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VIEW ALLlegal 500 2025Vernon Dennis is an excellent strategist who is always one step ahead of the industry as a whole.
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A highly experienced specialist in business transformation, Vernon Dennis is Head of Business Advisory and leads the firms Restructuring and Insolvency group.
Vernon is a solicitor with over 25 years’ experience designing and implementing financial recovery and restructuring plans for business clients.
Leading our specialist group of experts, he utilises the full resources available from within the firm, whether tax, employment, banking or real estate to provide pragmatic and commercially driven solutions for clients. And where applicable, he works in collaboration with leading industry experts.
Known for his technical expertise, and for making the complex simple, Vernon advises insolvency practitioners, creditors and debtors on a wide range of corporate recovery, reconstruction and business rescue issues, both domestically and cross-border. He specialises in strategic and advisory support for company boards when planning programmes of business turnaround, restructuring or transformation.
Vernon's expertise is of universal application in any business sector but following economic and structural industry change, recent work has seen a real focus in the last 12 months in the retail and leisure sectors.
He has extensive experience in retail and restaurant distress, property portfolio restructuring and cases known for their technical complexity.
Vernon is a Fellow of R3 (The Association of Business Recovery Professionals) and is an accredited member of the Institute for Turnaround network.
A regular lecturer and commentator on insolvency, he is author of the Law Society's Insolvency Law Handbook now in its 4th Edition (published April 2021). He is also co-author of New Law of Insolvency (2003) and sole author of the Law Society's Insolvency Law series; Administration (2010), Liquidation (2011), and Bankruptcy (2012).
- Acting for the administrators of HMV, Hummingbird Bakeries and stakeholders' representation in the insolvencies of House of Fraser and Debenhams. Devising CVA's for Select Fashion and Apricot Clothing.
- Acting in the restructuring and rescue of brand led businesses, including those of Orla Kiely, Charlotte Olympia and that of an internationally renowned chef/restaurateur.
- Acting for restaurant and hospitality businesses, including representation for Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group, Big Groupe/Big Fernand, Park Chinois, Modern Pantry, Out of Woods Restaurant Group and Adventure Bars.
- Providing technical expertise on tactical use of court receivership in the UK's longest running divorce and child maintenance case and in the complex liquidation of the Cambridge Analytica Group.
- "Vernon Dennis is one of the most forward thinking insolvency lawyers in the sector and maintains an incredible focus on current and future issues." Legal 500 UK 2024
- "Vernon Dennis is a very experienced litigator who is a safe pair of hands for insolvency practitioners to instruct – he delivers results." Legal 500 UK 2024
- Accredited member of the Institute for Turnaround network, the UK's leading membership organisation for turnaround experts.
- LawCareers.Net 2019 Training and Recruitment Awards - Nominee Best Training Principal
- Winner of Insolvency Law Firm of the Year (three partners or less) at Turnaround, Restructuring and Insolvency Awards 2021.
- Winner of Insolvency Law Firm of the Year (three partners or less) at Turnaround, Restructuring and Insolvency Awards 2020.
- Shortlisted for Insolvency Law Firm of the Year (three partners or less) at Turnaround, Restructuring and Insolvency Awards 2019.
Vernon is a diehard indie, festival going, vinyl revivalist.
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