Three firms have made their marks in a guide to top legal practices.

Simcocks, Cains and Appleby have contacted us to say they all feature in the Legal 500.

Cains has been recognised as one of the highest-ranked law firms in the Isle of Man for the 16th consecutive year, having achieved a Tier 1 status across seven practice areas within the 2024 edition of The Legal 500 UK.

In addition to the Tier 1 status Cains gained across its banking, finance and capital markets; commercial property; corporate and commercial; dispute resolution; gambling; insurance and pensions; and shipping and aviation teams, 19 members of the Cains team gained individual recognition for their performance and praise from clients.

The employment practice was awarded a Tier 2 ranking.

Among the individual endorsements (some in more than one area of specialism), three lawyers-maintained Hall of Fame status, nine of the team were recognised as ‘leading individuals’ (including four within the banking, finance and capital markets practice), two were named as ‘next generation partners’ and a further five were hailed as ‘rising stars’.

The Legal 500 grades law firms following a research process which includes feedback from 300,000 clients, private practice lawyers and in-house peers as well as the assessment of a law firm’s own deals and confidential matters.

Cains said that it was hailed as ‘as good as any top-10 London firm: reliable, speedy turnaround’.

Tim Shepherd, managing director of Cains, said: ‘We are delighted with the recognition Cains has received in the latest guide. It is a true reflection of not only the depth of expertise we possess across our key practice teams but also a true reflection of the dedication, personal service and excellence of work we continue to provide to our clients.

‘To receive such glowing testimonials from our clients and to be acknowledged as having some of the best legal minds on the island underpins why we are and continue to be the legal practice of choice for many. I would like to thank our clients for providing outstanding feedback and our staff for their commitment and hard work.’

The full list of Cains’ Legal 500 UK leading individuals includes:

Hall of Fame: Peter Clucas (managing director) – Dispute Resolution; Seth Caine (senior consultant) – dispute resolution and Robert Long (consultant) - Dispute Resolution

Leading individuals: Tim Shepherd (managing director) – banking, finance and capital markets; Robert Colquitt (director) – dispute resolution; Tristan Head (director) – banking, finance and capital markets, corporate and commercial, insurance and pensions; Scott Leonard-Morgan (director) – banking, finance and capital markets, corporate and commercial; Alex Poole-Wilson (managing associate) – commercial property; Jonathan Latham (consultant) – insurance and pensions; Lindsey Bermingham (director) – dispute resolutions; Steven Quayle (director) – banking, finance and capital markets, shipping and aviation; Mike Edwards (senior consultant) – shipping and aviation.

Next generation partners: Stephanie Chew (managing associate) – banking, finance and capital markets, commercial property and corporate and commercial; Tara Cubbon-Wood (managing associate) – dispute resolutions.

Rising stars: Catherine Hamill (consultant) – banking, finance and capital markets; Kirsten Porter (senior associate) – corporate and commercial, gambling; Holly McGarrigle (associate) – commercial property; Matthew Wilkinson (associate) – corporate and commercial; Charles Williams (associate) – dispute resolution

Meanwhile, the private client department at Simcocks is ranked in Tier 1 by the group.

Other departments highly ranked are banking and finance, commercial property, shipping and aviation, dispute resolution, corporate and commercial and insurance and pensions.

Directors Irini Newby, Phil Games and David Spencer have been placed in the Legal 500 Hall of Fame UK, a commendation that indicates ‘exceptional legal talent’.

Director Alex Spencer, advocates Caroline Jennings and Kevin O’Loughlin are all ranked as ‘leading individuals’.

Several other advocates have been named ‘recommended lawyers’, including Elizabeth Simpson.

The guide says: ‘Elizabeth Simpson is simply outstanding; a great litigator who fights for her clients. Very thorough and highly responsive. In particular, her understanding of litigation involving the Isle of Man life assurance industry is unrivalled.’

Family law advocate Louise Byrne is described as ‘the stand-out family practitioner on the Isle of Man.

‘She is in a class all by herself. … Louise exudes confidence and puts her clients at the very forefront of her case strategy. Her experience and standing within the Isle of Man allows her clients to feel totally reassured and understood.’

Simcocks chief executive officer Phil Games said: ‘I’m delighted that Simcocks has been recognised as a top player and has garnered so many wonderful comments about our teams and individual advocates. The Legal 500 is a reliable and useful indicator of the standards of law services available worldwide, and we really do appreciate a high ranking by the directory.’

The third company to let us know about its success was Appleby. It also has tier one status.

It secured top tier positions across eight practice areas in the Isle of Man (banking, finance and capital markets; commercial property; corporate and commercial; dispute resolution; employment; gambling; insurance and pensions; and shipping and aviation).

Client feedback cited within the directory includes the Appleby’s Manx dispute resolution practice being described as ‘an excellent team of litigators, who can handle the most complex litigation on the island’, with another industry source praising the corporate team as ‘extremely responsive and my go-to for Isle of Man regulatory advice’.

Hall of fame: Charles Davies (dispute resolution), Mark Holligon (dispute resolution) and Caren Pegg (employment).

Leading individuals: Garry Manley (insurance and pensions), Claire Milne (gambling), Caren Pegg (dispute resolution), Kyle Sutherland (banking, finance and capital markets; corporate and commercial) and Juan Thornley (corporate and commercial).

Next Generation Partners: Tom Brook (banking, finance and capital markets; corporate and commercial), Claire Corkish (dispute resolution), Keira Gore (dispute resolution), Eleanor Harding (banking, finance and capital markets), Garry Manley (corporate and commercial) and Kyle Sutherland (ahipping and aviation)

Rising stars: Michelle Brook (insurance and pensions), Sophie Corkish (banking, finance and capital markets), Alexandra Dernie (commercial property), Katherine Garrood (corporate and commercial), Keira Gore (employment), Eleanor Harding (shipping and aviation), Erin Trimble-Cregeen (dispute resolution) and Melissa Wong (commercial property; private client, trusts and tax).