End of an era as Chesterfield solicitors move offices
On Thursday 22 March 2018 a chapter ends as Chesterfield solicitors VHS Fletchers move from Marsden Chambers in to new offices across town at 5 Beetwell.
Chesterfield solicitors have provided representation in criminal cases from that office for many many years. Prior to VHS Fletchers beginning to practice from that address, Banner Jones solicitors provided criminal advice and representation.
Perhaps two of the most immediately recognisable names to have praticed from Marsden Chambers are Chesterfield solicitors Robert Banner and Peter Jones. Robert specialised in criminal representation for 12 years beginning in 1976 before moving into the field of employment law. Peter qualified in 1980, and now specialises in family law, having built a successful criminal practice over a number of years. He continued to represent clients in the criminal field until VHS Fletchers began to provide criminal advice.
Jonathan Taaffe trained as a solicitor at Banner Jones, working from the Marsden Sreet office from 1983. He resigned from the partnership in 2010 and is now a full time District Judge sitting in Derbyshire.
In 2007, newly qualified solicitor Denney Lau joined the Marsden Street office. He worked there for a little over three years before leaving to join a competitor. He returned to the building where his career started in 2017, but now for VHS Fletchers. He was reunited with old colleagues Kevin Tomlinson, Ruth Campbell and Rob Lowe, as well as the text book on representing suspects in the police station that he used to obtain his police station accreditation.
In 2009, Chesterfield crime solicitor Kevin Tomlinson joined the offices at Marsden Chambers. He had been a partner at Kieran Clarke Green solicitors for a number of years. That firm had decided to give up their criminal contract with the Legal Aid Agency, so Kevin was able to bring his significant following of criminal clients to a new firm.
Similarly, in 2010, Banner Jones recruited local sole practitioner Bob Bashforth who had operated as a sole practitioner in Chesterfield for 12 years before joining the firm. He retired in 2016 after continuing for a short period with VHS Fletchers. Bob now lives in Devon.
In April 2015, VHS Fletchers took over the Banner Jones criminal department and continued to operate from Marsden Chambers. This was in a direct response to government plans to consolidate the
market. These plans, including a flawed tender process, later collapsed but VHS Fletchers have continued to develop the department and are now a well known name in the area.
Since then, in 2016, we have successfully recruited crime solicitor Ben Strelley. Although working in Sheffield before his move, he lives locally, and has brought an expertise in all areas of criminal law to the firm as well as a desire to achieve the best for all of his clients.
Of the current line-up, accredited police station representative Rob Lowe is the longest serving employee based at the Marsden Street office. He began work for Banner Jones in 1999. He was soon joined by Crown Court Litigator Ruth Campbell.
Chesterfield crime solicitor and partner David Gittins and criminal solicitor Gavin Haigh complete the team providing specialist legal advice to those arrested and detained at Chesterfield police station, Chesterfield Magistrates’ Court or Derby Crown Court, as well as places much further afield.
Contact Chesterfield solicitors specialising in crime
Our new address and phone number can be found here from 21 March 2018. Alternatively you can use the contact form below.
VHS Fletchers has a contract with the Legal Aid Agency. This means that any advice and representation that we provide in the police station will be free of charge to you.
We will always advise you as to your entitlement to legal aid to ensure that representation before either the Magistrates’ or Crown Courts is affordable to you.
