Contact Details
Phone 01202 057750

Neil Cook

Partner, Solicitor & Head of Business Services

Business Services

My Approach

I have a business background having trained and worked in commerce and owned my own business (Care Home). I seek to achieve my client’s objectives by providing a no-nonsense approach that expedites transactions in an efficient and professional manner whilst keeping the client informed of progress at all times.

Areas of Expertise

  • Business acquisitions and disposals
  • Care Home regulation and law
  • Company/Partnership formations/dissolution
  • Company mergers and takeovers
  • Shareholders’ agreements
  • Enterprise management incentives (EMI) share option schemes
  • Loan agreements
  • Share issues
  • Commercial contracts and agreements
  • Terms and conditions of trade
  • Directors duties and liabilities
  • Distribution agreements
  • Shareholder disputes
  • Corporate restructuring
  • Insolvency work

Recent Work Includes

  • Representing the major shareholders in an engineering company in a multi million pound sale to a management led team
  • Multiple sales and purchases of high value care homes in the South of England including the multi-million pounds Birds Hill in Poole
  • Acting for both companies and Shareholders in share buy-back transactions
  • Acting for a director/shareholder in complex loans and security arrangements as part of a property joint venture
  • Acting for companies and, in other cases, shareholder employees in incentive share flowering schemes
  • Acting for local companies in the implementation of EMI option schemes and other employee incentive matters
  • Acting for a local international footwear branch in a seven figure exclusive distribution agreement for their products in Australia and New Zealand
  • Acting for Swanage Railway in the implementation of its plans to extend its track and services to the Main Line at Wareham
  • Acting for a local training company in its acquisition of Dutch and German Companies
  • Working with Insolvency practitioners on pre-packs

Experience, Professional Associations and Qualifications

  • Qualified as a solicitor in April 1981
  • Recommended Lawyer by The Legal 500 (UK 2022) for Business Services – recognised for his substantial experience in care home transactions both locally and nationally and praised for understanding of commercial issues.
  • Recommended Lawyer by The Legal 500 (UK 2020) for having ‘extensive experience of the care home industry’.
  • Recommended Lawyer by The Legal 500 (UK 2019) for having a ‘good commercial background’.
  • Recommended Lawyer by The Legal 500 (UK 2017) for being a ‘highly personable’ department head with increasing involvement in the care home sector
  • BA (Hons.) Law
  • Admitted as a Solicitor and to the New York Bar

Press

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Reviews

Ellis Jones has just represented me in the sale of my business. If it wasn’t for Neil Cook’s ability to quickly identify and resolve deal breaking issues I’m not sure if the sale would have completed. I cannot recommend Neil and his team highly enough.

Mrs Bauwens

Top notch service to clients in all time zones. Neil Cook has provided The Grand Hotel Swanage excellent and efficient advice and service, for many years. Neil is experienced at handling matters for overseas clients (in my case, New York). His knowledge of our business, combined with his expertise in UK banking practices, recently produced a deal-saving solution for us. As owner and CEO, I accord Neil and Ellis Jones the highest possible rating.

Mr Kleiner