Real Estate and Construction team

Leeds Real Estate and Construction

Bevan Brittan is a UK Top 75 law firm, with 300+ lawyers and 580+ employees nationally. We provide legal and advisory services to a range of businesses and organisations. Our real estate and construction teams in Leeds work across a range of sectors, complementing the firm’s national market leadership within housing, local government, health and social care and higher education, as well as our growing energy, financial services and manufacturing presence.

Since setting up our Leeds office in September 2015, we have grown our Real Estate and Construction presence significantly: we now have 16 partners and two Directors, as well as a diverse team of more than 49 lawyers working on a range of real estate transactions, developments and construction projects, as well as property litigation and construction disputes. Our Leeds team forms part of our national property and construction offering and we work closely with expert colleagues across the country.

Our clients include property owners, developers, investors, universities, landlords, tenants, construction companies, local government, housing associations and NHS bodies.

On a foundation of partnership, market insight and commercial strength our legal teams have proactively and passionately deliver legal advice that generated outstanding results for our clients nationally and across Yorkshire and the North East.

We are proud to be part of the Yorkshire real estate community and if we can assist your organisation, please get in touch.

Lyndon Campbell – Head of Leeds Office

Lyndon Campbell Partner

0370 194 5471 | 07801 271106

lyndon.campbell@bevanbrittan.com

Bevan Brittan

Bevan Brittan’s key strength is truly personal service from a national firm. It stands out for its value for money whilst delivering a first rate service: a firm that does proper lawyering rather than just churning paper like so many others

The Legal 500, 2022 (NE & Yorkshire)

Commercial Real Estate

Our team advise across the board for developers on investment acquisitions, sales, refinances and estate management work for a range of clients, including private investment clients, residential/commercial developers, secured lenders (high street funders, challenger banks and private equity funds) and over 200 local authorities nationwide.

Work highlights

• Acting for Hornbeam Park Developments Limited in connection with the purchase of various significant residential and commercial development sites in and around Harrogate and all of their leasehold property management work and acquisition at James Street Harrogate for letting and investment.

• Advised the London Borough of Waltham Forest on two significant deals that form part of a strategic partnership with the University of Portsmouth, including a complex Development agreement for a property with an investor/ developer and also a sale of a property to a joint venture involving a developer and the University.

• Acting for Siemens Healthcare on a very significant deal for them which will see the construction of a specialist manufacturing facility for medical scanning equipment, together with global HQ. The deal value at the expiry of the development will be in excess of £200M in Oxford.

• Acquisition of a multi-million pound key site known as Teville Gate in Worthing on behalf of the Council, in order to unlock its potential redevelopment in the area. The transaction involved complex contract negotiation and title due diligence.

I would like to offer my personal and sincere thanks for all that you have done, individually and as a wider team.

...your part in this [deal] has been well appreciated, and as I say I am very thankful that the lost hours and relentless work to achieve this is not only a personal reflection individually, but also one of your Firm.

Peter Mitchell FRICS IRRV Director of Commercial Estates & Investment London Borough of Waltham Forest

• Advising Endsleigh Park Limited on an acquisition of an investment property comprising of 132 residential units.

• Advised landowner, GICO Limited, on a 12-year lease deal agreed with Huddersfield-based, Black Cat Fireworks for a new central storage hub for 50,000 sq ft of warehousing space.

• Advised insolvency practitioners, Begbies Traynor, and its sister business Eddisons, on the lease of their new larger premises in Wellington Place, Leeds.

• Advised restaurant chain, John Smith & Company (Edinburgh) Limited, on the grant of a 15-year lease for new premises in Epsom, for its German Doner Kebab chain as part of the business’s ongoing redeployment of its commercial stock in the south of England.

• Advised Endure Fund on the property development loan to the owners of High Brockholme Farm to support the development of a new luxury wedding venue on a scenic North Yorkshire farm.

Meet the Commercial Real Estate Team

Deborah Powell Partner 0370 194 5487 | 07917 472896

deborah.powell@bevanbrittan.com

Simon Jackson Partner 0370 194 7778

simon.jackson@bevanbrittan.com

Matthew Walsh Senior Associate 0370 194 5482 | 07809 831434

matthew.walsh@bevanbrittan.com

Assil

Giacheia

Paralegal 0370 774 2963 | 07825 854032

assil.giacheia@bevanbrittan.com

• Advising London Borough of Hackney, acting as a developer, on the redevelopment of two sites for a complex mixed-use project. The sites were developed to incorporate two schools, commercial and high-end residential use. We advised the authority throughout the entire project from due diligence, planning, construction, landlord and tenant, leases and finally plot sales.

• Advising investment company Westbrooke on a number of high value secured bridging facilities.

Chambers UK, 2023

Lyndon Campbell Partner 0370 194 5471 | 07801 271106 lyndon.campbell@bevanbrittan.com

Nick Thackray Partner 0370 194 5483 | 07500 005630 nick.thackray@bevanbrittan.com

Sherrie Roberts Legal Executive 0370 194 5485

sherrie.roberts@bevanbrittan.com

Lyndon is very commercial, personable and finds a way to solve a problem.

Health Real Estate

Our health real estate team are market leaders in advising on legal issues arising from the development, operation and disposal of health sector assets. We work across the public and independent health sectors and have worked on a number of the most significant health redevelopments and surplus site disposals in the region.

We are ranked in Tier 1 for Health work in The Legal 500 and noted, in particular, for our expertise in advising on the funding and development of primary care premises.

Work highlights

• Acting for Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust on the letting of 2 Park Lane, Leeds comprising 21,804sq. ft, of Grade A office space in one of the city’s biggest recent property deals and also supporting the Trust on aspects their redevelopment of the LGI site in Leeds.

• Advising NHS Property Services Limited on the sale of the listed Bootham Park Hospital in York city centre.

• Acting for an international provider of healthcare services on its acquisition of mental health hospital and subsequent development arrangements.

• Advising NHS Property Services Limited on almost all property work nationally. We have a wide range of instructions elating to disposal work, acquisitions of headleases, complex title issues and ongoing Landlord and Tenant work working relating to over 500 grant of lease instructions. We have over 1000 live matters progressing from small £250K disposals to £20m+ redevelopments of major hospital sites in London.

• Advising on a range of new primary and community care developments across the country for example in Bracknell, Berkshire, Southborough, Kent, in Milton Keynes and a variety of other locations. These new hub facilities will integrate healthcare services with wider community services and have been delivered in collaboration with local authority partners. Our team are market leaders in advising on health sector joint venturing arrangements for delivery of new infrastructure.

• We are acting for an NHS Trust in relation to all aspects of the development of a £50m Integrated Care Campus. This is a new development will bring together a new community hub, primary care facilities, a children’s nursery, a care home and extra care housing.

• Advised Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust on the exit of a property development company from its innovative joint venture. We advised on the sale process, as well as amends to partnering documents and replacement funding arrangements. We are proud to have supported the Trust since the inception of the joint venture in 2011 and the work is a positive example of what can be achieved via public private partnership and a long-term approach to regeneration.

6 Bevan Brittan

I would say that the experts at Bevan Brittan provided the Trust with professional advice and support that was to a high standard. The approach was proactive, friendly and professional with the team at Bevan Brittan often going above and beyond to ensure the Trust received a value added service.

Director of Operational Finance, Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

Meet the Health Real Estate Team

Charles Stent

Senior Associate 0370 194 5495 charles.stent@bevanbrittan.com

Iram

Ali Solicitor 0370 194 5498 | 07500 003299 iram.ali@bevanbrittan.com

Gary Wales

Associate 0370 194 5433 | 07384 119282 gary.wales@bevanbrittan.com

Melissa Cook

Solicitor 0370 194 5454 | 07786 263709 melissa.cook@bevanbrittan.com

Housing

We advise many of the largest Housing Associations and providers of social housing across the country and those focused on the Yorkshire region, including Yorkshire Housing, Home Group, Together Housing and Places for People.

We are also Tier 1 ranked in The Legal 500 for our work supporting Social Housing providers across the North of England.

Work highlights

• Advised Together Commercial Limited on the setting up of a Joint Venture Company with a private developer and Together Housing Association Limited in its acquisition of the affordable homes from the JV.

• Acting for Karbon Homes Limited on its programme of acquiring affordable housing through s106 Agreement across Yorkshire from various private developers including advising on s106 Agreement, mortgagee exclusion clauses and likely security value.

• Advising Unity on the amendments to their Yorkshire Bank loan agreement, extending the term of the revolving facility for a further five years and updating the loan agreement to include a specific permission to on lend funds and bring it in line with the Banks current lending terms.

• Advising Housing Associations, such as Broadacres and Karbon Homes, on proposed acquisitions of sites for development of 100% affordable housing.

• Advising Together Housing Group on a £30m development of 400 houses.

• Acting on behalf of our client in relation to phase 3 of a major regeneration project.

• We act on behalf of SP Plus (Development) Limited in relation to phase 3 of the regeneration of Pendleton area in Salford as part of a larger PFI and regeneration project awarded to the Together Housing Group by Salford Council.

At Bevan Brittan, from partner level down, the service we receive is unrivalled

Chambers UK, 2023

Chambers UK, 2023

Meet the Housing Team

Julie Cowan-Clark Partner

0370 194 5476 | 07810 772526 julie.cowan-clark@bevanbrittan.com

Eleanor Smith Associate 0370 774 2947 eleanor.smith@bevanbrittan.com

Shivana Thomas Paralegal 0370 194 5496 shivana.thomas@bevanbrittan.com

Callam Willis Paralegal 0370 194 5671 callam.willis@bevanbrittan.com

Richard Stirk Partner 0370 194 5486 | 07917 602215 richard.stirk@bevanbrittan.com

Mark Clark Paralegal 0370 194 5481 mark.clark@bevanbrittan.com

Karen Chown Paralegal 0370 194 5457 karen.chown@bevanbrittan.com

The Bevan Brittan team are very aware of the sector and passionate about it, which is fantastic and a key reason for working with them.

Construction

As one of the leading groups of construction and engineering lawyers our highly experienced specialist lawyers can advise you on every stage of your project from inception and choice of procurement, through the tender process, complex contractual negotiations, contract management, dispute avoidance and (if necessary) formal dispute resolution. We offer a true cradle to grave approach to our work with you.

You can expect our specialist lawyers to have excellent technical skills and a deep understanding of the markets in which we work. However, we place equal importance on providing you with first class project management and commitment to the highest client service, keeping you up to date with developments every step of the way. We will provide the team that is right for you, whatever the scale or value of your project.

Work highlights

• Acting for the University of York developing a suite of construction precedents, and producing their construction documents for the construction of a £5 million nursery and £50 million student hub.

• Advising Windcare Limited (wind turbine provider) on contracts for balance of plant works.

• Advising Sancus Utilities Limited (multi-disciplinary engineering contractor) in respect of the hydroponics facilities.

• Acting for Unity Property Services Ltd in respect of the refurbishment of their Leeds Media Centre.

• Acting for North Yorkshire County Council developing a contract to engage its supplier in respect of the provision of grants to North Yorkshire residents for housing retrofits and sustainability works.

• Acting for the Leeds Community Healthcare Trust in respect of refurbishment and construction works at Seacroft Health Centre.

• Acting for Hornbeam Park Developments assisting the Real Estate team with both sales and construction transactions in the Harrogate area.

• Acting for NHS, in collaboration with the council, for the construction of a brand new health centre, 55 new affordable homes and a new public community garden.

• Acting for local authority in adjudication win on question of contractual interpretation worth approximately £15 million in respect of highways PFI worth around £730 million.

• Acting for a property management company in relation to fire defects, including those arising from the installation of non-compliant cladding, potentially affecting over 60 residential blocks across a high profile site in East London.

10 Bevan Brittan

Chambers UK, 2023

Meet the Construction Team

Sarah Wilson Partner 0370 774 2955 | 07786 234258

sarah.wilson@bevanbrittan.com

Niamh Batterton Legal Director 0370 194 5640 | 07551 035238

niamh.batterton@bevanbrittan.com

Adrian Webb

Solicitor 0370 194 5456 | 07778 919842

adrian.webb@bevanbrittan.com

Judith Hopper Partner 0370 194 5488 | 07825 854035 judith.hopper@bevanbrittan.com

Maria Fert Associate 0370 774 2956 | 07825 288485 maria.fert@bevanbrittan.com

Grace Watson Solicitor 0370 194 5461 | 07827 921983 grace.watson@bevanbrittan.com

The team is incredibly user-friendly and offers a great service.

Property Litigation

We know that our clients want us to resolve issues early, to stop them turning into disputes if at all possible. In order to achieve this, we use a blend of our technical excellence and market knowledge. Where a dispute does arise, we take a robust and commercial approach to dispute resolution to ensure our client’s interests are fully protected. We are wellversed in resolving disputes through litigation in the courts and tribunals, and also alternative dispute resolution methods such as arbitration, expert determination and mediation.

Work highlights

• Acting for NHS Property Services Limited in successfully defending High Court litigation regarding whether it had validly terminated its leases of a surplus office block in Wolverhampton. Had the landlord’s claim succeeded, our client would have faced over £1million of rent and associated costs in respect of a building which it had vacated and had no further need for.

• Acting for a prestigious University to avoid injunctive action threatened by a former tenant following forfeiture of a lease as a result of the tenant’s breaches of the terms of the lease. Our robust response enabled our client to extinguish the threatened action swiftly and cost-effectively.

• Acting for a major national charity in relation to the sale, pursuant to an option agreement, of a former industrial site. Our work involved the termination of a wide variety of interests in the land, including undocumented occupiers and trespassers.

• Advising a property development company on a claim for damages against a former tenant for the cost of repair of terminal dilapidations arising out of a lease. The claim relates to a substantial property comprising of five connected office blocks and a multistorey car park. It is currently one of the largest claims of this type.

• Acting for a commercial landlord of an industrial park to recover significant rent arrears which have accrued both during and after COVID.

• Acting for a Car Sales business in defending an opposed lease renewal claim brought by their landlord in relation to their showroom and repairs centre.

• Acting for London property investors in relation to statutory lease extension claims with premiums exceeding £1 million.

• Advised a government department and an NHS Trust in connection with separate High Court trespass claims against 15 and 50 squatters situated in a former education site and a prominent medical facility in central London. In both claims, we managed to achieve vacant possession of the building for the client within a week of issuing the proceedings.

• Acting for NHS Property Services on High Court litigation involving the client’s entitlement to charge service charges from its GP tenants to recover the costs of services provided to those tenants by NHSPS. The litigation was chosen as one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 Cases of 2022.

Meet the Property Litigation Team

James Teagle Partner 0370 194 5443 | 07901 205790 james.teagle@bevanbrittan.com

Kajal Patel

Solicitor 0370 774 2953 kajal.patel@bevanbrittan.com

Alex Dunne Senior Associate 0370 194 5484 | 07500 114634 alex.dunne@bevanbrittan.com

Ben Tasker

Solicitor Apprentice 0370 194 5442 | 07786 981517 ben.tasker@bevanbrittan.com

Bevan Brittan has a truly first-rate property litigation department with a fantastic blend of real experience and energetic new-comers. They are IT savvy and able to handle the demands that come with doing really big cases.

The Legal 500 2023

Housing Management

Our dedicated team of specialist housing management lawyers have been providing legal advice and support to social landlords for over 20 years. Our team members ‘live and breathe’ social housing. Made up of experienced housing management specialists, the team offers a knowledgeable, reliable, flexible and commercial service – we make it our business to understand your business.

We also appreciate that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to housing management, and that each problem requires a tailored solution. We have the breadth and depth of experience to unlock difficult problems and resolve even the most challenging of disputes.

Work Highlights

• We were instructed by a social housing provider to obtain an Anti-Social Behaviour Injunction following a neighbour dispute. Following a breach of the order we negotiated the tenants surrender of the property avoiding the need for costly possession proceedings.

• Advised on the implementation of a Pet Policy impacting conditions in all existing tenancy agreements and leasehold agreements. We advised a solution that was cost and time effective for our client, as well as allowing some flexibility for all tenants/leaseholders.

• Advising a number of social and local authority landlords on issues around cladding removal and fire safety, and as to the recovery of service charges from leaseholders.

Meet the Housing Management Team

John Cox Partner 0370 194 5494 | 07789 115834 john.cox@bevanbrittan.com

Neil Brand Partner 0370 194 7807 | 07748 634203 neil.brand@bevanbrittan.com

Ellie Staniforth Senior Associate 0370 774 2958 | 07825 288342 ellie.staniforth@bevanbrittan.com

Fallon O’Mahony Associate 0370 194 5468 fallon.o’mahony@bevanbrittan.com

Gemma Graham Solicitor 0370 774 2973 | 07789 373600 gemma.graham@bevanbrittan.com

Chambers UK, 2023

The Bevan Brittan team are very aware of the sector and passionate about it, which is fantastic and a key reason for working with them.