MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS SOLICITORS
Better deals start with the right legal backing
Buy, sell or restructure your UK business with transparent, fixed-fee legal support at every stage of the transaction.
MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS SOLICITORS
Better deals start with the right legal backing
M&A SUPPORT FROM START TO FINISH
Commercial where it matters. Thorough where it counts.
Price starts the conversation, but the structure and terms determine what the deal is worth. We help you understand what sits behind the headline number, what you're committing to and where you need stronger protection.
From confidentiality agreements and heads of terms to due diligence, negotiation and completion, our M&A solicitors shape those terms and put the right warranties, disclosures and protections in place to support your commercial goals.
Commercial where it matters. Thorough where it counts.
Price starts the conversation, but the structure and terms determine what the deal is worth. We help you understand:
From confidentiality agreements and heads of terms to due diligence, negotiation and completion, our M&A solicitors shape those terms and put the right warranties, disclosures and protections in place to support your commercial goals.
Dr Jackie Nagtegaal
Legal Services Director, Lawyerly
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Dr Jackie Nagtegaal
Co-Founder & Director
Jackie has spent 20 years rethinking how legal services reach the people and businesses that need them. Before co-founding Lawyerly, she built and led one of Africa's largest alternative legal organisations, growing it to over 300 people and earning recognition across legal service, technology, innovation, and dispute resolution. She holds a PhD, awarded with the Top Achiever distinction, and has been named one of the top five women in legal tech.
As Co-Founder of Lawyerly, Jackie sets the strategic direction. Her work is guided by a single conviction: the law should work for people, not the other way around. Two decades of designing legal models that put commercial reality and client need ahead of legal tradition keep Lawyerly's service practical, human, and valuable for the businesses it works with.
Qualifications
LLB; MPhil (Cum Laude); PhD (Top Achiever Award); Key Regulatory Compliance Certifications
Which side of the deal are you on?
Buying and selling involve different priorities, risks and legal steps. Choose your transaction to see how we support you at each phase, and how our fixed fees work.
I'm buying a business
Buying your first business, a competitor or bolt-on acquisition? We investigate what you're taking on, negotiate protections, and guide the deal to completion.
I'm selling a business
Preparing to exit, retire, or realise the value you've built? We get the business ready for sale, manage disclosure, and negotiate limits on your liability.
We don't get paid more the longer your deal takes
Traditional firms charge for time. We price each phase upfront, so our incentive is the same as yours: to get the deal done properly and efficiently, without the legal bill continuing to climb.
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Senior solicitors throughout
A senior, SRA-regulated solicitor leads your transaction from the first call all the way through to completion.
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Commercial judgement at every step
We help you distinguish between points worth negotiating and those that could add cost or delay without improving the deal.
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Priced per phase, agreed upfront
Each stage is scoped and priced before it starts. Approve the work and fee as the transaction progresses, with no hourly fees.
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Made for SME deals
We support share and asset deals, management buy-outs, exits and growth through acquisition.
We don't get paid more the longer your deal takes.
Traditional firms charge for time. We price each phase upfront, so our incentive is the same as yours: to get the deal done properly and efficiently, without the legal bill continuing to climb.
-
Senior solicitors throughout
A senior, SRA-regulated solicitor leads your transaction from the first call all the way through to completion.
-
Commercial judgement at every step
We help you distinguish between points worth negotiating and those that could add cost or delay without improving the deal.
-
Priced per phase, agreed upfront
Each stage is scoped and priced before it starts. Approve the work and fee as the transaction progresses, with no hourly fees.
-
Made for SME deals
We support share and asset deals, management buy-outs, exits and growth through acquisition.
Big-firm expertise in your corner
Our M&A solicitors bring experience from leading law firms and international businesses, supporting buyers, sellers, founders, investors and management teams through acquisitions, exits and restructures.
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Patricia Tinn
Legal Service Director
Patricia Tinn
Legal Service Director
SRA No. 634623
Patricia is a corporate and commercial solicitor whose practice centres on mergers and acquisitions, early-stage investment rounds (particularly angel and pre-seed), and the commercial agreements that underpin high-growth businesses. Trained at DLA Piper and seasoned through a range of in-house counsel roles, she has advised FTSE100 corporations, public bodies, and high-profile individuals.
As Senior Solicitor and Legal Services Director at Lawyerly, Patricia leads service delivery for a client base weighted toward tech and AI. She guides founders and investors through funding rounds, structures strategic acquisitions, and negotiates the subscription agreements, technology licences, and partnership arrangements that scale-ups depend on. Her fluency in data privacy, IP, and regulatory matters means she can drive the full range of workstreams that tech deals demand, keeping transactions moving and valuations protected.
Qualifications
LLB (Hons); LPC MSc in Law, Business and Management
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James Conning
Commercial Solicitor
James Conning
Commercial Solicitor
SRA No. 576972
James is a commercial and corporate solicitor whose practice centres on commercial contracts, technology and intellectual property, and disputes, sharpened by a keen commercial sense for how the law plays out in business reality. He has practised at Pinsent Masons, EY Law, and across a range of in-house roles, leading on SaaS and software licensing negotiations, M&A due diligence, and commercial litigation alongside international stakeholders on high-value, complex matters.
As Commercial Solicitor at Lawyerly, James brings that range to SMEs that need serious commercial advice without the complexity of a traditional firm relationship. He negotiates and manages contracts, advises on technology and IP, and helps clients pre-empt the disputes that derail growth. His particular fluency in contract management and technology law means he can tighten commercial frameworks and reduce legal risk as businesses scale.
Qualifications
LLB (Hons); LPC (Commendation)
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Ashrelle Parker-Belgrave
Commercial Solicitor
Ashrelle Parker-Belgrave
Commercial Solicitor
SRA No. 839517
Ashrelle is a commercial solicitor who built her practice at Browne Jacobson LLP, a leading UK national law firm, advising private and public sector clients on contracts, IP, and procurement. Her experience extends into real estate, clinical negligence, employment, and government infrastructure, giving her a breadth few solicitors at her level can offer.
As Commercial Solicitor at Lawyerly, Ashrelle focuses on practical commercial advice for growing businesses, building the long-term client relationships that turn legal counsel into trusted partnership. She is as comfortable reviewing a software agreement as steering a complex procurement, and her employment expertise lets her advise on the people-side issues that sit alongside the commercial ones, keeping clients covered across the full picture of their business as it scales.
Qualifications
LLB (Hons); LPC LLM
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Dr Jackie Nagtegaal
Co-Founder & Director
Dr Jackie Nagtegaal
Co-Founder & Director
Jackie has spent 20 years rethinking how legal services reach the people and businesses that need them. Before co-founding Lawyerly, she built and led one of Africa's largest alternative legal organisations, growing it to over 300 people and earning recognition across legal service, technology, innovation, and dispute resolution. She holds a PhD, awarded with the Top Achiever distinction, and has been named one of the top five women in legal tech.
As Co-Founder of Lawyerly, Jackie sets the strategic direction. Her work is guided by a single conviction: the law should work for people, not the other way around. Two decades of designing legal models that put commercial reality and client need ahead of legal tradition keep Lawyerly's service practical, human, and valuable for the businesses it works with.
Qualifications
LLB; MPhil (Cum Laude); PhD (Top Achiever Award); Key Regulatory Compliance Certifications
more
Willem van der Merwe
Co-Founder
Willem van der Merwe
Co-Founder
Willem began his career with a foundation in law before moving into business and communication. He led two advertising agencies through significant digital change and spent years as a digital publisher before moving into the international development sector, working on programmes across South East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
At Lawyerly, he brings a marketer's instinct for clarity and a strategist's eye for how organisations grow. His training spans AI business strategy at MIT alongside formal studies in law and marketing, which means he thinks carefully about how legal services need to evolve to meet the real needs of modern businesses.
Qualifications
BA Law; AI Business Strategy (MIT); Nomadic Marketing (UCT)
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Jan Nagtegaal
Director
Jan Nagtegaal
Director
Jan began his career in law before broadening into corporate strategy and technology. He holds a Master's in Corporate Law and an MBA, and later completed a Master's in Applied Data Science, driven by a conviction that the legal profession could do far more with the data it generates. That combination of legal, commercial, and analytical training has shaped a career spent rethinking how legal services are designed and delivered, with a particular focus on projects that use data and digital tools to improve legal processes.
As Director at Lawyerly, Jan brings data analytics, financial management, and strategy to the firm. His blend of legal grounding, commercial instinct, and technical fluency means Lawyerly's growth is guided by someone who understands the practice as deeply as the business behind it.
Qualifications
LLB; LLM; MBA; MSc
Frequently asked questions
Answers to the questions we hear most often, on how the subscription works, what it covers and how we charge.
Most M&A solicitors charge by the hour, providing a cost estimate, but it is not a fixed price. That means the final cost can increase if the deal takes longer or involves more work than expected. Some firms charge a percentage of the deal value instead. That gives a figure upfront, but ties the fee to the price of the business rather than the legal work involved.
Lawyerly takes a different approach. Our fees are based on the legal work the deal requires, not the number of hours recorded or the value of the transaction. You receive a clear fixed price before the work begins, making the cost easier to understand, budget for and manage.
We start with a consultation to understand the deal and agree the right approach. The work is then split into four clear phases: getting the key terms and structure right, carrying out due diligence, negotiating the transaction documents and completing the deal. Each phase has a clear scope and a fixed fee agreed upfront. You approve and pay for one phase at a time, so you know the cost before the work starts and never pay for a later phase if the deal does not get that far.
Each phase is priced around the legal work we would normally expect for a transaction like yours, including the usual questions, negotiations and back-and-forth that come with getting a deal done. Most deals take a few turns, and the fee will not change every time something needs a closer look. If the deal progresses in a way that creates a genuinely changes the scope , we will explain what is needed and agree the cost with you before going ahead. And because you approve one phase at a time, if the deal falls through, you stop there and pay nothing for any phase that has not started.
The timing depends on the deal and how prepared both sides are, how quickly they share information, make decisions and respond. Some phases move faster than others, while due diligence and negotiating the transaction documents often take a bit longer. At the start of each phase, we will give you a realistic idea of the timing and keep you updated as the deal progresses. Overall, most transactions take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months.
You can book a no-cost, no-obligation consultation online to talk through the deal, the support you are looking for and whether Lawyerly is the right fit. It also gives us a chance to understand where things stand and explain how we would approach the work. If you decide to move forward, we will send you a fixed-fee proposal setting out the scope, cost and next steps. Once you approve and pay, we can begin the first phase.
Talk to use about your deal
Tell us about the business you are buying or selling. Our M&A solicitors will explain the legal work involved, answer your initial questions and talk you through our fixed-fee pricing.
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Willem van der Merwe
Co-Founder
Willem van der Merwe
Co-Founder
Willem began his career with a foundation in law before moving into business and communication. He led two advertising agencies through significant digital change and spent years as a digital publisher before moving into the international development sector, working on programmes across South East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
At Lawyerly, he brings a marketer's instinct for clarity and a strategist's eye for how organisations grow. His training spans AI business strategy at MIT alongside formal studies in law and marketing, which means he thinks carefully about how legal services need to evolve to meet the real needs of modern businesses.
Qualifications
BA Law; AI Business Strategy (MIT); Nomadic Marketing (UCT)
