Kathryn Hirst

Kathryn Hirst is the Managing Partner of the firm and heads up the Commercial Department at Hansells, including employment and commercial law.

Kathryn is based at our Cambridge House office in Norwich but travels around our other offices, as her work requires.  Kathryn specialises in commercial contracts such as terms of business, supply contracts, share purchase agreements and asset purchase agreements and in setting up charitable incorporated organisations. She also provides commercially focused employment advice and assistance.  Kathryn work varies from responding to day-to-day enquiries, drafting contracts, policies and procedures, advising on redundancy processes, dealing with the TUPE implications of acquisitions and disposals, advising on the exit of senior managers and directors and settlement agreements, to dealing with Employment Tribunal claims.

Kathryn has over 20 years of experience in the law, having joined Hansells in 1997 and qualifying as a Solicitor in 1999.  Kathryn is a graduate of the University of Leicester, where she obtained a 2:1 (Hons) law degree and she completed the Legal Practice Course at The College of Law in Guildford.  In 2003, Kathryn gained a Masters degree in Employment Law from the University of East Anglia and she is presently studying for a CIPD qualification. Kathryn became a partner of Hansells in 2008 and is a member of the Employment Lawyers Association and the CIPD.  She has presented numerous in-house and public seminars on a range of employment and commercial topics and received excellent feedback.

Outside of work, Kathryn keeps herself busy by trying to keep fit, studying for an HR qualification, spending time with her family and friends and running around after her two sports-mad boys.  Kathryn is also a trustee of the Assembly House Trust and of the Horstead Centre.

Areas of expertise:

• contracts, policies and procedures
• employee disciplinary issues
• performance management
• redundancy
• unfair and constructive dismissal claims
• discrimination
• employee exits
• settlement agreements
• TUPE
• acquisitions and disposals
• terms of business
• partnership agreements
• shareholder agreements
• asset purchase agreements
• charitable incorporated organisations
• trading companies