Development

Whether you are a developer, investor, landowner or occupier, our multi-disciplinary practice offers comprehensive legal advice at every stage of a development scheme. We handle a wide range of projects including residential, office, family office, industrial and logistics, hotel, retail and leisure, student accommodation, senior living, healthcare, and mixed-use schemes.

Our development lawyers are well versed in advising house builders, promotion agents and landowners on the plethora of strategic land documentation. This ranges from options, promotion agreements and equalisation agreements to conditional contracts, sub-sale agreements, development agreements, turn overage, planning overage and required interest documentation.

Our experience means we are proficient in all aspects of new build disposals, both off-plan and post practical completion. We have a dedicated plot sales team who manage thousands of sales each year for a wide range of our clients, including developers, housebuilders, housing associations and local authorities. Because we have extensive experience in managing large developments, our planning lawyers know when to collaborate with other legal disciplines to ensure the planning process does not hinder delivery. At all times, we proactively engage with other stakeholders.

Contemporary construction procurement offers a wide range of options for structuring the delivery of the construction phase of any development. We work closely with clients, their engineers and architects at the project outset to help identify and manage or eliminate any risks.

Development often takes place in a crowded urban environment, which means it is crucial to deal successfully with third party rights to bring in a project on time and on budget. We work with the most up-to-date analysis tools to understand and present the best possible response to rights to light claims and recognise the benefits of deploying Section 203 in appropriate circumstances to extinguish adverse rights. We are also well versed in dealing with rights to light insurers and their requirements.

For long-term projects, we advise on various corporate structures, facilitating collaboration between investors, developers, and other parties. This flexibility allows for delivery over time, either on a project-specific basis or as part of a platform programme. We know how important it is to structure these arrangements with flexibility and an understanding of the realities involved.