New roles for Family Partners at BPE Solicitors

By Nicky Godding

9 February 2023

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Cheltenham based BPE Solicitors has announced that Partner Jemma Jones has taken over as Team Lead for the Family Team.

This coincides with former lead Helen Cankett’s recent appointment as Deputy District Judge enabling Helen to divide her time more evenly between her judicial role and her practice at BPE.

The Family team has grown over the last 6 years. The team, which also includes Partner, Rebecca Pike and Associate, Hannah Mills, has a loyal client base and experience advising families across the region.

Helen was appointed as a Deputy District Judge on the Western Circuit in October 2022 and will sit in both the Family and Civil jurisdictions. As the role is part-time, Helen will continue to advise clients in relation to Family law matters as well as continuing her busy Family Mediation practice.

Jemma has been at BPE for over 10 years and is known for her robust, pragmatic advice on both financial and children matters. Having worked closely with Helen for the last decade, she is well-placed to lead the team and build on its success.

Helen says “I could not be more delighted to pass the baton of leading the Family team onto Jemma. This is an exciting time for Jemma, the team and the firm, all of whom have been incredibly supportive of my desire to pursue a judicial post.”

Jemma says “I am very proud to now be heading up our successful family team as Helen starts sitting as a Deputy District Judge. Her appointment to the judiciary will be a huge benefit to the team and will add real value to the advice we all give to our clients.”

Managing Partner, Antonia Shield, says “It is just great for Jemma and Helen, and fully in line with BPE’s policy to grow and invest in our home grown talent. Helen’s success moving into the judiciary part time enables Jemma to step up and lead the team day to day. It is wonderful to see them both thriving as senior leaders in the business and as female role models in the law. My congrats to both”

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.