leading private practice lawyers and client feedback. Over 50,000 clients gave feedback to this year’s directory.

Four of the firm’s lawyers are listed in the directory’s Hall of Fame: Jae Carwardine (Crime), John Gould (Professional discipline), Andrew Studd (Charities) and consultant James Sinclair-Taylor (Charities). The Hall of Fame highlights individuals who have received constant praise by their clients.

In addition 14 partners are ranked as Leading Individuals (Jae Carwardine is  ranked as both Hall of Fame and Leading Individual), another five were recommended as Next Generation Partners, and eight practitioners were listed as Rising Stars. A total of 89 lawyers were recommended by the guide.

Russell-Cooke is ranked in the following London categories:

• Family mediation: Tier 1 “Russell-Cooke are a breath of fresh air. Their communication is regular, with a clear wealth of experience.”
• Charities: Tier 2 “Professional, quick to respond, excellent advice and support” “Cannot recommend enough!”
• Clinical negligence: claimant (London) Tier 2 “...always efficient, caring and supportive. Particular strengths were attention to detail and a personal approach.”
• Contentious trusts & probate Tier 2 “Russell-Cooke has a particular reputation for estates disputes with a cross border element, but actually its expertise is excellent across the range of this type of work.”
• Court of Protection Tier 2 “A lovely team of lawyers who are very knowledgeable and experts in their field.”
• Crime: general (London) Tier 2 “RC is an exceptional firm in a highly competitive field. Effective communication between its members ensures that a client’s interests are always protected and promoted.”
• Education: individuals (London) Tier 2 “Hugely supportive and knowledgeable team with unparalleled insight of education law matters and the practical realities of SEND in school.”
• Family (London) Tier 2 “The sheer excellence and experience of the Russell-Cooke family team is worth having on your side.”
• Personal tax, trusts and probate (London) Tier 2 “This firm dealt competently with a large and complex estate. They had a grasp of the issues that only comes with experience.”
• Professional discipline (London) Tier 2 ”A fantastic team of people with good commercial experience and knowledge of regulatory law.”
• Employment: Senior executives (London) Tier 3 “Russell-Cooke provide top level service at a local level . It is a winning formula.”
• Immigration (London) Tier 3 (Immigration: Business and Immigration: Human rights, appeals and overstay )“The team response is always very good, their advice is clear, concise and devoid of legal jargon.”
• Real estate: property litigation (London) Tier 3 “This is a very strong property litigation practice, with a loyal client following, which acts for the full range of clients.”
• Social housing: tenant (London) Tier 3 “A uniquely young and determined housing team with excellent knowledge and client focus.”
• Administrative and public law (London) Tier 4
• Commercial litigation – mid market (London) Tier 4 “The team is very commercial and sensible, and attuned to client needs – amazing value for such an able group of solicitors.”
• Commercial property: corporate occupiers (London) Tier 4
• Corporate: M&A up to £50m (London) Tier 4: “Along with the high level of professionalism and wealth of knowledge, the firm shows a level of engagement which provides for their integration with the business.”
• PI: claimant (London) Tier 4: “They are excellent at what they do and they have a size where I can guarantee that any case sent to them will be dealt with excellently by someone in their team.”
• White collar crime (advice to individuals) (London) Tier 5 “This is a particular area of expertise for the firm. they have considerable experience and expertise and are able to cover any case however complex or large.”
• Planning (London) Tier 5 “This is a practice which builds genuine and successful relationships with clients and other professionals. Its culture is open and collaborative, to the great benefit of client outcomes.”
• TMT: sport (London) Tier 6 “A leader in protecting intellectual property rights for live sports events.”

The firm was also ranked in Kent, Surrey and Sussex for:

• Private client: family (Kent, Sussex, Surrey) Tier 3
• Private client: personal tax, trusts and probate (Kent Surrey, Sussex) Tier 3

Senior Partner John Gould said: “We had stellar results from last year’s directory and this year sees a strong consolidation of those results. It is always heartening to see comments from clients and referrers that focus on clear and timely communications, constructive advice and supportive, approachable style in addition to legal excellence. Thanks as ever go to our referees for their help with this process.”

The full rankings are available to view on the Legal 500 website.