Four new partners amongst Gateley promotions in Manchester

Four lawyers have been promoted to partner at the Manchester office of legal and professional services group, Gateley.

The partner promotions are Chris Lister and Jo Belmonte from the banking & finance team, Leigh Whittaker from the corporate team and Richard Clitherow from the tax team.

Gateley has also promoted employment lawyers Lorna Harris and Emma Butterworth to legal directors while Holly Howarth, from the construction team, and Hannah Baldwin, from the restructuring team, are made senior associates. Jonathan Burton-Baddeley and Karen Butler, both from the real estate team, and Crystal Or, from the residential development team are also promoted to associate.

The 11 promotions in Manchester are in addition to a further 33 promotions across Gateley’s Birmingham, London, Leeds, Reading, Guildford, Leicester and Nottingham offices.

Paul Jefferson, partner and head of Gateley’s Manchester office, said: “It is a fitting end to a challenging, but ultimately successful, year that we are able to make such a positive announcement. These  11 senior promotions in the Manchester office alone, including four new partners, further illustrate the strength in depth and ambition of our North West team.

“Promoting Leigh, Richard, Chris and Jo to partner is not only a well-deserved reward for them but is testament to the investment and ambition of our Manchester office. We look forward to continuing that journey, onwards and upwards, with the support of our clients and professional colleagues in a resilient and vibrant region, that we are very proud to be a part of.”

It has been a great start to the year for Gateley’s Manchester office, which is located on King Street. In March, the corporate and banking teams closed in on an aggregate deal value of £1bn following the completion of 40 transactions in just a fortnight. The teams were also ranked as the North West’s most active deal advisers in Q1 of 2021 having topped the league table in the latest Experian MarketIQ UK M&A Report.

More recently, the business signalled its commitment to investing in the region’s top legal talent by appointing Daniel Jones as partner and head of family law.