Pannone Corporate has appointed a new Head of Finance to its Manchester team, as part of ambitious growth plans.

Sarah-Jane Roper joins the law firm from the University of Manchester. As Head of Finance, she was responsible for three cultural institutions, Manchester Museum, Whitworth Art Gallery and Jodrell Bank Centre for Engagement, as well as Manchester University Press. Prior to that, she worked in internal audit across 12 universities for 10 years.

The chartered accountant, who’s been a ICAEW Fellow for more than 10 years, brings vast and varied experience to the role, including financial management, audit, compliance and taxation, as well as significant expertise in finance business partnering. At Pannone, she will work across the firm with responsibility for financial control, reporting and financial planning.

Paul Jonson, senior partner at Pannone, said: “Appointing someone of Sarah’s calibre is a major coup for Pannone. Her financial expertise and in-depth knowledge of the regional landscape will be hugely important to us as we enter the next phase of growth.

“We’re delighted to have her onboard and we are confident that with her vast experience she will bring a fresh perspective to the firm that will challenge us and help us to drive change.”

Sarah’s appointment follows a trio of hires earlier this month. Emma Haymes joined the law firm as a senior associate in the dispute resolution team. She was joined by Sophie Adshead, who was appointed as an associate in the corporate team. Burak Demir completed the trio of appointments, joining as a solicitor in the real estate litigation team.

Sarah said: “Pannone is at an exciting stage in its growth journey, attracting real talent to create a strong team ethos, which strongly resonated with me.

“After leaving a role within a large organisation, I was really attracted by the opportunity to take on responsibility for the full remit of Pannone’s finance department, while also continuing with the finance business partnering aspect of the role that I enjoy so much. I’m very much looking forward to getting stuck in!”

Pannone Corporate – the North West law firm – has expanded its team with the senior appointment of David Walton.

David joins Pannone’s regulatory team as partner, bringing over 30 years’ experience to the role. He joins from Keoghs LLP, where he played an instrumental role in establishing the crime and regulatory team, working throughout his career on high profile prosecutions instigated by the CPS, HSE, Environmental Health and the Environment Agency.  This includes the CPS-led prosecution following the death of four employees in the Bosley Mill (Macclesfield) explosion in 2015.

At Pannone, David will be responsible for supporting corporate and individual clients facing investigation and/or prosecution by a raft of bodies, including the Police, the HSE, CQC, CIW and Trading Standards, following serious work place accidents or incidents. He will work alongside associate partner Bill Dunkerley to promote the regulatory team’s capabilities to existing and new clients of Pannone Corporate.

Paul Jonson, senior partner at Pannone, said: “Client services is an integral part of our proposition as a firm and that can only be delivered by a highly skilled and talented team. We continue to build our expertise at all levels and David’s appointment is a significant hire – not only for the regulatory team, but the firm as a whole.

“David has an excellent reputation within the marketplace, consistently being ranked as a ‘leading individual’ by Legal 500 and Chambers rankings. He has a wealth of experience in handling heavyweight health and safety prosecutions over a hugely successful career and we’re delighted to have him onboard.”

David said: “I have enormous respect for the Pannone Corporate brand and for the people who have established it over a relatively short period of time.

“I believe my professional and personal background, and my approach to workplace life, is ideally suited to the Pannone culture and to the people who work there. Bill Dunkerley was my assistant for several years when he worked at Keoghs and it’s exciting for both of us that we have the opportunity to work together again. Many of our clients and peers have commented that it is great to see the ‘Dave Walton/Bill Dunkerley team’ back together again!”

Commenting on the sector, he added: “Traditionally, regulatory lawyers are called into action when a client is in distress. Whilst that will undoubtedly continue, I believe the sector will carry on evolving in line with the HSE’s own strategy for the next 10 years, which includes an increased focus on the prevention of accidents. As a result, there will be considerable opportunities for the team to support clients in improving what they already have in place, stress testing systems and procedures and reinforcing key aspects of employee training.”