In our final blog in the series to celebrate our 10 year anniversary, we speak to Sarah Bazaraa. She joined Pannone LLP back in 2009 as a trainee solicitor and qualified to become part of the firm’s dispute resolution team, before rising through the ranks to Associate Partner in 2021.

“I think it says a lot about Pannone that there are so many ‘lifers’ who have been with the firm throughout our legal careers,” says Sarah.

We asked her a number of questions to find out what life has been like at Pannone over the last decade since the firm completed an MBO in 2014.

What made you want to join Pannone?

I did a vacation placement with the firm (too) many years ago when I was in my second year of university and was impressed by the quality of the work I experienced. I also found that there was a genuinely friendly and supportive atmosphere. I didn’t have to think twice when I was offered a training contract, and I jumped at the chance to be part of the firm post MBO.

How has that changed in the last decade?

The firm has gone from strength to strength in the last decade. We have longstanding relationships with clients we have worked with over the last 10 years, and continue to attract new and exciting businesses. We have also grown as a firm and attracted some really talented lawyers and support staff who have really embraced the culture of Pannone.

What was your first impression of the firm and the team on your first day?

I remember thinking that there was something special about the place. I still feel that all these years later.

What’s the best thing about working at Pannone?

I definitely think it is the people who make the firm. I am very lucky that over the years I have worked with exceptional and technically brilliant lawyers – many of whom have become some of my closest friends too.

What’s your favourite memory of working at Pannone?

I am not sure I can pick one! There are a few significant cases which I am proud to have worked on. When you live and breathe a case for a number of years and work as part of a client, barrister and Pannone team to secure a great outcome that is very rewarding. Also, the firm parties are always really good fun!

What’s the achievement you’re most proud of while working at the firm?

I am proud to have been part of the team that moved across as part of the MBO and to have contributed to making the firm what it is today.

Where do you see the North West business community 10 years from now?

There feels a real energy and innovation about the North West. There’s construction work everywhere you look, and the creative and technology sectors seem to be thriving. It has been amazing over the last year to see the streets of the Northern Quarter be transformed into Chanel’s runway, and organisations like Aviva Studios (Factory International) bringing something original to the arts. I am sure the North West business community will continue to stamp its mark over the next 10 years!

What would you like to see the firm achieve in the next 10 years?

Continuing to build on the values and foundations which have been established over the past 10.

Describe Pannone in one word.

Team.

In the latest blog in our 10 year anniversary series, we asked Real Estate partner, Garry King, ten questions to get his views on what makes Pannone what it is and what his ambitions are for the firm over the next decade.

When did you join Pannone?

I joined Pannone back in October 2018 as an associate partner, before being promoted to partner earlier this year.

What made you want to join Pannone?

Over the last 10 years, Pannone has built a strong commercial brand that is well known and respected across the country. To be part of that story was very appealing.

How has that evolved in the last decade?

There are many things about the firm that have remained the same over the last 10 years, such as its culture, values and the strength of its people. But the firm has also grown and become a stronger unit despite the trials and tribulations of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ever-changing commercial landscape. That in itself is testament to the unwavering foundations that it’s built on.

What was your first impression of the firm and the team on your first day?

As soon as I met the partners I knew that the firm was the perfect fit for me. It very much reminded me of the first law firm I trained at in London – a place that convinced me to qualify as a lawyer. You can’t beat a gut feeling!

What’s the best thing about working at Pannone?

Without a doubt, it’s got to be the people who I work with. The team has grown and developed enormously in recent years, but the collaborative and positive dynamic that exists between the teams has not altered. We’re a group of like-minded individuals who are all striving for the same aims, with our clients firmly in the centre of that.

What’s your favourite memory of working at Pannone?

It would have to be my first day at Pannone. It felt like I’d worked here for years, which is a very high compliment to make.

What’s the achievement you’re most proud of while working at the firm?

There are lots of things that we’re very proud of as a team, such as the clients we work with and the work we do for them, but becoming a partner at Pannone definitely ranks up there from a personal perspective.

Where do you see the North West business community 10 years from now?

Like Pannone, the North West economy has been on a positive growth trajectory thanks to the diverse range of businesses we have in the region, combined with their ambition and desire to innovate and push boundaries at every possible turn. I can only see that trend continuing over the next 10 years as the North West cement its position as the place to do business.

What would you like to see the firm achieve in the next 10 years?

We’ve laid an excellent foundation over the last decade which sets us up perfectly to become the leading mid-sized commercial law firm in the North West – but, most importantly, without losing what makes the firm unique and special, which is an unwavering ethos for caring about our people.

Describe Pannone in one word.

Dynamic.

Danielle Amor has just reached a major milestone at Pannone, after celebrating 10 years at the firm last month [September]. Her work anniversary mirrors that of the firm, having joined Pannone just a few months after the MBO completed on Valentine’s Day 2014.

“It was an exciting time to join Pannone and the firm felt very collaborative and supportive,” explains Danielle, who was impressed by the firm’s approach and reputation.

Danielle has seen first-hand how much the firm has changed in the last 10 years – all the while retaining the same culture through recruiting likeminded people and creating the right environment for those people to prosper and grow.

“Right from my first day, everyone was very friendly and relaxed,” says Danielle. “I knew I had made the right decision and quickly felt part of the team.”

Unsurprisingly, no two days are the same at Pannone. “One day I might be working on the settlement of a trade mark dispute, the next negotiating a software licensing agreement and the next advising a client on a data breach,” explains Danielle.

Advising on data has become a significant part of the commercial team’s practice in recent years, driven by the radical overhaul of data protection legislation in the UK in May 2018.

“The GDPR required most businesses to adopt new policies and procedures,” explains Danielle. “We were extremely busy during this period trying to get all our clients (and ourselves) up to speed with the new requirements. Looking back now, as a team I feel we handled the pressures really well and we have since become one of the leading firms advising on data in the North West.”

As key achievements go in the last 10 years, that is certainly up there for Danielle. But it’s also the smaller things that create lasting memories.

“In one meeting, a particularly remarkable client wrote us each a personalised poem which he read out at the end,” recalls Danielle. “I’m not sure what that says about the quality of our discussions during the meeting, but I certainly will never forget it!”

While Danielle agrees that Manchester has huge appeal and is a great place to live and work, she wouldn’t be averse to Pannone opening a remote working space in Hawaii! Jokes aside, she sees significant potential in the region over the coming 10 years.

“With the right investment in transport and infrastructure, Manchester can solidify its position as the UK’s biggest business hub outside of London, particularly for tech businesses and start-ups,” she says.

One thing is for sure, Pannone will be there to see how the region unfolds. As Danielle says, the firm is ‘steadfast’ and will long be an unwavering feature in the North West marketplace.

Tom Hall is a self-professed ‘day oner’ – part of a core who joined Pannone pre-MBO in 2014. His career began at the ‘old Pannone’ in September 2004, when he started a training contract in the business crime team. Twenty years on, Tom is a partner in the corporate team and has become an integral part of the firm.

If there’s a consistent thread that runs through Pannone, in terms of its people, there also remains a consistency in approach, which is as strong today as it was ten years ago when the MBO completed – a moment that Tom admits really ‘galvanised’ the firm.

“For our 10 year anniversary in February 2024, we looked back at the original core values and principles that were put in place when the firm was founded in 2014,” Tom explains. “Despite them being drafted over a decade earlier, those core values remain a word-for-word representation of what the firm is and stands for today. If we can say the same in February 2034 then we will have done very well.”

The same can be said for the North West business community, which Tom believes is still the same, despite the huge changes in the region in the last 10 years. “The business community remains close-knit, plain-speaking and has the energy and desire to make things happen, rather than waiting for others to do it for us,” says Tom. “I don’t see that changing.”

As a ‘well-known and well-regarded’ law firm, Tom agrees that the best thing about Pannone is its people.

“Nothing makes me prouder than seeing lawyers who have started as trainees or paralegals in the team rise through the ranks, lead their own transactions and win their own work,” he explains. “We are very lucky to have some brilliant people in the team who have been fundamental to its growth and reputation over the years. Watching them in full flow on all party calls gives me a warm glow inside.

“We’re also very fortunate to support a wide range of national and international clients, across every sector you can think of,” Tom adds. “I love going to see clients at their place of business, having a look around and finding out what makes them tick. I always come away from those meetings feeling inspired and/or with some food for thought about how we can improve or refine our own business.”

Over 20 years, Tom has seen first-hand how the firm has improved and refined its proposition, with many favourite moments, including the call at 8pm on Valentine’s Day 2014 to confirm the Pannone Corporate buyout had completed when ‘wild scenes ensued’! Aside from those celebrations, it’s the strong partnerships that have been built over the last 10 years that stand out for Tom.

“My involvement with PLG International Lawyers, our firm’s international network, has probably been the aspect of the role that I have enjoyed the most over the last decade,” says Tom. “PLG has opened the door to some fantastic global clients and transactions, and I have made lifelong relationships with many of the outstanding lawyers involved.”

And, as a people-centric business, relationships are everything.

In the latest in our 10 year anniversary blog series, Ten in 10, we speak to the man who keeps the IT engine running at Pannone – Steve Elderfield.

Steve joined what was the ‘old’ Pannone is 2006 as a Senior IT Support Technician, before moving across to Pannone Corporate following the firm’s MBO in 2014, becoming IT Manager. Ten years on, he continues to play an integral role in the firm as IT & Facilities Manager. “Pannone offered a great opportunity to continue my journey in IT which I couldn’t turn down and I’ve never looked back,” admits Steve.

Like many people in the firm, his role has evolved significantly in the last 10 years. “What started out as just the IT Manager, has grown into much more,” explains Steve. “I have taken on more roles and responsibilities along the way, covering various different areas of our IT and the building.”

While his role has developed in the last decade, there’s one thing that hasn’t changed from the day he started and that’s the people and work culture. “Everyone was very friendly and welcoming on my first day, which gave me a real sense of acceptance and made the working environment that much more enjoyable,” says Steve. “I recall feeling like I was part of something special and through the years I developed a lot of friendships in the firm.”

There have been a number of highlights and key achievements for Steve since he joined, including his own personal development and gaining the trust and responsibilities that comes with the role, while also seeing and being part of the firm grow into what it is today. But one particular highlight was the move to the Chapel, which Pannone proudly calls home. “Although the move was very challenging to manage at the time,” admits Steve. “It was also very exciting to be a part of.”

He’s not only proud of Pannone and its achievements in the last 10 years, but also how the North West business community has grown during that time. “It’s been flourishing over the last 10 years, bringing more people to the city,” says Steve. “In the next 10 years, I can only see the North West becoming one of the great business hubs, alongside London which, in turn, will boost the economy and generate more work for firm’s such as ours.”

The use of the word ‘our’ feels very deliberate. Steve has a strong connection with the firm and carries real aspirations for more expansion and growth, but it’s how he describes Pannone that tells the true story of his relationship with the firm – “If I had to describe Pannone in one word, it would be ‘family’.”

Radhika Das joined Pannone in July 2018 as a Paralegal from a well-known HR services provider. In the last six years, Radhika has progressed to become an Associate in the firm’s employment team.

Radhika began her career at Pannone mid-way through its 10-year journey at which point it was clear what set it apart from other firms. “I was aware of the Pannone name and that it is well respected in the industry,” she says. “When I joined, the firm had been going for four years post-MBO and I felt it was an exciting time to join.”

In that time, a lot has changed at Pannone, with the employment team, in particular, growing to eight lawyers – a team that has plenty of experience behind it. “I received a team sheet on my first day which had the details of my team members, including the years they qualified,” explains Radhika. “I remember being impressed by the experience in the team and that some of them qualified in the 1990s!”

But it’s the team approach that Radhika values the most about the firm. “It sounds cliché but the people really are the best thing about Pannone, definitely,” she says. “Even though we operate a hybrid model, the office is always busy on any given day, and I think that is because everyone here genuinely enjoys working with their colleagues.”

The last six years have thrown up some real highlights for Radhika, including helping to plan the firm Christmas party in 2019. “It was the best work Christmas party I have been to, even if I do say so myself!”

She certainly has a lot to be proud of. “I joined the firm as a Paralegal,” she explains. “I qualified as a Legal Executive in 2021, I went back to University in 2022 to do my LPC part-time whilst continuing to work, and I finally cross-qualified as a Solicitor in 2023. I took the more scenic route to qualification, but I would not change a thing.”

While the firm has undoubtedly grown and developed during her time at Pannone, so too has the business community that sits around it. So what of the next 10 years?

“The North West business community is already growing rapidly and I can only envisage that this will continue over the next 10 years to level up with the South,” she says.

“In terms of the firm, I would like Pannone to continue investing in its people and talent and to carry on supporting alternative routes to qualification. Without that support, I wouldn’t be where I am today,” she adds.

It’s hardly surprising that when asked to sum up Pannone in one word, the first that springs to Radhika’s mind is ‘talent’.

I was one of the founding partners who set up Pannone Corporate in 2014. We effectively performed an MBO of the commercial part of Pannone LLP – a top 50 law firm at the time. I joined Pannone LLP in 2004 as a partner, having worked at a regional law firm and two international law firms prior to that. I am now the firm’s senior partner – a role that I really enjoy, having been the managing partner when we formed ten years ago.

When the opportunity arose for a new firm to be created from the commercial teams at Pannone LLP, I knew it could work. I saw it as the “ best of both”,  in the sense that we were creating something completely new but with people and clients who had worked together for many years, in some cases almost 30 years.

Reassuringly familiar, but refreshingly different was always how I saw it. I believed that if our clients could see we were going to support them in the same way they had come to expect, with the same team of people, then they would give us a chance!  Even with this conviction I was still nervous – setting up a new law firm isn’t usually what you do, at least not back in 2014. There was a huge amount of work to be done by everyone involved to get us to the starting line. From the autumn of 2013 to February 2014, it was pretty much a non-stop adrenaline rush.

The firm today is both similar and very different to where we started. We have retained the vast majority of the clients we started off with, and many of the people who took the leap of faith with us are happily still here. We have also added many more new clients and team members since 2014, so it looks and feels different to 2014, while still retaining the strong culture that we started with.

The best thing
The best thing about my job is the daily interaction with our clients and team. I consider myself a people person and l like few things better in life than meeting clients (new or long established) and discussing their business, challenges, and opportunities.

Standout moments
My favourite memory of the last ten years? That is a difficult question. The launch party is definitely up there! I would also include every new client win, every tender success, and every time someone chooses to join us to spend part of their career with us. The legal profession is ultimately a people business, and we genuinely have a great group of people at Pannone which comes across to clients on a daily basis.

The achievement I am most proud of is helping to create a sustainable, profitable law firm that is able to offer its staff a supportive, engaging, and collegiate working environment. We are a stronger firm now than when we started off 10 years ago and that is down to our people and clients.

What also makes me proud is that so many clients, including household names such as boohoo, DHL, Iceland, and New Balance to name only a few, have placed their trust in us.

The future

I see the North West business community going from strength to strength in the next ten years, building on the incredible achievements during the last ten. With a change of government looking very likely in the next six months and a genuine commitment to more devolved powers to the region (amongst others) as a consequence of a new administration, it looks a promising outlook for our region.

For our firm, I see the next ten years as growth years. We have invested heavily in IT in the last 12 months and our new infrastructure puts us in a good place from which to grow – adding more people and more clients. We have never sought growth for the sake of it – we have always sought sustainable, profitable growth. I genuinely cannot see why more clients in the region and beyond would not want to see what we have to offer!

One word

If I had to describe us in one word – ambitious.

As part of our 10th anniversary celebrations, we wanted to speak to people across the firm – from those who were here at the beginning of our journey, to those who have joined us in recent years – to get their views on what makes Pannone what it is, and how the legal and Greater Manchester landscape has changed during that time.

In the first of a 10 blog series, we speak to partner, David Walton. He joined the Health, Safety and Regulatory team in March 2023, having worked in the legal sector for 32 years. During that time, he worked alongside Bill Dunkerley, Associate Partner at Pannone, who convinced him that he should come and speak to the firm when, at the end of 2022, he was exploring his vocational future.

“As a former business owner and practicing lawyer, I was in the enviable position of having a good insight into what the final years of my professional working life could and should look like and, upon meeting the senior leadership team at Pannone Corporate, I realised very quickly that I had found what I was searching for.

“I already knew the Pannone Corporate brand symbolised legal acumen and professionalism; lawyers practicing at the top of their game. That was confirmed very soon after joining the firm. However, what equally attracted me to Pannone and, what was confirmed when my feet hit the ground, was the sense of team spirit, bonding and trust that permeates through all parts of the practice. Management styles can differ greatly and are central to a firm’s success. The management style adopted across Pannone (transparent, fair, and one that rewards team players working towards a common goal), is one that I have always tried to emulate myself. Pannone is made up of honest, decent people who care in equal measure about their clients and about each other. In many ways it is an “old school approach”, but, ironically, in 2024, it’s completely in line with what a modern workplace should look like.

“It’s exactly one year since I stepped through the door to start my first day. I expected the transition from a firm I’d worked in for over 30 years, to a firm in which I knew very few people, to be challenging – particularly in light of my age! In truth, it has been rewarding, rather than challenging. I’ve been made to feel welcome by everyone I’ve met and the sense of team and comradeship is constantly in evidence. I’ve embraced bringing my area of specialism and contacts into a full-service commercial law firm and enjoyed working alongside the firm’s myriad of specialists. Bill and I have a vision for the HSR team, which is fully supported and which we are driven to deliver.

“The North West is continuing to grow and present itself as a realistic alternative hub to London. It’s entrepreneurs and internationally recognised sports teams enhance that reputation and, naturally, it is building a legal community to match. Pannone, a relatively small practice in terms of numbers, already punches above its weight in that North West arena. However, my reason for joining is to help those visionary founding partners, and those who have subsequently joined, to expand upon what has evolved and become even more of a player in the North West legal scene.

“If I had to think of one word that sums up Pannone it would be “trustworthy”. If I had to think of a second, it would be “team”!