North West law firm strengthens employment law offering with new team

North west commercial law firm Bermans has recently strengthened their employment law offering with a new expanded team, welcoming four new solicitors to the department throughout 2019 so far.

The firm, which has offices in Liverpool and Manchester, put plans in place to expand their employment team to cope with increasing work loads during the previous financial year.

Bermans Liverpool team has been bolstered by the arrivals of Neil Gouldson, Rachel Giles and Sophie Robinson, all of whom are employment law specialists who have previously worked at established North West commercial practices.

They will assist head of department Adrian Fryer, in dealing with an influx of new Employment Tribunal instructions that the team has received from its commercial clients.

Neil Gouldson has practiced as an employment law solicitor for over 20 years and provides the team with an experienced, safe-pair-of-hands following the recent departure of former partner Nicky Benson, who took up the role of full time Employment Judge in September.

Neil has a particular interest in collective redundancy processes and complex employment tribunal litigation. He is also experienced in acting for GP practices and dealing with ‘fitness to practice’ hearings within the medical profession.

Rachel Giles had previously worked in-house within the HR Team at Marks & Spencer before moving back into private practice in 2018. She therefore brings a valuable insight into the challenges facing busy HR professionals.

Rachel has a particular interest in guiding her clients through absence management processes and avoiding disability discrimination claims, especially those relating to employees’ mental health issues.

Sophie Robertson joins the firm from Napthens in Preston where she undertook her training contract. Sophie’s areas of experience include disciplinary procedures, absence management and redundancy processes, as she focusses on helping her clients avoid the traps that can lead to employment tribunal claims.

In addition to the Liverpool recruits, Rob Maddocks has joined the firm as a senior associate with a brief to drive forward the firms’ employment law offering in Manchester.

Rob had previously worked at HRC Law and has a particular interest in business restructures and TUPE transfers. Rob has acted for a wide range of clients ranging from OMB’s to large national and international companies, however he has a particular focus on owner managed SME’s.

As well as working with clients, Rob will also be focussing on developing the firm’s employment law website, Praesidium. The website was recently redesigned to create a more modernised and user-friendly experience, giving HR professionals access to an extensive library of HR and employment law advice and templates.

Adrian Fryer commented: “We have seen a noticeable increase in new cases since the ET fees were abolished in 2017. This, coupled with some significant client wins, has meant that we have needed to expand the team to deal with the new work. I’ve been delighted with how quickly the new recruits have settled into the team and got to know our key clients.”