Gallie Miles is an established law firm with offices in Otorohanga, Te Awamutu and Hamilton, and has a particular focus on rural and commercial law . This year, Gallie Miles marks thirty years of providing legal advice to generations of Waikato and King Country clients. Over that time, the way that law is delivered, and the law itself, has changed considerably. Here, the Directors share their thoughts on the key things for clients to consider when seeking legal advice:
Kirsty McDonald – Kirsty specialises in relationship property and dispute resolution. Much of her work revolves around advising rural and commercial clients on their legal rights when disputes have arisen. Often having good documentation and record keeping is the key to achieving effective resolution of disputes. This can include formal documents like contracts, bank statements and agreements, or less formal documents like emails and diary entries. Seeking advice early in the process can also make a difference to the outcome, including the time and cost required to resolve disputes.
Bryce Bluett – Bryce specialises in commercial property advice particularly developments and subdivisions. Many of his clients are developers and commercial property owners that need solutions-focussed advice in tight timeframes. Like Kirsty, he stresses the importance of making sure clients understand documents and get robust advice before signing anything. While Bryce does a lot of work with clients wanting to form new business relationships, much of his work also focusses on working with clients to unwind business relationships. Often this is recorded in Partnership Deeds and Shareholder Agreements. Bryce stresses the importance of making sure these are drafted for the individual business and situation relying on a cheap “one size fits all” template can mean that important information is mis-recorded, or missed out entirely.
Shelley Greer – Shelley specialises in trust and estate planning. Her work is increasingly focused on providing advice to families who are wanting to transfer wealth and share assets during their lifetime. Future-proofing these arrangements is crucial. Making sure that clients have up to date Wills, and Powers of Attorney in place, and reviewing other related documents such as Trust Deeds and Statements of Wishes for a Trust are often steps in the process that are overlooked or not considered at all, which can result in disastrous outcomes for all concerned. With an aging population, Shelley expects inter-generational living and estate planning advice to be a key requirement for many clients in the years to come.
Sue Garmonsway – Sue specialises in advice on rural property transactions, succession planning and inter-generational living. Having robust and open discussions is a crucial step in advising clients, as is involving all experts at the outset. Often this will involve meeting with client Bankers and Accountants to enable full consideration is given to all options. Rural property transactions also create the need for specialist knowledge on a range of issues, from effluent and water supply issues, to Kiwifruit yields and fertilizer applications rates. For Sue and her clients, having a trusted network of experts available to assist and advise can be the difference between success and failure.
Like many businesses, a successful law practice relies on trusted relationships between client and advisor. Gallie Miles prides themselves on friendly and innovative service, and looks forward to providing advice to rural and commercial clients for years to come.
