Leading North West law firm Napthens has bolstered its core practice areas, with 35 new appointments in the first half of 2022.
Key additions include director of strategy and development Ben Sears, who will lead digital transformation of the firm, as well as oversee its project management team and chair its strategy committee. Ben has a background in software engineering, having led global development teams for international data science companies such as Experian. He specialises in the development of software products, particularly those involving deep analytics, data science and artificial intelligence.
Elsewhere, senior associate solicitor Jennifer Rogers brings more than 10 years’ experience to the firm’s Litigation practice. Joining from Weightmans where she primarily focused on property litigation and housing management, she will be based at its Liverpool office.
In terms of team growth, the firm’s Residential Conveyancing team has seen the most activity over the past six months. It has welcomed 11 new additions, including five conveyancing executives, five legal assistants and a post completions assistant.
Other notable additions include employee relation advisors Helena Newberry and Jade McEvoy, whilst five additional new legal assistants join the Commercial Property, Employment, Wills and Estate Planning and Rural teams.
The significant recruitment drive comes amidst several other senior appointments, with CEO Alexandra Hatchman, Head of Liverpool Kieran Donovan, and Non-Executive Chairman Jonathan Fox amongst the new joiners in the first half of the year.
Alexandra Hatchman, CEO at Napthens, said: “We’ve seen an exceptional intake of talent over the first half of the year, with key hires made across our legal and non-legal teams. We continue to add expertise to our thriving core practice areas, whilst additions such as Ben Sears will enable us to drive and transform our business.
“I’ve had the pleasure of welcoming many of our new starters personally and look forward to working closely with the team as we continue this growth trajectory through the remainder of the year.”
Kieran Donovan, partner and head of Liverpool at Napthens, said: “There’s a wealth of expertise in the Liverpool market, with additions such as Jennifer Rogers testament to the calibre of talent we have here. We’re proud to work with some fantastic clients in the city region, including National Museums Liverpool, Abbey Logistics Group and Joloda Hydraroll, amongst others. That said, we’re only just getting started, as we look to build on these relationships and grow our presence in the Liverpool market.”