our accreditations & recognitions

We work hard to deliver exemplary client experience and value-for-money service.

Our accreditations & recognitions

We are committed to providing the best service we can, along with achieving and maintaining quality standards such as Lexcel - The Law Society’s accreditation standard.

We believe that this approach is also reflected by the number of recognitions and recommendations that we regularly achieve with the UK’s leading legal directories, such as Chambers, The Legal 500 and The Lawyer UK 200.

Our legal teams are dedicated to achieving recognition and accreditation in their specialist practice areas. From personal injury to conveyancing quality, you can be rest assured that you’re in safe hands – approved by the best in the industry.

Accreditations

  1. Lexcel

    We first achieved Lexcel accreditation in 1999 and, since then, have always passed its annual assessment with flying colours.

    Lexcel is the Law Society’s accreditation scheme and is recognised as the gold-star legal practice quality mark. Adopted by legal firms in the UK and internationally, it's the quality mark that tells you you're in trusted, professional hands with your legal case.

    Lexcel firms go through a rigorous testing and inspection process to ensure that they have the very best practice in client care, compliance and practice management so you can be sure you're getting the best possible service.

    As a Lexcel firm, we are committed to:

    • communicating with you clearly and honestly about your case

    • being upfront with you about costs

    • keeping you informed about how your case is going

    • protecting your money and assets

    • dealing with any complaints properly

    If you want peace of mind and assurance that you will receive a quality service from your solicitor, look for Lexcel – the mark of excellence.

  2. Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS)

    The conveyancing quality scheme accreditation is a recognised quality standard for firms that do residential conveyancing. Like Lexcel, it is a Law Society accreditation that we have been accredited since 2012.

    Achieving the accreditation demonstrates that we:

    • have the expertise to deliver quality advice

    • implement processes and procedures to manage and reduce risks

    • are transparent with our clients about our fees

    This also gives us greater access to a broad range of lender panels, with CQS accreditation being a requirement for lenders such as Santander, Yorkshire Bank, and Nationwide. 

  3. Law Society Accreditation Schemes

    Here at Wilkin Chapman, a number of our practitioners have earned special recognition for their expertise in particular areas of law by achieving membership in the Law Society's accreditation schemes for:

    The schemes promote high standards in legal service provision and ensure that clients are easily able to identify legal practitioners with proven competency in given areas of law. They also ensure that scheme members maintain relevant standards of competency and expertise by means of periodic reselection, re-accreditation, and re-authorisation.

    As an accredited law firm in a number of areas, the schemes:

    • promote high standards in legal service provision

    • ensure that clients are easily able to identify legal practitioners with proven competency in given areas of law

    • help consumers to make informed choices about whom to instruct

    • assure consumers that the Law Society has asked the questions that a discerning client wouldn't otherwise ask

    • ensure that scheme members maintain relevant standards of competency and expertise by means of periodic reselection, re-accreditation and re-authorisation

    Law Society Accreditation Scheme membership is voluntary. The expertise of scheme members in a given area of law has been verified and their accomplishment is recognised by the Law Society.

  4. Cyber Essentials Certified Plus

    Cyber Essentials is a government-backed scheme that ensures the protection of an organisation against a whole range of cyber-attacks. Law firms with the accreditation demonstrate their commitment to cyber security.

    In order to be awarded with their certified plus accreditation, a thorough review and independent on-site audit was completed on all our technology, processes, and cyber defences. This review further involved carrying out an assessment with the Information Assurance for Small and Medium Enterprises (IASME) against the requirements of Cyber Essentials.

    The Cyber Essentials Certified Plus accreditation means a great deal to our firm. We place great emphasis on the protection of our client’s information. This accreditation strengthens our defence against ever-increasing cyber-attacks by employing best practice standards and techniques while providing assurance to our clients. We are committed to continually investing in tools and techniques that improve our cyber stature and enable efficiency in managing our client’s information and internal business processes.

  5. Disability Confident

    We are pleased to announce that we have been named as a Disability Confident Employer (Level 2). The Disability Confident Scheme helps to remove barriers preventing disabled people and those with long term health conditions from accessing employment.

    To be approved for the scheme, we demonstrated our commitment to being an inclusive employer by:

    • actively attracting and recruiting disabled people to help fill our opportunities and vacancies

    • providing a fully inclusive and accessible recruitment process

    • offering interviews to disabled people who meet the requirements

    • being flexible when assessing people so disabled applicants have the best opportunity to demonstrate that they can do the job

    • proactively offering and making reasonable adjustments as required

    • ensuring our people have appropriate disability equality awareness

    • promoting a culture of being disability confident

    • supporting our people to manage their disabilities or health conditions

    • ensuring there are no barriers to the development and progression of disabled people

    • ensuring managers are aware of how they can support their people who are sick or absent from work

    • valuing and listening to feedback from disabled people

    We are proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. We’re determined to challenge attitudes, increase understanding of disability, and improve employee morale by demonstrating fair treatment. This accreditation will enable us to draw from the widest pool of incredible talent and retain high-quality people whose ethics match our core values.

  6. Armed Forces Gold Covenant

    We have given our pledge to support military staff and their families through the Armed Forces Covenant and as a result of our commitment hold the Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award from the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the highest award that can be achieved.

    Our Gold Covenant status recognises our proactive support given to our colleagues, clients, and the armed forces community through our HR policies, the work of the members of our specialist military sector, and our encouragement of other organisations to sign the Armed Forces Covenant and progress through the Employer Recognition Scheme.

Recognitions

  1. Legal 500

    The Legal 500 is published annually and is the leading directory of law firms in the UK with over four million users visiting The Legal 500 website for guidance each year. The directory is aimed at buyers of legal services, particularly general and corporate counsel.

    The directory is written by an experienced team of legal researchers, with the research process involving hundreds of submissions from law firms across the UK. The Legal 500 team contacts clients listed in submissions for references, and researchers conduct interviews with firms as appropriate.

    In the published directory, UK law firms are ranked according to location and practice area; leading individuals in each field are also listed. Every firm ranked – and every individual mentioned – in The Legal 500 UK is 'recommended'.

    Legal 500 2024 Recommendations

    Practice area

    Tier

    Region

    Agriculture

    Recoveries

    1

    East Midlands

    Commercial Property

    1

    Elsewhere in East Midlands

    Employment

    Family

    Regulatory & Public Law

    Dispute Resolution - Property Litigation

    Personal Injury & Medical Negligence

    2

    East Midlands

    Dispute Resolution - Commercial Litigation

    2

    Elsewhere in East Midlands

    Corporate & Commercial

    2

    Hull & East Yorkshire

    Family

    2

    Elsewhere in Yorkshire

    Contentious Trusts & Probate

    3

    East Midlands

    Corporate & Commercial

    3

    Elsewhere in East Midlands

    Agriculture

    Tax, Trusts, and Probate

    3

    Yorkshire & Humber

    Insolvency & Corporate Recovery

    4

    Yorkshire & Humber

  2. Chambers and Partners

    The Chambers UK guide is published annually in October, covering 50 cities and counties in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

    The directory covers over 70 specialist areas of law, with the most developed practice areas being covered on a city-by-city basis. Practice areas include corporate, mergers and acquisitions, banking and finance, employment, litigation, and real estate. These cities are grouped by regions, such as South West, Midlands, and Yorkshire, so clients can compare firms across a broader geographic area.

    The Chambers’ ranking tables and commentary, therefore, are fixed at the date of publication for the following 12 months. However, factual information, such as mergers or lawyer moves, is kept up-to-date on the website throughout the year.

    Chambers 2023 Rankings

    Practice area

    Band

    Region

    Family/Matrimonial

    1

    Lincoln &
    Surrounds

    Agriculture & Rural Affairs

    2

    Midlands

    Real Estate

    3

    East Midlands

    Family/Matrimonial

    3

    York, Hull &
    Surrounds

    Individual Profiles Chambers 2023

    Individual & practice area

    Category

    Region

    Catherine Harris
    (Agriculture & Rural Affairs)

    Band 1 Solicitor

    Midlands

    Lisa Boileau
    (Family/Matrimonial)

    Band 1 Solicitor

    Lincoln & Surrounds

    Lucy Reding
    (Family/Matrimonial)

    Associate to Watch

    Lincoln & Surrounds

    Jonathan Baker
    (Clinical Negligence)

    Band 2 Solicitor

    Midlands

    Liam May
    (Clinical Negligence)

    Associate to Watch

    Midlands

    Rachel Dicken
    (Real Estate)

    Band 3 Solicitor

    East Midlands

    Jonty Pearson
    (Real Estate)

    Up & Coming

    East Midlands

    James Marsden
    (Family/Matrimonial)

    Band 3 Solicitor

    York, Hull & Surrounds

    Siobahn Sylvester
    (Real Estate Litigation)

    Associate to Watch

    Midlands

  3. The Lawyer UK 200

    The Lawyer UK 200 Annual Report is published by the Lawyer magazine. The yearly report is the culmination of data collection, interviews and research into the financial health of the UK's largest law firms.

    In addition to the top 200 law firms, the UK 200 also includes an analysis of the UK's top 30 barristers chambers, the 30 largest international firms operating in the UK and individual analyses on each of the top 200 firms in the annual table.

    The Lawyer UK 200 2020 Ranking

    Law firm

    Rank

    Wilkin Chapman LLP

    111

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