Legal 500 2020 recognises 24 of our panel

We are thrilled to announce that Legal 500 2020 has recognised 24 of our mediators as expert practitioners in the UK mediation market. Special mention must go to Rebecca Clark, Mark Shaw QC and Jane Gunn who have moved up the rankings.

Legal 500 Recognised Mediators

It is testament to the depth and breadth of our panel that so many of our mediators have been recognised. Our thanks must go to our clients and instructing solicitors who continue to appoint our mediators and provide feedback to the directories on their performances.

What Legal 500 2020 says about our mediators:

In Place of Strife’s head of chambers Mark Jackson-Stops is ‘simply excellent‘. He has mediated over 1,500 cases to date and is regularly instructed by many of the UK’s leading law firms. Jackson-Stops is particularly well regarded for mediations involving professional negligence, property and construction, insurance, probate and inheritance and financial services (including mis-selling and commercial contract disputes). Examples of recent cases include a subrogated claim by insurers and a private company shareholder dispute.

Former White & Case LLP disputes partner Jon Lang at In Place of Strife became a full-time mediator in 2005, after almost 20 years as a solicitor in private practice. Regularly mediating two or three cases each week, Lang mediates across the gamut of business and commercial matters. His practice has seen particular growth in the areas of property, professional negligence, trusts and probate, public sector procurement, insolvency, banking, partnership and shareholder disputes.

In Place of Strife’s Charles Middleton-Smith ‘has a firm grasp of legal matters and is able to focus parties in any mediation; he also has a sharp sense of humour’. Middleton-Smith was a commercial litigation partner for over 25 years before becoming a full-time mediator in 2007, and he works in a wide variety of commercial and legal contexts where the sums involved can range up to ￡100m. Middleton-Smith is experienced in multi-party mediations and has particular expertise in the media and entertainment industry, and is also well known for the mediation of corporate and general commercial disputes.

Serle Court’s Beverly-Ann Rogers is also a member of In Place of Strife. Rogers has mediated hundreds of disputes across a broad spectrum over the last 20 years. While commercial in nature, many of her disputes involve family members or previously close associates, and she is experienced in multi-party, cross-cultural disputes.

Brick Court Chambers’ Stephen Ruttle QC, also at In Place of Strife, regularly mediates large cases where high values are at stake, and he is increasingly active as a mediator of community and faith-based disputes. He practices mainly in London but also mediates in other parts of the UK and Ireland, as well as many jurisdictions abroad. Recent matters include a large construction dispute between high-profile entities, a dispute over the ownership of valuable personal assets and various shipping claims.

Working from bases in London and Leeds, In Place of Strife’s Patrick Walker is ‘an exceptional mediator, who is easy to work with, trustworthy and focused – his no-nonsense approach is to be admired and he is skilful in handling difficult clients’. Walker has a significant property and commercial background and has worked full time as a mediator since 2016; he is highly regarded for his mediation of disputes, including professional negligence, contentious probate, share purchases and construction matters.

3 Verulam Buildings’ Elizabeth Birch is also a member of In Place of Strife. Birch has been mediating commercial and international disputes since 1995, and is particularly focused on maritime, commercial, insurance and reinsurance matters, and receives appointments from the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) and other international panels.

Stuart Chapman at In Place of Strife is ‘very bright and personable, understands a case’s dynamics, and doesn’t give up’ and ‘he is able to achieve the resolution of acrimonious disputes and has an impressive handling of clients’. Chapman mediates across the UK and internationally and has a very broad experience of parties and disputes; he has mediated disputes involving parties from over 20 jurisdictions.

In Place of Strife’s Chris Fitton facilitated 42 high-value commercial and insurance mediations in 2018; his Scottish practice also continued to develop during the year. Fitton’s most active practice areas have been professional indemnity (particularly construction), financial services (including pensions) and public sector matters.

In Place of Strife’s Lawrence Kershen QC is ‘exceptionally helpful and easy to work with’. He is one of the UK’s longest practising mediators, and the recent subject matter of the disputes he has mediated include financial services, media and entertainment, banking, gaming, breach of contract, inheritance and shareholder disputes.

Freeths LLP’s Charles Powell, who is also at In Place of Strife, is ‘an exceptional mediator’. He ‘finds patches of common ground in battlefields littered with casualties’ and ‘parties trust him to guide them towards a resolution because he understands the necessary ingredients for settlement and does not allow himself, or the parties, to become hung up on irrelevant aspects’. Powell has over 20 years of mediation experience and has conducted over 500 commercial mediations; he specialises in commercial and partnership disputes, property and fire damage claims, professional negligence and banking and asset finance disputes.

In Place of Strife’s ‘excellent mediator’ Alistair Pye undertook 62 mediations in 2018, predominantly in England and Wales but also in Dubai, Jersey and Guernsey. Pye’s mediations have involved construction and engineering and professional negligence, as well as a broad range of civil and commercial matters, including partnership and shareholder disputes, inheritance, banking, insurance, land, insolvency claims and general commercial and contract matters.

In Place of Strife’s Rebecca Clark is ‘a highly impressive mediator who just gets it – she has empathy, gets into the detail and her hard work ethic commands the respect of both sides, which then unlocks opportunities for resolution’. Clark is a full-time mediator, who is particularly known for her expertise in financial services and SMEs; she has also developed a reputation for handling particularly emotional disputes, such as those involving family businesses and trusts. Highlights included an international claim between parties to a joint venture agreement.

‘Showing exceptional mediation skills’, Blackstone Chambers’ Charles Flint QC (also at In Place of Strife) regularly mediates commercial disputes, primarily in relation to banking and financial services, and he has mediated a number of substantial financial disputes in the UK and overseas. Other areas of strength are employment, fine art, insurance, professional negligence, public procurement and sports law disputes.

In Place of Strife’s Jane Gunn has mediated hundreds of disputes; she is frequently chosen both for her extensive mediation experience and her ability to handle complex and emotional cases. Gunn’s mediation work has included business and partnership issues, boardroom disputes, joint ventures, property and construction, family business and trusts, employment and workplace matters, medical negligence and personal injury.

In Place of Strife’s Andrew Hildebrand is ‘excellent – he goes above and beyond to help parties achieve a settlement’. Hildebrand is particularly well regarded for his mediation experience in the entertainment industry, as well as highly complex and emotional family business and partnership disputes.

In Place of Strife’s Mark Linnell ‘does a good job of reading parties, identifying how far people can be pressed and facilitating settlements in long-running disputes’. Linnell has been a CEDR-accredited mediator since 2005 and recently mediated ten cases in a twelve-month period. His disputes have involved fraud, professional indemnity, insurance, commercial property, renewable energy, family partnerships, commission agreements, non-payment of professional fees and building projects.

In Place of Strife’s Jane Player, formerly at King & Spalding LLP, is regularly appointed for IT, IP and media matters; she has also experienced an increase in work involving large-scale oil and gas projects as well as infrastructure and construction cases. In addition, Player has mediated a number of family trust disputes.

In Place of Strife’s Liz Rivers specialises exclusively in boardroom, workplace and employment disputes, with particular expertise in sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination disputes. Rivers recently successfully mediated a number of sexual harassment disputes for a range of organisations, including investment banking and manufacturing.

In Place of Strife’s Amanda Bucklow has maintained a full-time independent dispute resolution practice since 1991. Her areas of expertise include commercial disputes, employment-related claims, and IT, transport and financial services matters.

Michael Cover of In Place of Strife is particularly focused on mediations involving IP, IT and insurance, as well as public procurement, international contract and maritime disputes. In 2018, he mediated disputes in relation to shareholders, professional indemnity insurance, international contracts, design disputes and pharmaceuticals.

CEDR Chambers’ Tim Hardy is CMS’ former head of commercial litigation; Hardy left private practice in 2018 to pursue a full-time mediation career. He also mediates at In Place of Strife and has mediated an average of one case a week since the start of 2019. He mediated a shareholder dispute between the founder of a luxury brand of goods and a private equity fund.

In Place of Strife’s Mark Shaw QC (also a member of Blackstone Chambers) ‘has an outstanding character and extremely high level of expertise’. Shaw mediates a broad range of cases, though his work frequently focuses on the public sector. Recent mediations include resolving two long-running disputes concerning changes to pension arrangements.

Jams International’s Charles Gordon (ex-head of international insurance at DLA Piper) also mediates at In Place of Strife. He is focused on commercial disputes, with a particular focus on insurance coverage and claims, insolvency, professional negligence, hospitality and energy.

IPOS Legal 500 Mediators