Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP

Following on from our last post, we were so pleased that our inclusion activities also received this great feedback from Catherine, one of the students who joined our Limitless programme last week. “Something I heavily admire about PMC is their devotion to inclusivity. During my time there, they hosted a colourful 'Pride InclusitiviTea' tea-time, providing cakes and decorating their hub to celebrate Pride, encouraging everyone to embrace their individual differences!” Limitless is our A-level work experience programme and took place our London office. It forms a part of our PRIME commitment, which encourages meaningful work experience opportunities for students from low-income backgrounds. 18 students joined us and engaged in a range of sessions, including practice area talks, interactive sessions, work shadowing, and networking, and our legal and business support professionals shared their insights, expertise, and experiences of the legal landscape, from corporate law to sustainability. Other feedback from students and from our volunteers who helped deliver the programme included: ‘Throughout my time at Penningtons Manches Cooper I was able to develop my networking skills by talking to numerous friendly legal professionals and discussing their journeys into the legal sector.’ – Emily, student ‘I used to teach IT at sixth form, so it was really lovely to meet some young people who aspire to be successful. They were extremely positive about their time here and say it has been a fantastic opportunity for which they are very grateful.’ – Hilary Reynolds, volunteer ‘What a positive and rewarding experience it was for me to meet with the students and give them an insight into the life of a private client lawyer.’ – Louise Jones, volunteer Thank you to all those who took part in this year’s programme - we look forward to hosting it again next year! #workexperience #Alevel #lawfirms #legal

The ongoing success of our responsible business programme is thanks to the commitment and energy of colleagues who volunteer across our network of committees and so brilliantly represent a range of communities including race, faith, social mobility, gender, age, disability, mental health and neurodiversity. Among them, Aura, our LGBTQIA committee, has been integral to our inclusive culture, which is acknowledged in Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers 2024 for the first time, ranking at number 36 and achieving a gold award. Our CEO Helen Drayton says: “This is a real achievement and reflection of the significant efforts made by Aura and our DEI team. Promoting an open and inclusive culture for all is at the core of our firm values.” A huge thank you and congratulations to Aura chairs Sophie Humphrey, Jake Watts and Gareth Jones, our partner sponsors Linzi Bull and Paul Mander, and our DEI manager Megan M.

A consultation is currently underway on the Institute of Directors’ attempt to restore public trust in businesses: a new voluntary code of conduct for directors, which they can choose to adopt in a demonstration of their commitment to acting in accordance with high ethical standards. Over recent years, corporate scandals and failures, including those of Carillion, P&O Ferries, and the Post Office, have knocked public confidence and shown the need for directors of UK businesses to be held accountable for their actions, something the IoD hopes its proposal will help remedy. Global head of corporate Matthew Martin, and senior knowledge lawyer Marina Ehrlich have reviewed the IoD’s proposed code of conduct, and its likely effectiveness – read in full here: https://lnkd.in/d6ig5pHU #corporate #corporatelaw #directors 

Congratulations to our private wealth sector group, which has had five teams and 19 individual lawyers ranked in the latest edition of the Chambers and Partners High Net Worth Legal Guide. Our family law team has been ranked for its work with ultra-high net worth individuals across the UK, with five lawyers featured individually: Anna Worwood, James Stewart, Jane Craig, Elizabeth Carson, and Rebecca Carlyon. Our immigration team has also been listed; Hazar El-Chamaa and Pat Saini are both recognised individually, with Meghan Schardt Vozila newly named this year. Both of our private client teams in Guildford and London have been ranked, with individual recognition for eight lawyers: Clare Archer, James d'Aquino, Laura Dadswell, Ryan Myint, Tristan Smale, Lucy Edwards, Hannah Gearey and Cecelia Ward. The contentious private client team, meanwhile, has been ranked for the South, with head of the team, Michael Cash, achieving individual recognition, alongside new ‘Associate to watch’, Andrew Bird. Michael has also been ranked individually for private wealth disputes in London. Finally, Sarah Allan has again been ranked, for her global work with yachts and superyachts. Read more about the rankings here: https://lnkd.in/das4zrJ9  #chambersandpartners #chambershighnetworth #legalrankings #lawfirms

Last week’s King’s Speech saw the introduction of the Digital Information and Smart Data Bill, alongside the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill, which have outlined the new government’s approach to ensuring the responsible and secure use of data in the UK’s digital transition.   Data, its regulation, and data privacy laws remain important topics for those in the tech sector and beyond.   Our fringe event as part of London Tech Week, ‘Spotlight on Data: Investor scrutiny, AI, and understanding IP and regulatory issues’ – a collaboration with our Multilaw partner firms Racine and Heussen Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH, and featuring Joanne Vengadesan, Charles Bouffier, and Mark Münch – tackled this important subject; you can find out more about the key themes discussed in the round-up video below.   #data #dataprivacy #AI #technology 

The latest edition of BioBrief, our newsletter for the life sciences sector, is now live. Our team takes a look at the transformative role of AI in life sciences, which has applications ranging from creating new drugs and targets, to use in medical devices to diagnose disease. What do organisations in the sector need to be aware of when utilising AI, or developing products that incorporate it – particularly from a data perspective? Also in focus are the changes to legal migration that businesses can expect from the current Labour government, and some useful resources for those looking to navigate the evolving legal landscape in the life sciences sector – including an introduction to our PennStart package, which offers support specifically for start-ups and spin-outs. Read all of these insights, and more, here: https://lnkd.in/gj2KbFJ2 #lifesciences #AI #data #generalelection #migration

The latest episode of our technology team’s podcast series, ‘Beyond the code: the legalities of AI’, provides an update on the current status of AI’s regulatory landscape.   Partners Charlotte Hill and Joanne Vengadesan, and associate Tom Perkins, recap the positions of both the UK and the EU, discuss the similar themes which are emerging in regulation across the world, and review what the practical implications of these varying regulatory frameworks are for organisations.   Listen here: https://lnkd.in/eeJANYTc   #AI #regulation #technology #beyondthecodepodcast 

Congratulations to our IP, IT and commercial team, which has achieved a ranking for the first time in IP STARS (Managing IP) 2024, as a 'Notable Firm' for ‘Trade mark prosecution - law firms’.    IP STARS, from Managing IP, is the leading specialist guide for companies or individuals looking for experienced legal practitioners to deal with contentious and non-contentious intellectual property issues.    A further congratulations to partners Dr Duncan Curley, Chris Shelley and Daniel Berry, and senior associate Amanda Easey, who have all been individually recognised. To read the rankings in full, click here: https://lnkd.in/eP6JTi-T    #IPlaw #trademark #prosecution #IPSTARS 

Last week, we hosted OBN (UK) Ltd’s latest C-suite breakfast discussion session: ‘Enhancing TTO and Spin-out Partnerships to Support Growth in Life Sciences’, in our London Wood Street office. The session began with keynote speeches from Dr Lisa Smith, CEO of Midlands Mindforge, and Dr Michael Joseph PhD, business development manager (healthcare and medtech) at Brunel University London. Attendees then took part in a round-table discussion on good practice in licensing and commercialisation to improve transparency between the investor community, industry and TTOs – with the ultimate aim of generating practical thought leadership on how to better support emerging entrepreneurs. #lifesciences #medtech #investors #entrepreneurs #growth

Our corporate team has advised Sirius Real Estate Limited, an owner of business and industrial parks in Germany and the UK, on a placing which raised gross proceeds of over £150 million. The capital raise comprised an institutional placing in the UK, a placing to selected qualified investors in South Africa and a retail offer of shares made on behalf of Sirius Real Estate by PrimaryBid Limited on its online platform. This is the second substantial fundraise that the Penningtons Manches Cooper corporate team have supported Sirius Real Estate with in the last six months. London-based corporate partner, Adam Carling, led on this deal with assistance from corporate managing associate Giordano Suergiu and corporate associate Jenny Wright. The wider team included support from real estate partner Alison Lewis, corporate tax senior associate Leonie Langley and trainee solicitor Tom Morris. https://lnkd.in/egrKK2ym