Plymouth’s Bartons Solicitors Marine Department shortlisted for prestigious legal award

Bartons’ Marine Department have been shortlisted in the Excellence in Client Service category for the Law Society’s prestigious Excellence Awards 2019, the highest accolade for law firms in England and Wales.

The Plymouth based Marine Department, established in 2000, offers a niche maritime law service for commercial clients, insurers and individuals in the UK and internationally.  The Team have close links with the marine and shipping industries and place emphasis on training and marine related experience, ranging from trans-Atlantic yacht racing to long-lining in the Barents Sea. Members of the Bartons’ Marine Team are trained as commercial fishermen and at least to RYA Yachtmaster (Theory) level.

The Team have won several awards, being recognised for their outstanding programme of training by the BMF in 2015 and winning the Devon and Somerset Law Society Client Service Award in 2017.

More recently, they won the Legal 500 award for Shipping ‘Firm (Regional) of the Year 2018’.  The award citation states “Bartons is praised not only for its excellence in law, but for its impressive knowledge of the practicalities of the area”.

Head of the Marine Department Jo Pummery said: “We are honoured to be shortlisted for the Excellence Awards and delighted to again have such high profile recognition of the team’s hard work and commitment in delivering an exceptional level of client service.”

Law Society president Simon Davis said: “There are more than 140,000 solicitors in England and Wales – to be shortlisted for an Excellence Award is to be recognised as among the very best of the profession.

“The firms and solicitors shortlisted should be commended for going above and beyond to support their clients, often navigating tricky and sometimes contentious areas of the law.

“With the justice system so under strain, we should take this opportunity to celebrate the incredible work solicitors do day-in and day-out – and to recognise the immense contribution they make to our society.”

Winners are announced at the Law Society’s Excellence Awards ceremony at the Grosvenor Hotel in London on 23 October 2019.