Serving the community with teams of experts
BROWELL Smith & Co is a leading law firm that acts for clients both locally and nationally.
Senior partner Philip Browell recently explained: “The firm was established with the intention of serving the trade unions, their members and local communities.
“We specialise in claims relating to personal injury, asbestos-related diseases and industrial/occupational diseases on behalf of claimants.
“The firm also has an excellent reputation in handling cases relating to clinical negligence, employment law, family law, wills, trusts and probate, conveyancing and remortgaging, community care and welfare benefits.
Mr Browell added: “We are extremely proud of the success of the firm, and the formidable reputation we have built up as a key player in the legal field.”
The firm has 10 offices throughout the northern region and the UK, two of which were opened in 2009 in Denton Burn and Ponteland.
Mr Browell commented: “We see having a multitude of branch offices as a way of enhancing the first class legal services we already are proud to provide to people of the region.
“We were delighted to be able to open two more offices this year, especially given the current economic climate.”
He went on to explain that the firm’s rapid growth and development continues in the personal injury and industrial disease fields, where it acts both for trade union clients and their members as well as for the general public. In particular, it acts for the National Union of Mineworkers and the GMB. The firm also acts for NUM (COSA), NACODS and the National Association of Councillors.
The firm’s litigation department, under the guidance of partners Philip Davison, Brian Freeman and Kate Virica, accommodates an ever-increasing volume of new instructions.
All types of personal injury work, including road traffic accidents, are carried out.
The firm also deals with fatal injury cases, cases relating to holiday injuries, accidents abroad and all aspects of employment law.
The firm also offers expert advice in relation to clinical negligence.
The department is headed by Dr Nicholas Wilkes, who is a medically qualified clinical negligence specialist solicitor and member of the AVMA referral panel.
More recently, Dr Wilkes has been joined by Clare O’Leary, who is also a specialist clinical negligence solicitor and member of the Law Society Clinical Negligence Panel.
In addition, cases involving asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, pleural plaques and pleural thickening are areas of particular expertise at the firm, with newly appointed associate Dawn Bagley and the industrial disease teams undertaking the work.
Matrimonial and childcare work, under partner Derek Pack, also continues to develop.
In addition, Derek Pack, an experienced family lawyer, is one of only 15 lawyers in the region able to offer collaborative law – a means of resolving matters arising out of breakdown of relationships without going to court. Mr Browell went on to describe that, although the property market has consolidated, conveyancing and remortgaging work continues to progress under the guidance of partners Rodger Wilkinson and Derek Pack.
The firm’s wills, trusts and probate department, under the guidance of associate Stephen Browell, continues to grow.
The firm now offers free advice surgeries on a whole range of probate-related matters, from many of its offices, where no appointment is necessary.
Log on the firm’s website at www.browells.co.uk for more details.
The firm also continues to offer a comprehensive welfare benefits advice service to its clients through its department in Newcastle.
Senior partner Philip Browell added: “We are planning significant further development of the firm during the next 12 months.”
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