Press Release

National law firm Shoosmiths has strengthened its Manchester corporate team with the strategic hire of highly experienced and entrepreneurial partner Tim Jackson-Smith.

Tim has nearly 25 years' experience as a corporate lawyer and has been a chief executive, chairman and a non-executive director at number of private, AIM-listed and main market companies, which will add new skills and unique insight to Shoosmiths' capabilities.

His recruitment is a further demonstration of Shoosmiths' innovative approach and commitment to understanding the needs of its clients. He will join the firm in early June.

Tim has spent nearly a decade working in industry after leaving law firm Halliwells in 2010 to join listed Lancashire-based, AIM-listed company Bglobal initially as commercial director and general counsel and latterly as CEO. He is non-executive chairman at AIM-listed MBL Group, where he is overseeing the sale process.

Commenting on his appointment, Emma Gibson national head of corporate at Shoosmiths said: "We are delighted to welcome Tim to Shoosmiths and are confident that his experience as a corporate lawyer and as a purchaser of legal services will be invaluable as we look to better serve our existing clients and to target new clients both in the North West and nationally.

"We have ambitious plans to grow the corporate department in Manchester and Tim will be able to help us build on the fantastic platform that already exists there."

Vaqas Farooq, head of Shoosmiths in Manchester added: "The addition of Tim significantly strengthens our offering to clients in the North West. We are always looking to acquire talent and add experience to the team and Tim fits the brief perfectly. The fact that he has worked closely with (corporate partner) Karen Procter before and has an excellent network of contacts in the North West, means that I am sure he will hit the ground running."

Tim Jackson-Smith said: "I have used Shoosmiths a lot over the last few years and have always been impressed with the people and the way that they took time to understand the needs of my business and provided valuable, commercially-astute advice to me. I was delighted when the opportunity arose to join the firm and am looking forward to working with the team to develop and grow our offering.

"My aspiration is to help to get the team into the top tier of the rankings for corporate law - I think the opportunity exists without question. Manchester is unquestionably the leading regional city for corporate deals - the strength of the regional private equity market speaks volumes and I am delighted to returning to practice in the city.

"I hope my experience of taking decisions in industry will resonate with our clients - there won't be many other firms in the region who can offer this type of insight and understanding."

Beyond his business interests, Mr Jackson-Smith, 48, a father of three, enjoys watching rugby and cycling near his Lancashire home.