“Over the two decades, I’m delighted to have seen the firm grow and flourish and, today, CooperBurnett punches well above its weight,” Tom says. “I’ve enjoyed the relationships built with both clients and my colleagues. It’s great to look back over 20 years here and still be working with quite a few of the same people – that social continuity and daily interaction make all the difference.”
While at school, Tom couldn’t decide if he wanted to pursue a career in medicine or law.
“My key value is ‘service to others’,” Tom explains. “I wanted to reach out and help people in my career. From the beginning, I have worked quite a lot in the charity sector; it feels important to me to give something back.”
Tom studied law at the University of Durham.
“A straight law degree is quite dry, and I know I wasn’t alone in feeling like that,” he says. “However, when I got to put it into practice, it was much more fun.”
After leaving university, Tom secured a training contract with a firm in Westminster –well-regarded nationally as experts in charity, education, ecclesiastical and parliamentary law - and, once qualified, he was offered a role in the Commercial Property team.
“Back then, there was just one computer in the whole office and one email account which we needed permission to use,” he remembers.
Tom stayed with the firm for seven or eight years, before taking a few roles and eventually being head-hunted to join Vizards Tweedie (now VWV), the firm where Charles Dickens had worked as a clerk and which, at that time, still had traditional wig ovens in the building. Again, this firm had a strong focus on charities and boasted a number of livery companies as clients, many of which had diverse property portfolios.
Then, in 2006, Tom received a call from a recruitment consultant, telling him about a firm in Tunbridge Wells looking to replace a Partner in the Commercial Property team, who was retiring. Tom came into CooperBurnett to meet Nigel Burnett and Victoria Sampson and the rest, as they say, is history.
“I was impressed by the client base that already existed within the Commercial Property team and, while I wasn’t familiar with Tunbridge Wells, it instantly had a pleasant feel to it – which it still does today,” says Tom, who accepted an offer to join TeamCB as a Partner.
Today, Tom says he continues to enjoy the ‘variety of clients’ and ‘quality of work’ that comes across his desk.
“We deal with everything from supporting a client to open a small shop to some really big corporate deals,” he explains. “The clients continue to be excellent, and I also work with a fantastic team including fellow Partner Jonathan Rowe; Partner, Oliver Bussell who brings extensive experience of planning law, Senior Associate Hilary Palmer and Associate Solicitor Imogen Fleur.”
Supporting charities is still something at the heart of what Tom does and he has provided pro bono advice to The Pickering Cancer Drop-In Centre in Tunbridge Wells for many years. His day-to-day case load continues to include quite a few charity clients, while he has become an expert in advising carehome owners, on issues including on-site acquisition, disposal and finance.
“Currently, many charities are looking to downsize their property assets – due to the marketplace in general, the ongoing repercussions of the pandemic and a move to remote working,” he explains.
One of Tom’s other expert areas is leasehold enfranchisement and he adds: “In the meantime, we are also really busy with leasehold enfranchisement work and supporting clients with leasehold extensions.”
Looking ahead to the next 20 years, Tom says he intends to be part of TeamCB for a while yet.
“I like keeping my brain active,” he says. “Looking back over the last two decades, being a solicitor has seen many changes. Technology means that clients expect a more instant response, while regulatory compliance has tightened up and I can only see this continuing to increase.”
He adds: “AI will absolutely make a difference to the way we work but I don’t see it as a threat to our profession. Clients come to CooperBurnett because they trust us to find a practical, commercial solution to their legal problems, whilst providing a first-rate service at a reasonable price. We always put our clients first.”
When he’s not at work, Tom has a variety of hobbies, including travel, swimming, running, yoga and reading historical novels.
After 20 years, he says CooperBurnett remains a really ‘happy place to work’.
“When I first joined, I knew I’d found my ‘forever home’ career-wise; it immediately felt like the right place to be and I appreciated CooperBurnett’s very friendly and collegiate atmosphere,” Tom says. “I think the Tunbridge Wells business community helped me to feel comfortable as well. I did more networking in my first three weeks with the firm in 2006 than I’d done in three years in London. It continues to be a friendly community and everyone looks out for each other.”
