Transport, Logistics & Supply Chain
Our Transport, Logistics & Supply Chain Team is headed up by recognised specialist Howard Catherall, he and his team provide expert and specialist advice, assistance and representation to all those involved in the transportation and logistics sector. Across our team, we provide advice on commercial contracts, regulatory compliance, disputes, and corporate matters such as sales and acquisitions.
Our clients in this sector spans across those involved in domestic and international supply chains including traders, freight forwarders, hauliers, fulfilment house operators and warehouse keepers.
Leathes Prior recognises the significance of logistics to businesses of all sizes, to provide the best advice, the team is headed up by recognised specialist Howard Catherall, a Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport and the only Legal 500 “Hall of Fame” lawyer for Transport & Shipping based in East Anglia. We are proud members of BIFA and UKWA, and provide a full range of legal services to the supply chain sector. Our team operates from our Norfolk and Suffolk offices, able to assist clients across East Anglia and beyond.
Our Regulatory and Criminal Defence Team provides advice and representation to businesses and individuals operating in the Transport, Logistics & Supply Chain sector, for example those facing DVSA, Police, HSE, Trading Standards, GLAA, HMRC and Environment Agency investigations and prosecutions, or proceedings before the Traffic Commissioner, or Coroner’s Investigations and Inquests in the event of fatalities.
Our Commercial Property Team works alongside our clients on all their property needs, including taking new leases, assigning leases following Partner retirements and appointments, granting underleases to complimentary occupiers, buying and selling property and financing premises.
Our team specialise in being able to assist businesses in the sector with terms and conditions of both supply and purchase, as well as logistics and transport agreements, warehousing and storage agreements, and third party logistics agreements, all seeking to build in the necessary protections to protect your business against the variability of, and potential commercial shocks within, the sector.
We can also advise, as with many other business sectors, on the general commercial challenges which your business will need to consider, such as data protection compliance, in particular when handling customer data, any licensing arrangements, and intellectual property matters.
We act for many clients in the transport & logistics sector in all areas of employment law, including preparing bespoke employment contracts and policies tailored to the unique needs in this arena; managing staff; advising on employment disputes, termination and recruitment; acting in employment tribunal litigation and immigration assistance.
With our comprehensive understanding of the sector, we swiftly navigate complex workplace matters to ensure, where possible, a swift, practical resolution is reached. Our experience in the sector means our solicitors give relevant, specialist, practical and up to the minute advice on situations in your business as they develop.
Leathes Prior provides practical, commercially focused advice to all types of businesses operating within the transport and distribution industry. We have experience acting for hauliers, freight forwarders, shipping and aviation operators, warehousing providers, manufacturers, and retailers. We understand that this industry requires precise and swift advice to minimise business interruption.
Our Team can assist with:
- Charter agreement disputes and shipping disputes
- General commercial disputes
- Debt recovery
- Warehousing disputes
- Personal injury claims
- Damage and loss of goods disputes
- Insurance disputes
- Road transport and haulage disputes
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What our clients say
Just want to say thank you for all your hard work and you made it so much easier having you to represent us as we wouldn’t have got the same result without you. I would recommend you to anyone who need your services and I would certainly use you if I did need a solicitor.
I just wanted to say thank you ever so much for your help and representation today. Being in the court room was a lot more daunting than expected and I am really pleased with the service and representation you supplied. I would also like to give thanks as I know you took on my case at the last moment leaving you with a lot less time to prepare than you’d have desired. Yet you helped put me at ease and brought very much a calmness to the proceedings without giving any unrealistic expectations. I found this very reassuring.
I am emailing you to express my profound thanks for all your help in this distressing case. I could not have asked for a more professional and considerate response. I felt that you understood the difficulty of my case and reacted in a sympathetic but determined manor. Without your help I feel that I could have ended up in a very precarious situation. I would not hesitate to recommend you to anyone else in a similar crisis.
Professional and impressive.
Prompt, helpful and relevant advice.
I wanted to thank you for your dedication to my case and your excellent presentation to the magistrates on my behalf. Without your services I would not be driving today. I thought the way you approached the challenge of achieving a successful outcome for me was a masterpiece of strategy, planning and delivery. It was so interesting to watch you take the magistrates eloquently 'by the hand' through the maze of events and diverse facts that constituted my defence. Every "dot and t" was crossed with no stone left unturned. Your diligence, creativity and thorough investigations were exemplary and left no quarter for ambiguity at any stage of the proceedings. Furthermore the defence bundles that you prepared were a masterclass in both presentation and logical progression, and presented a daunting collection of hard evidence and background information to the magistrates which helped my defence significantly and shaped their response in a sympathetic and positive way. If there was a prize for the most accomplished defence of a client in a driving conviction case, you would certainly win it! Thank you Leathes Prior for being so accommodating.
I cannot praise too highly the professionalism, dedication and sheer hard work put in by all concerned. I was most impressed with the preparation, thoroughness and attention to detail which took place.
Autumn Budget 2025: Agricultural Property Relief & Business Property Relief Changes
It was announced in the 2025 Budget that from 6 April 2026, changes will be made to agricultural property relief and business property relief. These changes bring APR and BPR in line with the nil-rate band rules, meaning unused allowances can be transferred to a surviving spouse or civil partner. This is a significant step towards making estate planning easier for families who own farms or businesses.
The Employment Rights Act 2025 is expected to come into force tomorrow (18 December 2025)
After an extended period of back-and-forth amendments between Parliament and the House of Lords, on 16 December 2025, the ERB finally received approval from the House of Lords, with the formality of Royal Assent due to take place tomorrow (18 December 2025). Head of LP Employment, Dan Chapman, explains...
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Charity of the Month: The Matthew Project
Leathes Prior is delighted to be supporting The Matthew Project as our Charity of the Month for December 2025. The Matthew Project supports young people and adults across Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex to overcome issues around drugs, alcohol, and mental health, empowering them to rebuild confidence and lead fulfilling lives.
Leathes Prior’s Milan Pandit appointed President of the Norfolk & Norwich Law Society
Leathes Prior Solicitors is proud to announce that Milan Pandit, Solicitor in our Corporate & Commercial Team, has been appointed President of the Norfolk & Norwich Law Society (NNLS) for 2025/26.
Commercial Lease Renewals: A guide for Landlords & Tenants
Commercial lease renewals are a topic that every commercial landlord and business that rents commercial premises should have at the forefront of their minds. It is essential for good succession planning, though it is often neglected until the expiry of an existing lease term is looming or once the existing term has come to an end and the tenant is holding over. In this article, our newly qualified solicitor, Maggie Berry explores the process that landlords and tenants can expect when navigating this complex area of law.
Our Guidance, Your Legacy: What is a Will, and why should I make one?
Not only is a Will one of the most important steps you can take to protect your loved ones and ensure your wishes are respected, but it also limits the likelihood of a claim/dispute following your death. To ensure your loved ones and the causes you care about benefit from your estate, a Will is essential to ensuring this happens. Find out more in this article.
Lease extensions: The essentials to getting started
Extending your lease can seem complex, but taking the right steps early can make the process much smoother. Jake Mowatt, Associate and Harry Smith, Trainee Solicitor in our Residential Property Team outlines the key essentials every leaseholder should understand prior to extending their lease.
Upcoming changes to bringing employment law claims: What these mean for you
The highly anticipated Employment Rights Bill (ERB) is set to increase the time limits in which employees can bring an employment tribunal claim. Gareth Stevens & Rose Woolterton explain what this means for employers & employees.
Service Charges in Residential Leases: FAQs
Service charges are forever a hot topic in the world of property disputes, and it remains one of the most contentious areas between freeholders and leaseholders, particularly in long residential leases. Danny Turpin, Associate, discusses frequently asked questions regarding service charges on long residential leases.
Leathes Prior winners in nine categories in the prestigious Legal 500 Future Laywer Survey
We are thrilled to announce that the firm has placed once again in the Legal 500 Future Lawyer survey as No.1 in the UK for our Social Life; a ranking we have held in the survey for seven years out of the past nine years.
Jess’s Rule – New Guidelines for GPs
A new initiative is being rolled out across GP practices across England in the hope of preventing serious illnesses being missed by GPs where patients present with the same, or deteriorating, symptoms on multiple occasions. Kimberley Nelson in our Personal Injury & Clinical Negligence Team discusses new guidelines for GPs.
Leathes Prior are excited to announce that four Trainee Solicitors qualify at the firm
Leathes Prior is excited to announce that four of our amazing trainees, Eleanor Chapman, Maggie Berry, Alex Robinson, and Georgia Sartin, have successfully completed their training contracts and are now qualifying as Solicitors at the firm.
