Chris qualified as a solicitor in 1984. He is a co-founder of Sykes Anderson.

He is the head of the Commercial Department and deals with a wide range of commercial matters including general advice to businesses, commercial contracts, company sales and acquisitions, commercial property and development including secured lending.

Chris works closely with the French Department on the international corporate elements of purchases of high value property in France. He advises high net worth clients on contracts for purchasing private jets and yachts.

He has developed a specialist area in the firm of leasehold enfranchisement and his book on the subject has been published by the Law Society.

Chris’s hobbies include skiing, sailing and opera. He is a committee member and Past President of the Rotary Club of the City and Shoreditch; Chairman of the Uphill Ski Club (which provides ski instruction and holidays for the disabled) and a BASI qualified adaptive and alpine ski instructor; and a board member of the London Docklands Business Club.

Email contact chris.sykes@sykesanderson.com

Education and Qualifications

• MA(Law) Cambridge University First Class Honours
• Solicitor (England & Wales)
• Chartered Tax Adviser (UK)
• Avocat-conseil aupres du consulat général de l'ambassade de France à Londres (France)
• Member Association of Pension Lawyers (England)
• Attorney (Johannesburg, S.Africa)
• French
• Spanish

Interests

• Mathematics
• Tennis
• Golf

Ben qualified as a solicitor in 2002 and joined the firm a year later.

He now heads the Litigation & Dispute Resolution team which specialises in high value Chancery and Commercial Court matters, pensions litigation, property disputes, insolvency, employment law and general civil litigation work.

Ben has written articles on a number of commercial legal issues including pensions law and company share-sale disputes; his expertise extends to advising companies, shareholders and directors on dispute resolution methods and exit strategies in cases of boardroom stalemate, unfair prejudice and breach of fiduciary duty.

Within the firm, he provides professional support to other departments on contentious issues and the continuing development of the L&DR team.

Outside work, Ben's interests include learning french, listening to live music and playing tennis and golf. He also plays football in both the Southern Amateur and London Legal Leagues.

Robin has been qualified as a solicitor for over thirty years. He has a wide range of litigation experience in the county courts including advocacy and conducting trials. He also has wide experience in all divisions of the High Court, Court of Appeal and House of Lords.

His recent experience has been working in and heading a small effective and efficient team dealing with High Court litigation involving high value commercial, company and partnership disputes, professional negligence claims and property litigation including disrepair claims and building disputes.

He is not afraid of looking at different approaches to resolve disputes and has experience of preparing for and conducting arbitrations and mediations.

Fatma is head of our Property Department and specialises in commercial property work. Fatma acts for developers, property investors and a wide range of businesses in the acquisition and disposal of commercial property and land, both freehold and leasehold.

Fatma is an experienced commercial property solicitor with a City background, qualifying in 1987.  She was a member of the corporate team at Davis Arnold Cooper and Denton Hall; which also included dealing with pensions law and being part of team of City Solicitors advising the Government on the privatisation of the Northern Ireland Electricity Industry.  Subsequently she successfully ran her own law firm with a substantial property practice for many years before joining Sykes Anderson 

Fatma has encouraged many young people on work experience to study law which she sees as an enlightened way that a person can make a contribution to society as well as acting for their client. She believes in enterprise and personal development. In her spare time Fatma is found in the  gym.