Press Release

Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP has promoted five of its lawyers to Partner, six to Legal Director and six to Associate, 10 of whom began their legal careers as trainees of the firm. The promotions will take effect on 1 May.

The newly-assumed Partners are Alison Rochester (media and technology), Susan Swan (infrastructure), Leigh Herd (property and infrastructure disputes), Stephanie Hepburn (commercial disputes) and Nathaniel Buckingham (property and infrastructure disputes).

Alison, who joined the firm as a trainee, leads the firm's trade and commerce team, focusing on international trade matters and complex commercial contracts, particularly for regulated businesses.

Susan, who trained at Shepherd and Wedderburn, is a core member of the firm’s clean energy team, providing advice on grid, regulation and commercial contracts.

Leigh joined the firm as a trainee in 2012. She specialises in contentious construction, with experience across construction, engineering and major project disputes, and through a variety of dispute resolution forums. She is Vice Chair of the Scottish Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, External Examiner for the LLM in Construction at the University of Strathclyde, and a member of the Confederation of British Industry’s Future Leaders Group.

Stephanie joined Shepherd and Wedderburn in 2014 and specialises in resolving property disputes (with a particular focus on the rural sector), private client disputes and contentious executries.

Nathaniel is a chartered civil engineer, who worked for an international consultancy before requalifying in law and joining Shepherd and Wedderburn as a trainee in 2013. Nathaniel specialises in resolving construction-related disputes for major contractors and employers.

Amie Bain (pensions), Lisa Renwick (English Property Unit), Daniel Bain (property and infrastructure disputes), Christopher Garden (commercial disputes), Phil Harris (private wealth and tax) and John Townsend (Glasgow property) have been promoted to the post of Legal Director.

Amie joined Shepherd and Wedderburn as a trainee in 2009 and specialises in pensions law, founding the firm’s pensions team in Glasgow.

Lisa joined the firm’s English Property Unit in 2013. She is dual qualified in Scotland and England and acts for lenders, land promoters and investors in a range of asset classes.

Daniel, who trained at Shepherd and Wedderburn, specialises in property dispute resolution, focusing on commercial real estate and telecoms property disputes. He has been with the firm since 2003 and acts for a broad range of clients, including commercial landlords and tenants, developers and mobile network operators.

Christopher joined the firm as a trainee in 2010. Qualified in Scotland and England and Wales, he specialises in contentious insolvency, commercial dispute resolution, including contract and professional negligence, and resolving disputes for private clients in relation to issues such as wills and executries.

Phil joined the Shepherd and Wedderburn private wealth and tax team in 2019 as a Senior Associate after 25 years in private practice. He advises individuals, executries and trusts on all aspects of residential conveyancing.

John joined Shepherd and Wedderburn in 2011 as a trainee. His work revolves around the commercial property sector, with a focus on office and retail property and renewable energy developments.

In addition, Gillian Buchanan (Edinburgh/Aberdeen property), Lily Manser (commercial disputes), Katie McNab (rural), Thomas Keenan (banking and finance), Matthew Lamberton (English Property Unit) and Daniel MacKinnon (Glasgow property) will become Associates on 1 May 2022.

Commenting on the new promotions, Andrew Blain, Shepherd and Wedderburn’s Managing Partner, said: “These well-deserved promotions recognise our lawyers’ specialist expertise, their knowledge and understanding of the sectors in which they operate, and their ongoing commitment to building relationships of trust with our clients, supporting them with legal services of the highest quality. We wish them every success as they embark on the next stage of their careers and thank them for their continued commitment to the firm and its clients.”