Swindon & Wiltshire News
Law firms celebrate Legal 500 rankings
Law firms in the region – including Thrings, Gardner Leader, Goughs and Wansbroughs – are celebrating their rankings in the prestigious Legal 500 2025 guide, published this week.
Swindon-headquartered Thrings, which has offices in Bath and Bristol, has received strong rankings for 17 of its departments, with its agriculture team retaining their status as a top tier practice.
The family law teams have also once again been ranked strongly this year, as have the contentious trusts and probate team, and the succession and tax team.
The firm’s corporate and commercial teams retain their recommended status, with the team in Bristol even advancing its ranking even higher, with the firm’s reputation for dispute resolution highlighted by retained rankings for its commercial litigation and debt recovery teams.
This is mirrored by Thrings’ work in the South West finance sector, with the insolvency and restructuring teams featuring in the listings and the Bristol-based banking and finance team even improving its ranking.
Commercial property, construction and planning all continue to demonstrate Thrings’ prowess in the real estate sector, with all three teams ranked in the South West. This is supported by Thrings being ranked as a Firm to Watch for property litigation.
Also retaining their recommendations in the South West are the firm’s specialist employment and intellectual property teams.
With 47 lawyers recognised individually in the directory, Thrings continues to demonstrate the breadth of talent within its ranks, with seven specific inclusions in the rankings for Leading Partners – Duncan Sigournay, (agriculture – Bath), Russell Reeves, (agriculture litigation – Bristol); Ramona Derbyshire, (commercial dispute resolution/recoveries – Swindon) – who appears twice; Sally Pike, (family – Romsey); Mike Tomlin, (banking and finance – Bristol); and Megan Jefferies, (intellectual property – Bristol).
For the third year running, Thrings partners Elaine Meyrick (corporate and commercial – Bristol), Robert James (agriculture litigation – Lydney) and Kate Barber (family – Romsey) are ranked as Next Generation Partners – this year also joined for the first time by Emily Prout (pictured) (succession and tax – Swindon).
Simon Holdsworth, Thrings’ managing partner, said: “Every law firm wants to see their name in the Legal 500 rankings so, for Thrings to continue to stand out in the positive way it does, we know we must be doing something right.
“I want to congratulate every team and individual featured this year for the work they have done to get there. It means they truly are a trusted advisor to their clients and, in this industry, there can be no higher accolade.”
At regional law firm Gardner Leader, partner Chris Felton has been named for the 10th year in a row as a Leading Individual.
Chris’s commendation is one of a host of top tier accolades received by Gardner Leader’s team, with the firm being highlighted for its ‘ability to adapt’, ‘excellent technical skills’, ‘well balanced and sensible advice’ and its ‘universally knowledgeable, determined, persistent and effective’ approach.
Awarded recommendations across 12 practice areas, including corporate and commercial, commercial litigation, employment, commercial property and property litigation, personal injury, clinical negligence, charities and not-for-profit, family, and contentious trust and probate, Gardner Leader also retained its top tier ranking for its personal tax, trusts and probate private client work for the fifth consecutive year.
As well as Chris, 32 members of the firm’s team received individual recognition, with five solicitors retaining special mentions. These include, partner and head of both the dispute resolution and charity teams, Alastair Goggins, who was named as a Leading Individual for a ninth time, and Michelle Di Gioia, Partner in the dispute resolution team and board member, also upholding the same award.
Real estate senior associate, Tim Blackman, has been named as a Leading Associate having been mentioned as a Rising Star last year, and partner in the wills, probate and estate planning team, Niamh Minihane, has been recognised for a fourth year as a Next Generation Partner.
For 35 years the Legal 500 has been analysing the capabilities of law firms across the UK, as well as rating and recommending the best performing firms and solicitors across their practice areas.
Chris Felton, partner in the dispute resolution and life sciences teams, and board member, said: “It’s a great honour to have been recognised as a Leading Individual for a 10th year. I have been a part of the Gardner Leader family for nearly 30 years, it’s a brilliant firm to be a part of, this year’s rankings showcase the incredible hard work of every member of the team.”
“The Legal 500 is highly prestigious, and something we are very proud of being included in.”, said Derek Rodgers, managing partner at Gardner Leader.
“As a firm, we strive to provide expert legal advice and peace of mind to our clients, and this year’s far-reaching recognition shows that we are succeeding in delivering on this. As we grow, we are continuing to expand on our knowledge and experience across all practice areas.”
Goughs Solicitors (pictured) which has offices in Calne, Chippenham, Corsham, Devizes, Melksham and Trowbridge, has been named a leading law firm for the seventh year in a row.
The firm’s family, private client and real estate lawyers have once again proven that their experience, dedication and client care is second to none as they received exemplary feedback and accreditation.
The family team were noted as being “deeply committed to their clients and achieving the best outcome for them whether it is through settlement or a contested proceedings. As a firm they combine expertise in family law with a high degree of professionalism and fantastic client care.”
Partner and head of the family team, Thomas Boyce said: “I am exceptionally proud of the achievements of the family team. It is wonderful that the Legal 500 have recognised a fantastic team effort.
“The recognition is very well deserved and reflects the team’s expertise and dedication to their clients. We are continuing to grow our family team with great talent to ensure we continue such levels of success.”
The private client department was praised as being “experts in their job roles and they make hard and difficult decisions easier to deal with and they give 110 per cent.”
Emma Taylor, partner and head of the private client team at Goughs said: “It is a great testament to the level of hard work and commitment from across the firm that the team have been recognised again by such a prestigious organisation. The commitment shown to our clients has been gratefully rewarded.”.
Goughs’ “switched on and commercially astute” real estate team were accredited with being “very responsive and quicker than other firms.”
Partner and head of real estate, Andrew Given, who himself was described as being “very professional and approachable”, said: “The team work tirelessly to provide exceptional service to their clients. It’s fantastic to be able to reward them with such positive feedback and highly sought after recognition.”
And Devizes-based Wansbroughs is celebrating after being recognised for Client Satisfaction Excellence – an accolade awarded to only to the top 10 per cent of firms in each jurisdiction for achieving outstanding client satisfaction scores.
The firm also saw five teams ranked for the first time, and 20 of its lawyers individually recognised, with several making their debut appearances in the guide.
The dispute resolution team was the latest team to be recognised with Oliver Price described as an ‘excellent litigator’ and Josh Taylor described as a ‘standout partner’ and a ‘leading light’.
Tom Britten, a partner in the private client team following promotion in May was named as a Leading Associate and ‘one to watch’ for his input on key matters, as well as being recognised by both peers and clients.
The private client team gained a Tier 2 ranking with Tom Britten singled out as “an excellent communicator who has always got time for you. He is extremely polite and has an extensive knowledge of this area of the law, so he is ideally suited to this position.”
The commercial property team achieved a Tier 3 ranking. One client testimonial read: “It’s been a pleasure working with Wansbroughs on several deals. Their internal departments work seamlessly with each other, and they consistently meet our expectations.”
The corporate and commercial team achieved a Tier 3 ranking. “They take a keen interest in understanding our business and as a result our requirements and tailoring their offering to suit,” said one happy client. “They are personable and always proactive and operate as an effective resource to the business.”
There was a Tier 3 ranking for the dispute resolution team. “Wansbroughs offers a fantastic blend of top level personal service with modern innovative flairs smartly incorporated in their offering,” wrote a client. “This results in a firm that provides a service clients will find works for them when they need it.”
The family team, which covers a breadth of public family work as well as representing high-value individuals in matters relating to divorce and separation, achieved a Tier 5 ranking.
Anna Wensley Stock, co-managing partner, said: “We are overjoyed to be recognised in this latest edition of the Legal 500 and to achieve some of the highest client satisfaction scores in our jurisdiction; this is a fantastic reflection of the hard work and commitment of all of our team here at Wansbroughs.
Drawn from research of law firms across the world, including the testimony of thousands of clients, the Legal 500 rankings have been providing key insight into the capabilities of organisations and individuals within the sector for more than 30 years.
