Job Description

PQE: 2-5


Term: Permanent


Working hours: Full-time


Practice area: Private Wealth Disputes


Location: Guildford


The Role

This position exists for a technically strong, personable and ambitious private wealth disputes specialist, to join one of the leading dispute resolution and private client practices outside London. You will join a growing team, with substantial experience in dealing with a range of trust, estate and family disputes. We are also able to draw extensively on the firm's well-recognised dispute resolution capability to deliver advice and expertise to trustees/executors (both individuals and trust companies), private banks, individuals and charities across a wide range of trust, family and will/estate disputes.


The team is top ranked for contentious trusts and probate in The Legal 500, with an additional ranking in the London section, and is highly ranked for private wealth disputes in Chambers High Net Worth. Recently, the team received a "Highly Commended" recognition for "Contentious Wills & Probate Team of the Year - Boutique" at the 2024 British Wills and Probate Awards.


Private wealth disputes has experienced substantial growth over the last few years. The team consists of two partners, one senior associate, three associates, a paralegal and a trainee.


The team focuses on:


Advice to private banks, trust companies and high net worth private individuals; Trustee disputes including breach of trust and directions claims; Estate disputes involving capacity, 1975 Act claims and undue influence; Advice regarding the involvement of trusts, trustees and beneficiaries in matrimonial disputes; and Asset tracing and freezing injunction disputes concerning trust claims and allegations.

In addition to the above the team:


Support the Commercial Litigation team and gets involved in litigation matters which have a private wealth disputes element. Works closely with the private wealth team providing litigation support on non-contentious court applications (including Variation of Trust Act applications), advising clients on risk avoidance strategies and mechanisms and helping them to avoid disputes in the future by stress-testing their structures.

Representative cases include:


Advising the independent administrator of an estate worth over 120m concerning the disputed administration of the estate and the estate's claims against various third parties Acting for the Court-appointed administrator in the Reeves v Drewlitigation Acting for one of the representative beneficiary defendants in Schumacher v Clarke[2020] EWHC 2281 (Ch) Advising the beneficiaries of a substantial UK estate worth in excess of 20m on claims under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 Advising the professional executor of a heavily disputed estate concerning both claims against the estate by third parties, and claims within the estate by different beneficiaries. Advising the trustees of a substantial property-holding trust in relation to disputed issues concerning sales of property and distributions to discretionary beneficiaries. Advising the beneficiaries of two separate offshore trusts concerning their rights and claims against the offshore trustee


Qualifications and Experience

Candidates should have drive and a real interest in and enthusiasm for private wealth dispute matters.


We are looking for a strong team player with good inter-personal skills, strong academics and high quality experience - typically with a major City or leading national/regional practice. An appetite for business development and developing your own key contacts would be a definite advantage.


Candidates should have a proven track record of working directly with clients and helping to build long term relationships. We offer excellent supervision, coaching and training within our friendly team, but we expect all team members to take responsibility and be able to work under pressure at an early stage. The right candidate should be able to work with initiative and apply commercial judgement to provide the highest quality advice and service to our clients.


It is essential to have excellent communication and organisational skills with the ability to manage your own workload, together with a willingness to develop the technical expertise of junior members of the team.





The Opportunity


Competitive base salary Pensions Scheme (5% employer contribution) Private medical insurance Permanent health insurance Life assurance Receive either the sum of 750 per annum as a travel allowance or reimbursement of carparking expenses via a pay as you go card at a local carpark (likely to be Farnham Road carpark) Travel - option to apply for an interest free loan for a season ticket or parking permit Enhanced maternity/paternity pay (after sufficient service) Cash back scheme Comprehensive flexible benefits package including: Critical illness insurance Buy/Sell holiday scheme Dental insurance Cycle to work schemes Taste card Fun pass Give as you earn Discounted gym memberships and shopping Profit share and discretionary bonus schemes



The Firm

Stevens & Bolton - making a positive difference to your career

You'll work with people who listen, and who actively and willingly support one another within a collaborative and engaging environment. We genuinely care about our people and strive to build and maintain a diverse, inclusive and happy workforce.


We are recognised as a top firm in The Times Best Law Firms 2024 and shortlisted for ESG Initiative of the Year at the upcoming Women, Influence & Power in Law UK 2024 Awards. We were highly commended for both "Regional/Offshore Firm of the Year" - Legal Business Awards 2023 and "Law Firm of the Year" - SLS Legal Awards 2023, commended for "Law Firm of the Year: The Independents" - The Lawyer Awards 2023, and were shortlisted for "UK Law Firm of the Year - Small/Mid Sized Firm" - The British Legal Awards 2023 and "Workplace Fit-out of the Year" - Insider South East Property Awards 2023. Our refurbished office has been awarded a RICS SKA silver certificate and a 2 star Fitwel accreditation.


We've made excellence the hallmark of our firm: in the clear advice we give, in the enduring client relationships we build and in our proactive and highly responsive service. We seek to recruit people who will help us maintain and build on this, and in return we offer excellent long-term career and development opportunities.

Diversity & Inclusion

We have a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion (D&I). This drives a strategy which focuses on constant promotion of an inclusive culture that encourages everyone to realise their full potential and be themselves at work. Previously we have been shortlisted for "Best D&I Initiative" at The HR Awards and for "Best Talent and Inclusion Initiative" at The Lawyer Awards.