Enable Law appoints new mental capacity team leader in Southampton

Enable Law, which specialises in medical negligence, personal injury and mental capacity law, has appointed Annabelle Vaughan to lead its mental capacity team.

Annabelle will oversee the firm’s 41-strong team of mental capacity lawyers who support vulnerable people and their families with long-term care and financial needs.

Having joined the Southampton office as a partner in September 2023, Annabelle will lead the expansion of her team’s reach and service offering, building upon its current foundation in the South East and South West to serve clients throughout the UK.

“I genuinely feel honoured and privileged to have the opportunity to lead Enable Law’s brilliant mental capacity team,” said Annabelle.

“I’m very excited about our future prospects for growth.

“As well as being outstanding professionals, I genuinely find that every single member of my team regards our work as a vocation rather than a job, and I’m relishing the chance to support their development.

“Following significant growth over recent years, I’ll be aiming to drive forward our specialist services nationwide.”

Annabelle lives with a mild form of cerebral palsy and has learned to see the strengths in this.

“I’m often told off for saying that by friends who say I’m doing myself an injustice by playing it down,” she added.

“But it’s fair to say that living with cerebral palsy provides me with an additional perspective on life and gives my team a valuable insight which means there is a significant extra dimension to the services we offer.

“When it comes to those everyday activities that people without a disability can just go ahead and do without much fuss, I have to think and plan more around things as simple as going for a walk to just post a letter.

“For instance, I have to consider what sort of shoes I’ll stick on depending on how stable I feel that day or what the conditions underfoot are like, especially when it’s icy.

“So there’s often an additional layer of decision making for me, which means when it comes to legal affairs, I pick up on issues which might seem trivial but are, in fact, extremely important for our clients.”

The mental capacity team at Enable Law has brought on multiple new clients in the last year – many referred by case management companies and other solicitors.

Rob Antrobus, who heads up the firm, said: “We’re all thrilled that Annabelle has agreed to lead our mental capacity team because she embodies the values which are key to our success.

“Annabelle is not only a brilliant lawyer, but she’s also an inspirational colleague.

“I know she’ll ensure Enable Law continues to go from strength to strength because she’s dedicated to her clients.

“The team are perfectly positioned to accelerate our mission to deliver exceptional legal service and further expand our capabilities throughout 2025 and beyond.”

As well as Southampton, Enable Law has offices in Bristol, Exeter, Plymouth, Taunton, Truro and London.