Commercial
Our commercial team is well versed in the full range of commercial agreements, covering every aspect of our clients' purchasing, production, marketing, selling, infrastructure, technology and e-commerce requirements. Our clients call on us to deal with matters which go well beyond the stock in trade commercial contracts. We have extensive experience of countless bespoke contracts, including outsourcing, projects and public procurement. We pride ourselves in being able to convert novel commercial ideas into concise, effective and user friendly documents.
In total we have 20 lawyers in the team, all focussing exclusively in the commercial practice area. 2007 was an excellent year for us with the biggest ever growth in turnover. This success is reflected in our expansion with several more recruits coming on board in early 2008.
What's attracted these people, many of whom have come from leading City and national law firms and also from in-house positions? We think it's our relationship for delivering outstanding service to clients, and because we're a forward-thinking and dynamic team.
We are continuing to recruit at all levels.
Shoosmiths is particularly good at internal collaboration and team-work. The commercial team has a partner with specific responsibility for ensuring we have an effective system of knowledge management and a programme for training, so that all our lawyers, whatever stage they are at, are able to learn and develop in the ways they want to. As part of this, we have a dedicated professional support lawyer who co-ordinates our knowledge management system and helps us do our job as effectively as possible. We often work with and are supported by other teams in Shoosmiths, who help us with other specialist aspects of our transactions including competition, intellectual property and employment law.
Our client list features some of the largest businesses in the UK, along with leading regional companies. Examples are Associated British Foods, Hewlett Packard, WH Smith, Marstons, BAT, Thomas Cook and BP. All of them benefit from our practical and commercial approach to the law and the best possible client service.