Richard Guthrie

Richard specialises in corporate and commercial law and has over 20 years’ experience advising clients on:

• Buying and selling businesses and companies;
• Shareholder arrangements and joint ventures;
• Company re-organisations and mergers;
• Share incentive schemes;
• Employee ownership trusts;
• Fundraising and banking documents;
• Partnerships and LLPs;
• Commercial agreements and general contractual issues.

Richard provides clear and practical advice focused on helping clients achieve their aims. He is praised for quickly identifying the key issues to resolve and for his commitment to making sure clients get their deal done on time.
Richard is also a Notary Public, which means he can help with authenticating documents for use in other countries.

Corporate matters Richard has acted on include:

• Acting for CVS, a large veterinary group, on the acquisition of over 100 veterinary practices
• Advising on sale of road transport company Jack Richards & Son Limited to Turners (Soham) Limited
• Acting for Suffolk New College on its merger with Otley College
• Advising on sale of digital marketing agency PureContent to an Employee Ownership Trust
• Acting for Su-Bridge Pet Supplies on its acquisition of four pet food brands (Autarky, Chudleys, Gelert and Gusto) from United Petfood
• Advising on sale of engineering consultancy A F Howland Associates to the Celnor Group
• Advising on the merger of Corton House care home and independent living CIO, Brewster Court
• Advising on fundraising for purchase of local manufacturing company Daro Group, subsequent acquisitions and ultimate sale to Swedish listed company
• Advising on the sale of a number of Budgens supermarkets to other retailers
• Advising on sale of large local insurance group to national insurance broker
• Advising on management buyout of local engineering company
• Helping establish an EMI share option scheme for 20 employees and advising on subsequent sale to one of the UK's leading software companies
• Advising on a number of farming partnership agreements

Recently reported deals:

• Leathes Prior advise Su-Bridge Pet Supplies on the acquisition of pet food brands from United Petfood
• Leathes Prior act on sale of A F Howland Associates to Celnor Group
• Leathes Prior act on disposal of Pellcomp Software to the Advanced Group
• Leathes Prior advise on the sale of ABC Power to landfill operator Enovert
• Leathes Prior act on disposal of Thornton’s Budgens Belsize Park to the Kavanagh Group
• Leathes Prior act for Sellers: ‘The Richards name will live on’: Haulage firm bought out by Turners in £475m deal
• CVS acquires Animal Health Centre in Bristol
• Otley College merges with Suffolk New College

• Graduated in Law from King’s College London in 2000
• Worked at the High Court and in Canada – 2000-2002
• Joined Leathes Prior in 2004 as a trainee
• Qualified as a Solicitor in September 2006
• Became a Partner in 2014
• Became the firm’s Compliance Officer for Legal Practice (COLP) in 2017
• Member of the firm’s Management Committee – 2017
• Trustee of Corton House & Brewster Court, a Care Home and Independent Living CIO in Norwich – 2023