- Senior Partner: Antony Smith
- Number of partners: 17
- Associates: 11
- Assistant solicitors: 21
- Other fee-earners: 23
THE FIRM Beale and Company Solicitors LLP is a commercial law firm which specialises in providing commercial and cost effective advice to clients in the UK and overseas. The firm’s main areas of practice are construction and engineering, professional negligence, insurance, company commercial, IT and commercial property.
Beale and Company is known for providing high quality legal advice combined with a practical and commercial approach.
The firm has offices in London, Dublin and Bristol and a partner based in Dubai.
PRINCIPAL AREAS OF WORK
Professional Negligence: The firm acts mainly for insurers and their insureds in defending claims against engineers, architects, solicitors, barristers, accountants, surveyors, insurance brokers, actuaries and IFAs. The firm is known for handling high value claims. It also advises on risk management and other ways of reducing or preventing claims and advises insurers on policy wordings and coverage disputes.
Construction: The firm is well known for its expertise in dealing with high profile construction and engineering projects. It provides legal advice and, where necessary, representation, in relation to projects in the UK and throughout the world, to employers, contractors and professionals, on all aspects of civil and structural engineering contracts; related insurance and bond provisions and collateral warranties; joint ventures; corporate structures; partnerships, DBFO forms of contract and other forms of contract; disputes and dispute resolution; on and in negotiations, litigation, arbitration, adjudication and other alternative forms of dispute resolution.
Engineers/Architects: The firm has acted for more than 30 of the top 50 firms of consulting engineers in the UK and for many leading architects and succeeded in defending the largest claim ever in the TCC on behalf of a consulting engineer. The firm acts for engineers and others prosecuted under health and safety legislation.
Litigation: The firm handles a wide range of other commercial litigation, including disputes in the fields of banking, IT and intellectual property. It also handles a large amount of international litigation.
Company & Commercial: The firm advises on all aspects of company commercial transactions, including acquisitions and disposals of businesses; setting up joint ventures; corporate finance arrangements; restructuring of companies and partnerships; establishing commercial contractual relationships such as distribution, agency and licensing networks; intellectual property; directors’ duties and liabilities; partnership disputes; corporate compliance. There is a strong emphasis on acting for clients in the IT and digital media industries. These range from start-ups to national and multinational companies including a number of technology companies quoted on Nasdaq.
Commercial Property: The firm advises on all aspects of commercial property acquisition and disposal, investment and development; advises on appropriate investment vehicles, funding strategies and development potential. The firm regularly assists corporate and private clients with planning and licensing issues and landlord and tenant matters.
INTERNATIONAL The firm’s experience covers a wide range of engineering, including construction, process industries, power projects and software on projects around the world. It has contacts with local lawyers in many jurisdictions. The firm is the founder member of Lexicom, a European network of correspondent law firms and has a best friends relationship with the Africa Legal Network with a Partner based in Dubai with one of the member firms..
RECRUITMENT The firm recruits on average three graduate trainees each year.
Areas of PracticeProfessional Negligence/Insurance: 35%
Construction : 30%
Company & Commercial/IT/Property: 30%
Other Commercial Litigation: 5%