I am a Partner within the Private Client team and I have been with MWB since 1998.
I work mainly in the Seaford office and also from home and I specialise in elderly client affairs and probate matters.
What attracted, and keeps you in this area of law?
I love that there is a sequence of events to do it, with a few bumps to work out to keep it interesting. I love helping people during a difficult time, sorting through the emotions for them and making it all manageable and hopefully easier to deal with.
In addition to managing my own probate and elderly client matters, I also happily assist my colleagues in the preparation of Tax Returns and Estate Accounts. I have a background in complex Deputyship work, managing the finances and investments of both brain damaged minors and elderly clients.
What do you most enjoy about your role?
My personal favourite thing to do is training the junior trainees, I like meeting new people and helping them develop their skills and put them into action.
Before becoming a qualified fee earner for Mayo Wynne Baxter, I was a legal secretary within the firm’s private client team for five invaluable years. I know all the processes from different role perspectives, which helps me give the trainees a more rounded understanding of each stage and how the team connects and works best together.
I’m now a Chartered Legal Executive and have achieved a Professional Diploma in Law and a Professional Higher Diploma in Probate Law & Practice, Equity & Trust Law and Family Law. This wide spectrum of department knowledge is helpful when training juniors.
What are your strengths and skills?
I am dedicated to building strong and trusting relationships with all my clients, particularly when working with the elderly. I also like to have the same trust with my colleagues.
I am committed to the firm and I am an active member of the Staff Engagement Committee and the Social Committee.
What would your colleagues say about you?
They would say that I am super organised.
They would also say that I am the “unofficial support welfare officer” in our office – when we are in the office!
I have a chair in my office, that anyone can come and sit in and have a moan, talk through an issue or just have a cup of tea and a chat.
Outside of work
I have two young boys that keep me very busy and I’m a member of the PTA at their Primary School.
My hobbies are visiting National Trust properties and cooking.
Prior to working at Mayo Wynne Baxter, Verity worked in the finance industry for 13 years where she qualified as a mortgage and finance adviser, identifying and fulfilling clients’ needs and requirements.
Verity relocated to the South Coast from Surrey in 2012 and began her career with Mayo Wynne Baxter as a Receptionist in our Brighton office and has also been based in our Eastbourne and Seaford offices.
After a decade of service with the firm, Verity transferred to the Private Client team as a Paralegal and specialises in Tax and Trusts and HM Revenue & Customs Trust Registration Service.
Verity enjoys the variety of challenges that are presented in her daily work life and says it’s a lovely feeling going home at the end of the day knowing that she has helped people.
When not at work Verity is a mum to her two children, enjoys kickboxing, paddle boarding, cooking, baking, or curling up with a good book and her 3 rescue cats!
Sacha is a specialist residential property and conveyancing lawyer based in Seaford and is a Partner within the Residential Property Team at Mayo Wynne Baxter.
He supports individuals who are looking to sell or purchase a property. He works with a varied client base from first time buyers to developers and high net worth individuals.
Sacha has a detailed understanding of conveyancing law and experience in buying and selling properties, as well as transferring ownership. He takes a considerate and understanding approach when dealing with clients, as buying or selling a home can be an emotional and stressful process for many. Sacha prides himself on keeping his clients informed of any progress made and is always open to meeting with his clients in person to discuss any concerns they may have.
Sacha has recently completed a sale and purchase of a property where his client needed to exchange within a very short deadline due to personal circumstances. Sacha managed the process closely, negotiating with other parties, to ensure his client was able to exchange and complete simultaneously within the original timeframe.
Outside of work Sacha enjoys running, watching Formula 1 and trying to improve at Chess.
Lisa Taylor is a Conveyancing Executive within the Residential Property team based in our Seaford office.
Lisa started working in law as soon as she left college and worked for two firms before joining Mayo Wynne Baxter in October 1999 and has since become a well-respected and vital member of the team.
She has a wealth of residential conveyancing.
Lisa prepares auction packs and undertakes auction sales and purchases. She also does residential sales and purchases, including residential conveyancing portfolios.
Outside of work Lisa enjoys horse riding and running around the countryside taking her daughter showjumping! And part of the Heathfields Show Equine Committee.
What attracted you and keeps you in this area of law?
I have worked for MWB since 2008 having qualified as a solicitor in 1994 and I spent the years in between working in the personal tax department of various accountancy firms.
I moved into private client work to have more regular client contact and to be able to engage with a wider area of practice which includes drafting Wills and creating Lasting Powers of Attorney, to the administration of estates including the final tax and estate accounts.
As well as being a solicitor I am a Fellow of the Association of Taxation Technicians and I am a Full member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).
What do you enjoy most about your role?
I like helping others whether clients or colleagues and I take satisfaction from a job well done whether small or large. I also enjoy talking to people about why they might need a Will or LPA and I have done some local talks on these important matters.
What are your particular strengths and skills?
I am naturally organised, and I also enjoy puzzle solving and untying problems. I am good at maths and organising figures and one of my roles is to assist colleagues with the trickier estate accounts. My background in personal tax compliance also gives me a good basis to assist my clients and colleagues with aspects of income tax up to the date of death and during the administration of an estate.
Tell me about a memorable time when you have helped a client?
It is a privilege to talk in depth with our clients about their affairs or those of someone they have lost. When at the end of a client meeting a client says that it was OK and nowhere near as stressful or difficult as they though it would be, I feel a good sense of having helped someone.
What would your colleagues say about you?
That I am kind and gentle and a nice person to have around the office. That I am a good listener both to them and to my clients. And that I am good at accounts and tax and enjoy helping them out with these.
Outside work….
I love being with family and friends, my garden and running by the sea. I am also a self-supporting Church of England priest licenced to the Lewes and Seaford Deanery which means I could pop up in a church near you on a Sunday morning.
I am the Chichester Diocese Bishops Advisor on Self Supporting Ministry and I am also a member of the PCC of St Leonards and St Lukes Seaford, the Deanery Synod of Lewes and Seaford and Chichester Diocesan Synod.
Jonathan qualified in 2003 and is a Partner at Mayo Wynne Baxter. He is a key person in the Private Client team and has been with us for over 15 years.
A specialist in private client work, Jonathan also has invaluable experience in residential conveyancing and contentious probate work.
Jonathan was born and raised in Sussex and is a recognised member of the Brighton and Eastbourne community. He is a member of various local bodies and enjoys cricket and eating out.