Matthew Searle

Expertise Matthew Advises Experience Highlights Career History Testimonials

Partner

Corporate

+44 (0) 7986 383 991
“Net promoter Score (NPS) is a system used to measure the quality of service given to a client from their feedback. The score ranges from -100 to +100, a “positive” score or NPS above 0 is considered “good”, +50 is “Excellent,” and above 70 is considered “world class”.

Expertise

Matthew is a Cambridge-educated lawyer and in his 30 year career has helped a huge number of business owners fulfil their objectives. His particular interest is in company acquisitions for growing businesses and in achieving successful exits for owner-managers. He believes that he can provide the best service to his clients by really getting to know their businesses, their attitudes and their objectives and that the best lawyer/client relationships are built on high degrees of trust and confidence.

Matthew also advises businesses at the start-up and scale-up stages of their development, which will typically involve shareholders agreements, private equity and business angel investments, share buybacks and restructurings, as well as partial exits and management buyouts. Matthew acts for businesses across a wide range of sectors, with a particular emphasis on tech and renewables companies, including a number of spin-outs from the Sussex University business incubator.

Matthew is renowned for his ‘user-friendly’ and flexible style, with Chambers UK independent directory describing him as ‘a calm, organised and confident corporate lawyer whose experience inspires trust in his clients’.

Matthew is a Trustee of Enterprise Junction, a charity helping people with additional barriers become self-employed or start their own business to transform their lives.

Matthew Advises

  • Private companies
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Investors and business angels
  • University spin-out companies
  • Management teams
  • Owner-managed businesses

Experience Highlights

  • Sale of Gamesman Limited to Esterline Technologies Inc, a US $2 billion company listed on the New York Stock Exchange
  • Sale of Elektromotive Limited, a manufacturer of e-vehicle charging posts, to Chargemaster plc, involving Singapore-listed Elektromotive Group
  • Numerous acquisitions for Harwoods Limited, one of the largest motor dealership groups in the UK, and various other M&A transactions in the motor retail sector
  • Sale of part of a leading marine insurance broker and financial services group to Sunderland Marine
  • Sale of Patisserie Valerie restaurant group to Luke Johnson of Risk Capital Partners
  • Venture capital investment in Connect Mortgages Group by MMC Ventures
  • Project Apollo – sale of online retail business with proprietary order and distribution software for £30m to a London-based Private Equity firm
  • Project Maris – £5m investment by UK Business Growth Fund in client company and simultaneous acquisition of competitor business
  • Acquisition of UK group of companies by leading US matting manufacturer, Mountville Mills Inc.
  • Sale of leading independent brewer to Fuller, Smith and Turner plc
  • Project Otto – £10m acquisition of pharmaceuticals business from Administrators
  • Series A investment by Spanish utilities company into client company in the renewables technology sector
  • Numerous transactions for tech spin-out companies from the University of Sussex business incubator, including flood risk mapping software and photo-chemical molecular synthesis services in the pharma industry
  • Acquisition of Lewes Football Club for a private consortium, to create one of the first UK community benefit societies
  • Various advisory activities for B Corps and for not-for-profit organisations meeting rigorous social and environmental standards

Career History

Previous Law Firms 

  • Adams and Remers LLP – Partner, Head of Corporate and Commercial (1998 – 2013)
  • Thomas Eggar (now Irwin Mitchell) – Solicitor, Corporate (1993-1998)
  • Payne Hicks Beach – Solicitor, Corporate (1988-1993)

Expertise

Back to top

Matthew is a Cambridge-educated lawyer and in his 30 year career has helped a huge number of business owners fulfil their objectives. His particular interest is in company acquisitions for growing businesses and in achieving successful exits for owner-managers. He believes that he can provide the best service to his clients by really getting to know their businesses, their attitudes and their objectives and that the best lawyer/client relationships are built on high degrees of trust and confidence.

Matthew also advises businesses at the start-up and scale-up stages of their development, which will typically involve shareholders agreements, private equity and business angel investments, share buybacks and restructurings, as well as partial exits and management buyouts. Matthew acts for businesses across a wide range of sectors, with a particular emphasis on tech and renewables companies, including a number of spin-outs from the Sussex University business incubator.

Matthew is renowned for his ‘user-friendly’ and flexible style, with Chambers UK independent directory describing him as ‘a calm, organised and confident corporate lawyer whose experience inspires trust in his clients’.

Matthew is a Trustee of Enterprise Junction, a charity helping people with additional barriers become self-employed or start their own business to transform their lives.

Matthew Advises

Back to top
  • Private companies
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Investors and business angels
  • University spin-out companies
  • Management teams
  • Owner-managed businesses

Experience Highlights

Back to top
  • Sale of Gamesman Limited to Esterline Technologies Inc, a US $2 billion company listed on the New York Stock Exchange
  • Sale of Elektromotive Limited, a manufacturer of e-vehicle charging posts, to Chargemaster plc, involving Singapore-listed Elektromotive Group
  • Numerous acquisitions for Harwoods Limited, one of the largest motor dealership groups in the UK, and various other M&A transactions in the motor retail sector
  • Sale of part of a leading marine insurance broker and financial services group to Sunderland Marine
  • Sale of Patisserie Valerie restaurant group to Luke Johnson of Risk Capital Partners
  • Venture capital investment in Connect Mortgages Group by MMC Ventures
  • Project Apollo – sale of online retail business with proprietary order and distribution software for £30m to a London-based Private Equity firm
  • Project Maris – £5m investment by UK Business Growth Fund in client company and simultaneous acquisition of competitor business
  • Acquisition of UK group of companies by leading US matting manufacturer, Mountville Mills Inc.
  • Sale of leading independent brewer to Fuller, Smith and Turner plc
  • Project Otto – £10m acquisition of pharmaceuticals business from Administrators
  • Series A investment by Spanish utilities company into client company in the renewables technology sector
  • Numerous transactions for tech spin-out companies from the University of Sussex business incubator, including flood risk mapping software and photo-chemical molecular synthesis services in the pharma industry
  • Acquisition of Lewes Football Club for a private consortium, to create one of the first UK community benefit societies
  • Various advisory activities for B Corps and for not-for-profit organisations meeting rigorous social and environmental standards

Career History

Back to top

Previous Law Firms 

  • Adams and Remers LLP – Partner, Head of Corporate and Commercial (1998 – 2013)
  • Thomas Eggar (now Irwin Mitchell) – Solicitor, Corporate (1993-1998)
  • Payne Hicks Beach – Solicitor, Corporate (1988-1993)
Testimonials