Wragge & Co LLP has appointed nine new partners, investing in key practice areas to deliver continued growth. According to senior partner Quentin Poole, the promotions highlight the depth of talent in the firm and demonstrate its commitment to excellence and client service across a full range of legal disciplines.

The new partners are Toby Askin (real estate), Sharon Ayres (corporate), Alexandra Brodie (IP), Paul Green (construction), Karen Howard (real estate), Luke Kempton (IP), Richard Lee (human resources), Greg Standing (finance litigation) and Jonathon Wilkes (real estate). The promotions take effect from 1 May 2008. Wragge & Co is an all-equity partnership.

Quentin Poole said: "All of these entrepreneurial and talented lawyers have shown themselves adept at winning new business, developing relationships and providing excellent client service. In an uncertain economic climate we are keen to invest in people who have the skills and ambition to drive Wragge & Co's long-term development. Nine new partners is a tangible sign of our investment in the firm's long-term future rather than making short-term cutbacks."

The Real Estate group is joined by three new partners, Toby Askin, Karen Howard and Jonathon Wilkes, taking the total number of real estate partners to 30. Karen's appointment adds a third planning partner to the group, enhancing its ability to provide a seamless service on large regeneration and other development projects. Toby and Jonathon both specialise in advising developers and investors on a full range of property-related matters. Toby has a particular focus on shopping centres, acting for clients such as Multi Development. Jonathon has established strong relationships with investor clients including LaSalle Investment Management and CB Richard Ellis Investors.

Sharon Ayres has established a strong reputation advising on international corporate acquisitions and joint ventures with a particular focus on real estate funds and structuring. She was a core part of the team advising Parkridge on a $1.03 billion trio of deals to ProLogis. Sharon is the Corporate group's 18th partner.

The IP team – Managing Intellectual Property's UK law firm of the year - has two new partners, Alexandra Brodie and Dr Luke Kempton. Alexandra specialises in brand litigation and resolving IP disputes for clients in the high-tech sector. Luke, a PhD biochemist, is a key member of the firm's sector-focused life sciences practice where he advises on a mix of patent litigation and non-contentious work, including collaboration agreements and regulatory matters.

Non-contentious construction expert Paul Green will be the Construction team's sixth partner. Paul handles a range of construction projects for major corporates, developers, local authorities and contractors. One core area of expertise is in energy projects, where he advised E.ON UK on a series of wind farm projects and a combined heat and power station on the Isle of Grain in Kent.

Richard Lee leads the UK's only dedicated combined human resources solutions team. This team, which covers the overlap between pure pensions and pure employment work, provides a unique service to HR directors. Its lawyers act as a central source of legal advice on strategic employment, pensions and benefits advice, including age discrimination and structuring executive reward. He becomes the Human Resources group's 14th partner.

Greg Standing is a specialist in finance litigation, including asset finance, professional negligence, fraud and insolvency-related matters. He has developed niche expertise in contentious asset finance and asset-backed lending issues, securing work from some of the biggest names in those sectors.

Wragge & Co is a top 25 commercial law firm providing a full range of legal services to UK and international companies and public sector bodies.

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For further information about this press release, contact Kathryn Hobbs on +44 (0)121 213 2397, Alexa Highfield on +44 (0)121 213 2396 or Matthew Purcell on +44 (0)121 213 2360

This press release may contain information of general interest about current legal issues, but does not give legal advice.