Jack Jacovou

I specialise in all aspects of retail and leisure property, with a niche in energy-related property transactions including wind farm and power station developments.

Tel: +44 (0)121 214 1070

Email: jack_jacovou@wragge.com

Best brains in ...

Negotiating commercial property lease and development agreements, managing acquisition and disposal programmes on time and on budget and wind farm developments.

Highlight of your career so far?

Acting for B&Q on its rightsizing programme, involving high-value multi-party transactions. The deals are often complex, time-critical and very important to the client. Regular meetings with B&Q, its agents and other advisors have created a great team spirit and a real desire to tie up the deals as quickly as possible.

Most challenging job you've ever done?

The sale of a chain of over 300 electrical retail shops for a number of electricity supply companies. The deal also required the negotiation of over 50 lease-backs and complex easements. The number of parties involved, regulatory framework, volume of documents and tough negotiating position of the buyer made the deal challenging. Long hours were the norm. Like many similar transactions, we completed in the early hours of the morning.

What about outside the UK?

We often act for clients as the middle man between them and their overseas lawyers, usually in Northern Ireland and Ireland.

What's your definition of going the extra mile?

On a time-critical transaction, we investigated titles and negotiated a lease of a major retail store for a national retailer within 24 hours. This followed buying a number of properties from a receiver for the same client by turning up at its lawyers' offices in Leeds with my client and staying until the early hours to secure an exchange.

Best example of a creative legal solution?

On a package of sub-lettings I advised the client that it could eliminate its on-going liability and secure additional payments by surrendering the relevant parts and negotiating new leases to be granted by the landlord directly to the proposed sub-tenant. All this was achieved without the sub-tenant's and landlord's solicitors communicating directly to reduce negotiation and scope for conflict.

When have you ever given a client a real competitive edge?

By operating what we call a 'Streetwise' programme for property acquisitions. It's designed to reduce negotiations and reporting and speed up transactions. It also means lower fees and less of the client's management time. It results in deals proceeding quickly and with no fuss. Consequently the client gets more deals put to it because of its reputation of having lawyers that don't mess about and get deals done.

What's your single greatest contribution to Wragge & Co's corporate responsibility?

I support the treks for SENSE. Five so far, Everest base camp next year. I've also supervised a number of pro bono property jobs.

What's been written or said about you that you're most proud of?

I'm described as 'highly regarded' in Legal 500 and Chambers UK. A client once called me his 'secret missile'. I secured a high-value development site for him against all the odds by ensuring (through legitimate tactics that I won't disclose) that no one at this single property auction made a realistic bid. My client was then able to buy the property privately outside the auction.