We have a dedicated team of friendly, trained and supportive professionals who work together to deliver exceptional client care in all areas. To find out more about the team at Spencers Solicitors, you can view individual profiles of our people below:
Directors
Managing Director
Rob Landman - Managing Director
Rob is Managing Director of Spencers, and as such is responsible for providing effective leadership of the business, overseeing and determining business strategy whilst ensuring optimisation of day to day operations.
Prior to being the firm's Managing Director, Rob held the position of Finance Director, and still retains direct oversight of all finance elements of the firm including financial planning, reporting and risk management.
During his tenure with Spencers he has implemented a number of financial strategies that have allowed the Spencers Solicitors team the freedom to pursue a specialisation into new work types, including the most serious personal injury cases.
Rob began his career in 1998 in the manufacturing sector with Vesuvius UK. Within just two years Robert rose to the position of Management Accountant, subsequently joining Spencers in 2005.
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Chairman & Director
John Spencer - Chairman & Director
John is one of the UK's leading personal injury solicitors with over 30 years’ experience. He is chairman of Spencers.
He is one of only 9 current senior fellows of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) appointed in the UK. He is an UK jurisdiction expert for the European Commission for the Development of Justice. John is a past president of APIL and a former chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society. John has served on the Civil Justice Council of England and Wales as an executive committee member and has been general editor of the Journal of Personal Injury Law.
John has been recognised throughout his career, not least by receiving two Outstanding Achievement Awards presented to him at the Eclipse Awards in 2012 and Modern Claims Awards in 2015.
He has also published a book entitled The Importance of Being Ethical.
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Contact Details
Serious Injury Team
The Serious Injury Team at Spencers very much recognise that securing compensation is only part of the process for anyone coping with a serious injury. The team work hard to do everything in their power to offer support every step of the way, including utilising links with numerous care and rehabilitation experts.
Our team of legal professionals are here for you, and will always focus on your needs.
Team Manager
Amy Smitheringale - Team Manager
Amy, who qualified as a Chartered Legal Executive in 2001 and as a Solicitor in 2007, has more than 20 years experience in civil litigation. Having joined the business as a file handler in 2000, Amy has developed a strong specialism in personal injury litigation built on practical experience of both file handling and management.
Amy became a Team Manager in 2008, and has managed and developed a team of litigators dealing with motor personal injury, Employers Liability, Public Liability and Criminal Injury claims. Amy now manages the Complex Injury Team which deals with serious and major injuries, including traumatic brain injury, spinal injury, fatal claims and clinical negligence.
Amy also has a background in Wills & Probate work and oversees Spencers’ provision of these services.
Professional Memberships / Accreditations
- Member - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
Online Presence / Publications
- Compensation Culture: Don't tar all drivers with the same brush
- Welcoming London's first Motorcycle Safety Action Plan
- Staying Safe at Summer Festivals
- Smile, you're on camera!
- Amy Smitheringale to complete the Aspire Channel Swim 2016
- Bikers – do you have what it takes?
- ...and the figures are in
Social Media
Contact Details
Serious Injury Litigator
Andrea Ribchester-Hodgson - Serious Injury Litigator
Andrea is a Solicitor within our Serious Injury Team.
Andrea, who joined the team in 2015, qualified as a Solicitor in 2001. With over 16 years of experience, Andrea specialises in helping people with Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence cases. Andrea deals with claims involving adults and children who have suffered serious and catastrophic injury including fatal injuries. Andrea’s clients also include individuals living with spinal injuries, traumatic brain injuries, complex pain and multiple orthopaedic injuries.
Andrea believes that legal advice and support should be understandable and accessible to all and feels particularly strongly that severely injured clients or clients with ongoing mobility/pain issues should have access to all the advice and help they need.
Professional Memberships / Accreditations
- Member - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
Social Media
Contact Details
Serious Injury Litigator
Emma Melia - Serious Injury Litigator
Emma is a Solicitor within our Serious Injury Team.
Emma, who joined the team as a Lead Litigator in 2013, has over 18 years of extensive experience dealing with serious and major injury cases including achieving a number of settlements in excess of £2 million involving traumatic brain and spinal injuries. Emma is passionate about securing maximum damages for Claimants who have suffered life changing injuries to enable both the injured and their families to regain the best quality of life possible.
Expertise
Serious personal injury claims with a focus on head and spinal injury, amputations, complex orthopaedics and complex pain syndromes. Emma has a particular interest in equine litigation having a personal interest in horse riding and the equine industry.
Professional Memberships / Accreditations
- Senior Litigator - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
- BABICM - British Association of Brain Injury Case Managers
- Expert Contributor College of Law Training Programme on Fatal Accident Claims
- Headway North Derbyshire
- Legal 500
Online Presence / Publications
- How can we make horse riding safer on our roads?
- Safer Riding - Keeping you and your horse safe on the roads
- Are you skiing on thin ice? How ensure you are protecting yourself on the slopes
- What is Epilepsy?
- Brain Injury Awareness Week from 8 – 14 May 2017 - Hats off for Headway
External Presence
- Case Study (E v Moorwood Equine)
- Case Study (C v Toma)
- Case Study (Mr A v Mr Chana)
- Legal 500 - Emma Melia
- Personal Injury: Heads of Loss in Fatal Accident Claims
- Spencers Solicitors Appoints Solicitor Responsible for Winning One of the Largest Police Compensation Payments
- Winter hacking: how to stay safe (and have fun at the same time)
Social Media
Contact Details
Serious Injury Litigator
Helen Reynolds - Serious Injury Litigator
Helen is a Chartered Legal Executive within our Serious Injury Team.
Helen, who joined the business in 2000, was admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives in 2006. She has extensive experience of dealing with personal injury claims having worked within the claimant personal injury field for over fifteen years. Helen is a specialist in complex and serious injuries including head, brain and spinal cord injuries. Helen works closely with clients at each stage of the claim to provide the support and advice they need every step of the way.
Professional Memberships / Accreditations
- Senior Litigator - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
Online Presence / Publications
- Michael Schumacher and Traumatic Brain Injury
- London's Cycle Hire scheme: Four years on, what's the verdict?
- Staying Safe in a Winter Wonderland
Contact Details
Serious Injury Litigator
Mary Kay - Serious Injury Litigator
Mary is a Solicitor within our Serious Injury Team.
Mary joined the business in 1997 after graduating from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne with a degree in English Literature. Mary subsequently successfully completed a Graduate Diploma in Law and the Legal Practice Course whilst working full time. Mary qualified as a Solicitor in 2007 and has worked within the Serious Injury Team for over ten years dealing with high value, complex injury claims. Mary has extensive experience dealing with a wide variety of claims including catastrophic injury claims, accidents involving fatalities and cases involving serious orthopaedic and psychological injuries.
Professional Memberships / Accreditations
- Senior Litigator - Association of Personal Injury Lawyers
Online Presence / Publications
- Brain injury rehabilitation - the fight for consistency of care
- On the ropes: is the boxing community doing enough to prevent head injuries?
- 'Colour the World Orange Day'
- Time to Talk – Time for Change
Social Media
Contact Details
Serious Injury Paralegal
Carol Peach - Serious Injury Paralegal
Carol is a Paralegal within our Serious Injury Team.
Carol, who joined the business in December 2000, has worked in various client facing roles during her tenure, all of which have provided Carol with valuable insight and experience for her role within the Serious Injury Team. Carol assists the team on a wide range of integral tasks involving complex injury including cases involving amputations, serious spinal injuries resulting in permanent disability, brain, head injuries and fatal accidents.
Online Presence / Publications
Social Media
Contact Details
Paralegal
Serious Injury Paralegal
Serious Injury Paralegal
Laura Reaney - Serious Injury Paralegal
Laura is a Paralegal within our Serious Injury Team.
Laura, who joined the team in 1998, originally started as an office junior before training as a Litigator. After gaining extensive experience within personal injury, Laura now specialises in assisting on complex and high value personal injury claims. Over the years she has assisted senior Solicitors in dealing with accident claims involving amputations, serious spinal injuries resulting in permanent disability, brain, head injuries and fatal accidents.
Online Presence / Publications
- Killing the Conversation
- 3D Printing Reshapes Life of Accident Victim
- How a Tongue Piercing May Help People with Spinal Cord Injuries
- Surgery in the sun, what are the risks?
- Sniffing out a Treatment for Spinal Cord Injury
- Sniffing out a Treatment for Spinal Cord Injury - Two Years On
- National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
- Mobile Phones and Driving - Why are people still ignoring the dangers?
- The (Halloween) Highway Code
- Supporting World Purple Day
- Brain Injury Awareness Week – Life after a brain inury
Contact Details
Serious Injury Paralegal
Sarah Wright - Serious Injury Paralegal
Sarah is a Chartered Legal Executive within our Serious Injury Team.
Sarah, who joined the business in 2008, has extensive practical experience handling personal injury cases including road traffic and credit hire claims. Sarah was admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives in 2014 and assists the Serious Injury Team on a diverse range of cases including road traffic accidents, employers’ liability, occupiers’ liability, criminal injuries and medical negligence.
Online Presence / Publications
- Are you telling your GP half a story?
- Instead of updating your Facebook relationship status, update your Will!
- Brain Injury Awareness – Getting the right help
Social Media
Contact Details
Wills & Probate Team
Chatered Legal Executive
Samantha Ibrahim – Chartered Legal Executive
Samantha joined Spencers Solicitors in 2010 and is the lead Private Client Practitioner in our Wills and Probate Department. Her role involves taking instructions on and drafting Wills, lasting powers of attorney for individuals and businesses, making applications for Court of Protection deputyship, probate, all aspects of administration of estates and deeds of variation. This includes contentious probate.
Samantha is passionate about being able to help clients deal with their loved one’s estates at what is already a difficult time. All clients are treated with empathy and respect.
Samantha works with individual clients and with local businesses offering a unique service to owners and their employees in relation to Wills and lasting powers of attorneys.
Spencers Solicitors is a Dementia Friendly firm and Samantha manages this initiative to keep all of our employees Dementia Friendly.
Samantha prides herself on providing expert advice without legal jargon, is accessible to clients at our offices, at client’s homes or place of work and is happy to be contacted by anyone seeking practical advice or support on any aspect of her chosen speciality.
Online Presence / Publications
- Tinnitus Awareness Week, a condition heard but not seen
- Burial, Cremation or Other!? - Alternatives to the Traditional and Some Myths Busted
- Why a Lasting Power of Attorney is for Everyone, Not Just the Elderly
- Wills! Why Should I Make a Will?
- Dealing with a Death in the Family – The Non-Practical Stuff
Client Testimonials
- Mr & Mrs Hollinshead - Making a Will - Chesterfield
- Ms Allen - Making a Will - Chesterfield
- Mrs Pashley - Making a Will - Bolsover
- Maria Elliot - Making a Will
Social Media
Contact Details
Paralegal
Personal Injury & Loss Recovery Teams
Our Personal Injury and Loss Recovery Teams expertly handle a broad spectrum of claims including personal injury claims arising from road accidents, accidents at work, and incidents in a public place or connected to a traumatic incident such as criminal assault.
Our file handlers are all experts in their field and specialise in mixed liability, motor claims and recovery of uninsured losses. We have a wide variety of lawyers in the team specialising in all types of road accidents including car, motorbike, bicycle, pedestrian and public transport claims.
Our accident claim lawyers are vastly experienced in whiplash injury claims and are dedicated to helping clients not only recover from the physical damage but to secure maximum compensation.
Personal Injury Team
Maria Mullen
Personal Injury Supervisor
Personal Injury Litigator
Gemma Pearson – Personal Injury Litigator
Gemma is a Chartered Legal Executive within our Personal Injury Team.
Gemma, who has worked for the business for over 20 years, having originally started in 1996, has a vast amount of experience and knowledge of personal injury. Gemma was admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives in 2008 and specialises in personal injury arising from road traffic accidents including whiplash/soft tissue injuries, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and tinnitus. Gemma enjoys working as part of the team and particularly enjoys sharing her experience and supporting her colleagues.
Contact Details
Personal Injury Litigator
Jodie Anson - Personal Injury Litigator
Jodie is a Litigator within our Personal Injury Team.
Jodie, who originally joined the business in 2002, has extensive experience of both fast track and multi track motor litigation, including credit hire cases. Jodie manages a mixed personal injury caseload including trips and slips, accidents at work and criminal injury cases. With over 14 years of experience in Litigation, Jodie excels within the litigation process and has secured numerous successful outcomes on some unusual and complex liability cases over the years.
Social Media
Contact Details
Personal Injury Litigator
Kristy Price – Personal Injury Litigator
Kristy is a Solicitor within our Personal Injury Team.
Kristy, who joined the business in 2008, has over 15 years experience dealing with a wide range of personal injury cases including high value road traffic claims and low velocity impact claims. Kristy’s expertise includes representing drivers, motorcyclists, cyclists, pedestrians and passengers on public transport.
Online Presence / Publications
Social Media
Contact Details
Personal Injury Litigator
Personal Injury Litigator
Rachel Brown – Personal Injury Litigator
Rachel is a Chartered Legal Executive within our Personal Injury Team.
Rachel, who joined the business in 2003, was admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives in 2009. She has an extensive background in litigation including loss recovery, credit hire and MIB claims. Rachel specialises in dealing with personal injury claims following road traffic accidents including accidents involving motorcycles. Rachel takes great pride in delivering exemplary client care and drawing on her vast experience to guide clients through the claim process in the aftermath of an accident.
Online Presence / Publications
- The short school walk - keeping your child safe
- The Walk to School - Teaching Road Safety and Keeping Your Child Safe
Social Media
Contact Details
Personal Injury Litigator
Stephanie Robinson – Personal Injury Litigator
Stephanie is a Chartered Legal Executive within our Personal Injury Team.
Stephanie, who joined the business in 2002, has an extensive background in personal injury including handling road traffic accidents involving cyclists, pedestrians and motorcycles. Stephanie also has experience dealing with low velocity impact cases, package holiday and debt recovery claims. Stephanie specialises in mixed liability cases and manages a caseload which includes dealing with accidents at work, occupiers’ liability and public liability claims. Stephanie became a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives in 2009 and has over 14 years of experience.
Online Presence / Publications
Social Media
Contact Details
Loss Recovery Team
Team Manager
Jessica Eyre - Team Manager
Jessica, who joined the business in 2004, is an associate member of Chartered Institute of Legal Executives.
Since joining the business, Jessica has developed an extensive specialism in personal injury litigation and case management.
Jessica, who became a manager in 2008, is passionate about training, developing and supporting staff, managing protocols and implementing processes whilst simultaneously maintaining and developing relationships with clients and intermediaries.
Online Presence / Publications
Social Media
Contact Details
Client Liaison Assistant
April Clayton - Litigator Support Assistant
April is a Litigator Support Assistant within our Loss Recovery Team.
April, who originally joined the business in 2008, has a background in several different areas including handling uninsured loss recovery and personal injury claims. April’s knowledge and experience in previous roles is invaluable in her client facing role as a Litigator Support Assistant.
Online Presence / Publications
- An end to strict liability in workplace accident claims?
- An end to employer strict liability, who will benefit?
Contact Details
Loss Recovery Litigator
Emma Burton
Client Liaison Assistant
Helen Briggs
Client Liaison Assistant
Client Liaison Assistant
Donna Revill - Litigator Support Assistant
Donna is a Litigator Support Assistant within our Loss Recovery Team.
Donna, who joined the business in 2014, originally worked within the Admin Team in before transferring into a Litigator Support Assistant role. Donna prides herself on going the extra mile to help clients in any way she can.
Contact Details
Loss Recovery Litigator
Loss Recovery Litigator
Client Liaison Assistant
Louise Priest – Client Liaison Assistant
Louise is a Client Liaison Assistant within our Personal Injury Team.
Louise joined the business as a Legal Apprentice in August 2016 and is currently gaining valuable experience dealing with various front line, client focused tasks whilst studying towards the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEx) Level 3 qualifications.
Achievements / Accreditations
Social Media
Contact Details
Loss Recovery Litigator
Samantha Handley – Loss Recovery Litigator
Samantha is a Litigator within our Loss Recovery Team.
Samantha, who joined the business in 2008, is an experienced Loss Recovery Litigator and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives. Samantha deals predominantly with corporate fleet clients and in addition to handling her own caseload, Samantha enjoys supporting and training new members of the team.
Online Presence / Publications
- Back to Basics: What to do if you are involved in a Road Traffic Accident
- #PurpleDay - Raising Awareness for Epilepsy
- #PurpleDay - Identifying Types of Epilepsy
- #PurpleDay - (50 Shades of Purple) Fundraiser
Contact Details
Stacey Swain
Loss Recovery Litigator
Loss Recovery Litigator
Client Liaison Assistant
Stephanie Otter - Litigator Support Assistant
Stephanie is a Litigator Support Assistant within our Personal Injury Team.
Stephanie is an experienced Litigator Support Assistant, having worked in various client facing roles since joining the firm in December 2000. Stephanie enjoys the diversity of speaking to both commercial and private clients on a wide range of claims. In addition to the wealth of knowledge and experience Stephanie brings to the role, Stephanie is also trained in First Aid and is often involved in fundraising events.
Contact Details
Sydnie Wilson
Client Liaison Assistant
Our Employment Law and HR Services Team
Our Employment Law and HR team can help with a wide variety of employment cases and HR support. Whether you need assistance with a discrimination claim and unfair dismissal or support dealing with long term sickness issues and redundancies, our team can help.
Head of Employment Law
Paralegal
Legal Support Assistant
Lucy Ward - Legal Support Assistant
Lucy is an Admin Assistant within our Admin Team.
Lucy, who joined the business in 2011, initially worked within the Client Contact Centre before transferring into the Admin Team. Lucy has a strong background in professional services and several years of industry experience.
Contact Details
Head of HR Services
Kelly Pashley-Handford - Head of HR Services
Kelly is a senior HR professional who has worked within legal services for over twenty years. She is fully CIPD qualified and adept at advising businesses on HR issues both strategically and practically.
Kelly enjoys delivering a fully responsive HR service to clients, tailored to suit their management style and individual requirements. Kelly provides both in-house and outsourced HR support on a diverse range of HR issues including redundancies, grievances and disciplinary issues, recruitment, training and organisational change. She has worked with small and medium sized organisations in Chesterfield and the surrounding area, giving her a valuable local perspective on the business challenges facing local clients.
Online Presence / Publications
- Junior Football Fundraising for Chesterfield Macmillan Cancer Centre
- Doughnut Day for MacMillan Cancer Support
- An "award-winning" month for Spencers Solicitors
- Are you able to "switch off" when you leave the office?
- Don’t be blind to Invisible Disabilities...
Social Media
Contact Details
HR & Payroll Administrator
Lisa Morris - HR & Payroll Administrator
Lisa has over 25 years of experience in legal services, including HR. She works closely with Spencers' Head of HR, supporting clients with all aspects of HR services from induction to exit, and providing dedicated administration and payroll services.
Lisa is a vital part of the team that provides Spencers clients with an exceptional level of personal service around their HR requirements.
Contact Details
Admin Team
Our Admin Team provide integral support on a diverse range of tasks including processing incoming and outgoing post, collating information, scanning documents and assisting with court bundles.
Administrative Supervisor
Lizzy Cardwell - Administrative Supervisor
Lizzy is an Administrative Supervisor within our Admin Team.
Lizzy originally joined the business as an Admin Assistant in 2008 and was pleased to assume the role of Admin Supervisor in 2014. Lizzy enjoys her role and loves the challenge of running her own team. In particular, Lizzy enjoys the variety of the role and the way in which the team pulls together to deliver whatever is asked of them on any given day.
Social Media
Contact Details
Admin Assistant
Colin Walton - Admin Assistant
Colin is an Admin Assistant within our Admin Team.
Colin, who has worked in different roles since joining the business in 2001, started his tenure in a security based role before becoming a fully fledged member of the Admin Team in 2005. In addition to working as part of the Admin Team, Colin also provides support on facilities based tasks and is a fully trained Fire Marshal.
Contact Details
Admin Assistant
Jayne Frost - Admin Assistant
Jayne is an Admin Assistant within our Admin Team.
Jayne originally joined the business in November 2008 as part of a small catering team before transferring into the Admin Team in 2010. Jayne particularly enjoys assisting file handlers and communicating with both internal and external clients on a daily basis.
Contact Details
Admin Assistant
Laura Whitworth - Admin Assistant
Laura is an Admin Assistant within our Admin Team.
Laura, who joined the business in September 2003, has over 13 years experience in her role as an Admin Assistant. In addition to working as part of the team to deliver a wide range of Admin Tasks, Laura is also a skilled audio typist who works closely with the Serious Injury Team on dictations.
Contact Details
Accounts Team
Our Accounts Team provide seamless support on all daily accounting transactions including payments and reports.
Accounts Assistant
Dominic O'Neil - Accounts Assistant
Dominic is an Accounts Assistant within our Accounts Team.
Dominic, who has worked for the business since August 2002, originally started his tenure as an Admin Assistant before changing direction and joining the Accounts Department. As an Accounts Assistant, Dominic provides day to day support to all our teams and is responsible for processing daily accounts transactions in addition to other varied duties.
Social Media
Contact Details
Management Accountant
Hayley Millard - Management Accountant
Hayley is a Management Accountant within our Accounts Team.
Hayley has worked within an accounting role since joining the business in 2010. Hayley, who is a Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians, is responsible for a wide range of tasks including preparing management accounts and analysing data. Hayley is regularly involved in operational projects and is also trained in First Aid.
Social Media
Contact Details
IT Team
Our in-house IT Team is the first point of call for all IT related tasks including delivering helpdesk solutions, implementing changes and maintaining the network infrastructure.
Support Technician
Craig Hawkins - Support Technician
Craig is a Support Technician within our IT Team.
Craig joined the business in 2014. In addition to providing in-house helpdesk support across all departments, Craig’s role also involves maintaining the network infrastructure and all IT equipment.
Social Media
Contact Details
Software Developer
Ryan Jackson - Software Developer
Ryan is a Software Developer within our IT Team.
Ryan originally joined the business as a Desktop Support Technician in 2012 before progressing into a Software Development role in 2014. Ryan is responsible for the design and delivery of new applications including an MOJ streamlined portal interface, supporting the implementation of new legal processes and developing and maintaining our website.
Online Presence / Publications
- Pokémania – How to (responsibly) catch ‘em all
- Has 2016 has become synonymous with Virtual Reality (VR)?
IT Certifications / Qualifications
- Google Analytics Individual Qualification (IQ)
- Google Digital Garage - Online Marketing Fundamentals Qualification
- Google Mobile Sites Certification