Sydney Mitchell LLP
Sydney Mitchell was founded around 1763 by Richard Chattock and has been practising in the West Midlands for more than 260 years, which makes it one of the oldest law firms in the country still operating under its own name. It works from offices in Birmingham city centre, Shirley and Sheldon, with around 39 solicitors across a full range of private client and commercial disciplines.
The firm holds both CQS and Lexcel accreditation from the Law Society and has recently confirmed the renewal of both. Senior Partner Karen Moores has described Lexcel as voluntary but valuable, giving clients confidence that the firm has been independently assessed, a fair characterisation, since unlike CQS it is not something lenders require. The residential property team is headed by partner Adam Oleskow and covers Birmingham, Solihull, Sheldon, Shirley and the wider West Midlands, as well as acting across England and Wales.
Sydney Mitchell is a Top Tier Legal 500 firm and has won Birmingham Law Society Firm of the Year seven times in its size category, a record of local peer recognition that no other firm in this comparison matches. Its client feedback is correspondingly strong: 4.9 out of 5 on ReviewSolicitors from more than 1,050 verified reviews, with reviewers consistently highlighting clear and timely communication, proactive case management and meticulous attention to detail.
One practical point worth noting for Birmingham specifically: solicitors at the firm speak French, Gujarati, Polish, German, Hindi, Punjabi and Welsh alongside English. In a city as linguistically diverse as Birmingham, being able to take instructions and explain a title report in a client's first language is a genuine service advantage rather than a marketing line, particularly for first-time buyers and older clients dealing with an unfamiliar process.
