National law firm Irwin Mitchell is growing its Construction & Engineering Team with the recruitment of a new partner, Robert Tunningley, who will be based in the firm’s Gatwick office.

The appointment takes the specialist construction team to thirteen, with three partners and two trainees. The team is led by Mark Clinton and sits within Irwin Mitchell’s Property Division which will now number 27 partners and over 150 qualified lawyers.

Robert joins Irwin Mitchell from Teacher Stern LLP where he was a non-contentious construction partner. Prior to joining Teacher Stern, Robert was a Managing Associate at Linklaters LLP.

Robert regularly acts for employers, developers, contractors, funders and consultants and advises clients on numerous construction contracts, drafting and negotiating bespoke amendments to industry standard forms, and advising on all associated documentation such as appointments, collateral warranties, bonds and guarantees.

He has acted on a number of high profile developments including the development of new office headquarters, high-end residential conversions, student accommodation, private rented sector (PRS) schemes and mixed-use redevelopment projects. Robert also has experience in advising on engineering projects both in the UK and internationally.

Key examples of recent work include:

• Advising a developer on numerous schemes, including a residential scheme and BTR scheme in Birmingham. The second of these was subject to a forward funding agreement entered into with an institutional investor and represented its first steps into the UK residential market.

• Acting across several developments for a West End property developer and advising as the company looked to complete increasingly complicated deals. This included working on a share purchase agreement conditional upon the completion of the construction of a care home, as well as multiple mixed-use schemes and their funding.

• Advising a developer on the construction and financing of a refurbishment for an office block in Old Street, London, as well as a high-end residential development in Buckingham Gate.

• Acting for a tenant on its lease of a 6-storey block in the West End and its subsequent fit out.

• Acting for other tenants in respect of their new office headquarters and a healthcare portfolio in connection with its expanding portfolio.

• Acting for a number of different funders, including bridge funders on development finance matters, advising and reporting on all aspects of construction law.

Mark Clinton, Head of Construction at Irwin Mitchell said, “Robert’s arrival will be a real boost to our national construction practice, particularly for our Southern region and in London.  He will strengthen our development practice and our push into housing and BTR.”

“We are now looking to boost the contentious side of our construction practice, following the fall out from the Building Safety Act, where we believe clients will need expert construction advice.”

Irwin Mitchell has continued to invest heavily in its team focused on the corporate, property and institutions audience. Earlier this year it announced the arrival of banking partner Jeremy Ladyman who was soon followed by the arrival of two corporate/property tax partners, Kate Featherstone and Jennie Newton.