3rd October 2024

We’re delighted to have been recognised again by independent legal directory, Legal 500. We’re proud of our top tier rankings in Music, Media Finance and Film & TV, our excellent positioning for Video Games, Advertising & Marketing and the strong rankings for our Intellectual Property, Employment and Reputation Management teams.

In all, 31 of our lawyers have been ranked this year (up from 24 last year) and recognised by clients for their exceptional work.  We are particularly thrilled that so many of our non-Partners have been praised by clients and peers for the first time. Congrats to Andy Florence, Marek George, Lucy Pether, James Rushton and Michael Lucas and to Media Finance Associate, Sarah Cundall who was recognised as a ‘Leading Associate’.

Rankings aside, we are most delighted with the generous client feedback received and published by Legal 500, including:

Film & TV

‘Very commercial, approachable, knows the TV industry and the needs of its clients inside out.’

‘Richard Lever  – the head of TV – is the best lawyer currently practising in the UK. A great dealmaker. Excellent on the corporate side but primarily has an extraordinary knowledge of current deals and what can be achieved. Marek George is a meticulous and quick senior associate who handles our day-to-day transactions with efficiency and great intelligence.’

‘They are the best media law practice, with strength in depth and complimentary support (corporate, employment, etc).’

‘Reno Antoniades is unflappable, commercial, charming, gets the deal done. Nicki Parfitt is very bright, no nonsense and solution-driven. Mike Brookes is a trusted collaborator and great on strategy.’

‘Excellent firm and all the team I have worked with have excelled at the highest level.’

‘The team is brilliant at looking after independent producers.’

Media Finance

‘I feel completely secure when I work with Lee & Thompson. The depth and breadth of knowledge, their years of experience, the variety of disciplines their partners and associates possess, means that whatever hurdle I may be facing, they will have an array of solutions for me.’

‘Christos Michaels‘s calm, diplomatic approach to problem solving and conflict resolution means I always have a safe, calm pair of hands to help me navigate often tricky, time-sensitive issues.’

‘We always feel totally looked after. The expertise brings an exceptional level of trust and the team is completely flexible, adjusting its approach according to the needs of individual projects and transactions. Lee & Thompson are always the proverbial calm in the eye of the storm.’

‘Christos Michaels has to be one of the most respected partners operating in the UK screen sector. He can see his way through incredibly complex deal structures and work with incredibly big hitters, but can always find time to support and advise those nearer the start of their careers.’

‘Sarah Cundall is a brilliant associate who understands all aspects of the screen sector and always steers business along the smoothest path, even when transactions become tricky. Both Christos and Sarah have a generosity and humour which makes everything so much more enjoyable.’

Music

‘Great team, engaged, phenomenal market knowledge and understanding.’

‘Will Everitt is a fantastic lawyer, engaged, adaptable and insightful. Phenomenal understanding of the industry.’

‘Mark Stafford has a deep knowledge of the music industry. He gets straight to the point and is astonishingly efficient. Great to deal with. Dominic Bray is a great litigator well able for the technical issues that arise in online infringement. Super realistic and commercially savvy.’

‘Friendly but fearsome when needed. This is a go-to firm for music work with in-depth knowledge and experience.’

‘Mike Brookes excellent judgment. Martyn Bailey is a wonderful tactician.’

‘Superb depth of experience.’

‘The Lee & Thompson team has real strength in the field of media and entertainment, and particularly in music disputes. They are one of the go-to firms in this practice area with a strong reputation and excellent industry knowledge.’

‘Martyn Bailey has a keen eye for his clients’ commercial position and the need to devise a legal strategy to meet their commercial goals. Dominic Bray has great industry knowledge and attention to detail.’

Video Games

‘I’ve worked most closely with Julian Ward, who is a tremendously capable lawyer with outstanding knowledge. But Julian is also an excellent communicator; affable, persuasive, and warm, his attitude makes working through difficult legal issues a pleasure. He is highly effective in tough negotiations with counterparties.’

‘The team has in-depth knowledge of video games and they are easy to work with. It is quite important for a legal team to be able to work with people that don’t have legal training and communicate in a way that finds mutual understanding. I really appreciate how they make it so easy to work with them.’

‘Julian Ward is one of the best partners that I’ve worked with. He had very good grasp of the video game industry and the challenges that it often faces. He works to resolve the issues/concerns and support the clients to go through the details in contracts, negotiations, etc. ’

‘Julian Ward is always approachable, listens to what our team needs and consistently delivers. Andy Florence – complements Julian as his ‘right hand man’ and is thorough and methodical in how he approaches our workload needs.’

‘The team is professional, down-to-earth people and that is what is great about them. I have full confidence speaking with the team as I know that everything we speak about is in confidence and will be dealt with professionally and that is what I want from my legal partners.’

‘Everybody I have dealt with has been easy to speak with and for me, that makes a huge difference as I know I can trust any advice or decisions that a team member of L&T provides me.’

‘A very tailored and personal approach which provides reassurance when dealing with complex and demanding international situations/requirements.’

‘Julian Ward has an outstanding level of knowledge within the field of digital entertainment, IP and video games. ’

Reputation Management

‘Leo Dawkins is very easy to work with, knowledgeable about the law and on top of the facts.’

‘Mike Brookes’s cases are a testament to his control and mastery of the case coupled with his dogged determination to achieve the absolute best for his client.’

‘The team is diverse in background and has a very broad depth of knowledge and experience, taking in not just defamation and privacy but also related areas such as data protection and copyright law. The team is also unique in that they routinely act for both individual claimants and media defendants, meaning they understand how their counterparties think and what they are seeking to achieve.’

‘The team work together very well, playing to their individual strengths. Mike Brookes is great in heavily contested and hard-fought litigation. Leo Dawkins is a superb strategist.’

‘Mike Brookes and his team offer a superior level of service that combines communication excellence, industry expertise, and proactive risk management.’

‘Mike Brookes brings a unique blend of expertise and understanding to the table. His practice is distinguished by its comprehensive approach, seamlessly integrating clearance services into the production process. He doesn’t just offer legal advice; he becomes an integral part of the production team, ensuring potential risks are identified and mitigated early.’

‘Mike Brookes is very responsive and offers sound, pragmatic advice. He also has an excellent understanding of the UK media landscape and tailors his advice accordingly. ’

Intellectual Property

‘Very strong and experienced IP, media and entertainment disputes team.’

‘A real depth of talent in both the partnership and at associate level.’

‘Mark Stafford is excellent. Commercial and clever he is a great person to have in your corner.’

‘Friendly but fearsomely effective. They really know their IP, particularly in the music, film and TV field.’

‘Mark Stafford has a deep knowledge of the record and TV industries. He gets straight to the point and is astonishingly efficient. Great to deal with.’

‘Dominic Bray is a great litigator and well equipped to handle the technical issues that arise in online infringement. Super realistic and commercially savvy.’

Employment

‘James Baker is exceptional – calm and measured.’

‘The team were very good at explaining each step of the legal process in clear and digestible language. As such my partner and I felt confident in asking questions about any part of the process we didn’t understand. They were speedy in their responses and went the extra mile to ensure we were happy with every decision taken. It really felt that our best interests were being prioritised at all times.’

‘James Baker was incredibly supportive and explained things in a clear and concise manner.’

‘Genuinely specialist, niche media firm – members of the team bring extensive employment law experience from the wider market into the media sector, so they really understand employment litigation and can obtain excellent results for their clients.’

‘James Baker has a relaxed, approachable, unfussy manner, but has exceptional employment law knowledge, and is skilled at negotiating complex high-value claims.’

‘Lee and Thompson have an interesting array of clients in the media sector. The team utilises their knowledge across several complementary practice areas (i.e. commercial, intellectual property, employment) to provide accurate and practical advice to their clients that covers all aspects of a dispute.’

‘James Baker adopts a highly collaborative and pragmatic approach to working with his clients and counsel, which creates trust, and he demonstrates really good judgement in his cases. In my view, clients feel looked after well by him. He is a pleasure to work with.’

‘Fantastic team players. Broad and deep knowledge and experience.’

See the full rankings and feedback from our clients here.