Stephen is a commercial property solicitor with a particular interest in Town & Country Planning matters, the environment and climate change. His expertise spans the full spectrum of property legal work and he has advised on all aspects of the acquisition and disposal of both freehold and leasehold property. Stephen’s current client base comprises a number of major retail clients, nursing home operators and a Russell Group university. He has also acted on behalf of several telecommunications operators, having been responsible for the acquisition of over 4,000 radio base stations. Stephen has conducted a number of major planning inquiries, acting on behalf of both retail and telecommunications clients.
In addition to his commercial practice, he also undertakes residential conveyancing work on occasion.
Stephen has authored a chapter on property issues for a textbook on telecommunications law and is a regular contributor to the press. He has also lectured at a number of in-house client seminars.
Expertise
- Freehold and leasehold transactions
- Acquisitions and disposals
- Joint ventures, options, clawback and overage agreements
- Property investment and estate management
- Landlord and tenant
- Secured lending
- Collateral and environmental warranties
- Commercial and residential conveyancing
Experience
Commercial Property
- Acted on the development of an £85m research facility for a major UK university
- Acted on the acquisition of premises for the London branch of the Warwick Business School
- Successfully conducted a series of planning appeals for a major supermarket chain
- Successfully conducted a series of planning appeals for a major telecommunications operator
- Acted in the acquisition of upwards of 4,500 telecommunications base station sites
Residential Property
- Acted on the £4.25M purchase of a listed terraced house in Islington. The property comprised the main house and a separate basement flat. In conjunction with one of the firm’s tax lawyers, obtained a substantial reduction in Stamp Duty Land Tax by claiming multiple dwelling relief.
- Acted on the £900k sale of a flat in Clerkenwell.
- Acted on the £1m purchase of a terraced house in Islington.
- Acted on the £1.8M purchase of a detached house in a gated development in Surrey.
- £680k sale of a flat in Clapham.
- Acted for landlord in the grant of an extension lease for a flat in Notting Hill.
- Acted on the £2M sale of a modern riverside house in Essex.
- Acted on the £1.73M purchase of a terraced house in Clapham.
- Acted for landlord in the grant of two new leases of flats in a purpose-built block of flats in an Essex seaside town.
- Acted on the £700k purchase of a house in Epping.
- Acted on the £1.5M sale of a house in Islington converted from a former dairy.
Please note: The experience list above may include examples of work completed prior to joining Keystone Law.
Career
Stephen qualified as a solicitor in 1978. Prior to joining Keystone Law in 2018, he worked at the following firms:
- Druces
- Bird & Bird
- Berwin Leighton