Meet the Team
Our Conveyancing Team
Our Conveyancing Team are here to help make your property transaction a smooth process; whether you are selling, buying or both, we can help.
Jacquie Lyall
Conveyancing Operations Manager
Jacquie Lyall
Gill Dubyk
Conveyancing Legal Advisor
Gill Dubyk
Conveyancing Legal Adivsor
Gill is a legal adviser, who joined Butterworths in 2003. Prior to joining Butterworths, Gill lived and worked in Birmingham, and carried out conveyancing work from 1992 until 2000.
Gill moved to Carlisle in 2000 and after working briefly as a secretary at Crutes solicitors, began conveyancing again in 2001.
Gill has 25 years of experience in dealing with a variety of residential conveyancing sales and purchase transactions.
Christine Mason
Conveyancing Fee Earner
Christine Mason
Conveyancing Fee Earner
Christine is a qualified Chartered Legal Executive attending Northumbria University and completing Legal Executive qualifications in 2009.
Christine joined the Butterworths team in 2013 and currently works in the Penrith office.
Since qualifying Christine has worked in Conveyancing departments of large firms and smaller high street firms, gaining a vast experience of Property work including Freehold, Leaseholds, Transfers of Equity, Remortgage work and New Build.
Lizzie Riley
Conveyancing Fee Earner
Lizzie Riley
Conveyancing Fee Earner
Lizzie has worked in the Conveyancing Department since she joined in 2009 as a legal assistant. In 2012 Lizzie briefly worked at another firm as a trainee conveyancer and returned to Butterworths in early 2013 where she continued training as a conveyancer by taking on her files alongside her role as a locum.
During her time in conveyancing, Lizzie deals with matters including leasehold sales and purchases, new build transactions, auctions, remortgages and adverse possession applications.
Syeda Khanom
Conveyancing Legal Assistant
Syeda Khanom
Conveyancing Legal Assistant
Syeda joined Butterworths Solicitors as a legal assistant in our conveyancing department in July 2024 after achieving an LLB (Hons) in Law.
As part of her role within the conveyancing department, Syeda ensures communication with clients, requesting documentation and providing assistance to the conveyancing team.
Angela Latta
Trainee Property Lawyer
Angela Latta
Trainee Property Lawyer
Angela joined Butterworths Solicitors in 2015, joining the conveyancing department as a legal assistant working with Gill Dubyk and Lizzie Riley.
In the past 12 months, Angela has taken on her own caseload, dealing with residential sales and is progressing well and enjoying her training.
Our Civil Litigation Team
Our Civil Litigation Team are dedicated to resolving disputes with professionalism, strategic insight, and a commitment to your success.
Ashley Elliot
Civil Litigation
Ashley Elliot
Civil Litigation
Ashley qualified as a solicitor in 2001 after obtaining his Law Degree at the University of Sheffield and completing his Legal Practice Course at the College of Law. Ashley then joined Butterworths Solicitors in 2014.
Since qualifying as a solicitor, Ashley has worked exclusively in litigation and dispute resolution matters including boundary, neighbour and property disputes, commercial and residential landlord and tenant, debt collection and enforcement of judgments, breach of contract, negligence and professional negligence, nuisance and statutory nuisance, consumer matters, employment advice for employees and employers and contested wills, probates and estates.
Jared Duffy
Civil Litigation
Jared Duffy
Civil Litigation
Jared qualified as a solicitor in 2000 and supervises the firm’s litigation and dispute resolution team. With more than 20 years’ experience in the profession, he has handled complex civil and commercial litigation including disputes relating to contracts, property, banking and financial claims.
Lewis Walker
Civil Litigation
Lewis Walker
Lewis obtained his Criminology and Law Degree from the University of Cumbria in 2012.
Lewis has worked previously in conveyancing, personal injury, and civil litigation in the Manchester area for 2 years. In 2013 Lewis led a team handling flight delays, cancellations and denied boarding claims. He joined Butterworths in 2014 as team leader of our flight claims department.
Paolo Rocchi
Debt Claims Litigator
Paolo Rocchi
Debt Claims Litigator
In April 2023, Paolo joined as a Civil Litigator, managing his caseload of small claims, and is now a Debt Claims Litigator.
Paolo graduated with his Diploma in Legal Practice in 2019 while working as a court-based volunteer for a year, assisting Litigants in Person (Support Through Court). In January 2019, he started his first role as a fee earner where he began managing his own small claims caseload. Paolo then went to the UKVI (UK Visa and Immigration) in May 2022 as part of the civil service where he worked as a workflow manager. His main responsibility was the operational delivery of the humanitarian visa caseload for the Home For Ukraine Scheme.
Paolo really appreciates the support of his team, going as far to say that this is his favourite thing about his role. He loves learning from his professional, well experienced colleagues. When asked about what the most important part of his role is, Paolo thinks it’s the people he helps. He gets a lot of satisfaction from supporting his clients with their problems and doing everything he can to get a positive outcome for them. In terms of what clients can expect from Paolo, he strives to approach every task with a positive, professional attitude and have amazing attention to detail. When not busy helping clients, Paolo loves going for walks in the peak district with family. He also really enjoys having dinners with friends whenever possible.
Our Family Law Team
Our Family Law Team are dedicated to guiding you through life’s most personal and challenging moments with care, expertise, and professionalism. Whether you’re navigating a divorce, child custody arrangements, or financial settlements, our team is here to offer clear, compassionate advice tailored to your unique circumstances.
Ranjit Siddle
Head of Family Law
Ranjit Siddle
Head of Family Law
Ranjit qualified as a solicitor in 2005 after initially undertaking criminal defence work and qualifying as a duty solicitor in 2006.
Ranjit represents clients in relation to all aspects of family law; from divorce and financial matters to Children Act matters.
Outside of work, she finds joy in socialising with friends and family, keeping fit through long walks, exploring new foods as a self-proclaimed foodie, and spending quality time with her daughter.
Our Private Client Team
Our Private Client Team can assist with Wills, Trusts, Lasting Power of Attorney and Probate matters.
Christine Peat
Department Manager
Christine Peat
Christine has worked for the firm since its inception in 1993. She was a Practice Manager, covering many roles and responsibilities during her 30+ years at Butterworths.
In 2019 she made the decision to focus on managing the Private Client team and does so remotely with the occasional visit to the office.
Craig Taylor
Legal Advisor
Craig Taylor
Fee Earner
Craig has an MBA from The University of Northumbria and originally joined Butterworths in 1999 as an Independent Financial Advisor. Since then he has had a number of roles including working in private client and litigation, having worked extensively on banking issues and more recently general litigious matters.
He has extensive knowledge of the Financial Services regulation and of the dispute resolution services available to consumers and small businesses. He has court experience and has been involved in both formal dispute resolution matters, and less formal negotiation & mediation.
Grant Harrison
Probate Clerk
Grant Harrison
Probate Fee Earner
Grant has worked in the law as for 21 years, including in the areas of civil and criminal litigation and costs. Since 2012, Grant has worked in the firm’s probate department dealing with all aspects of estate administration. His role includes the registration of the death and funeral arrangements, obtaining grants of probate and letters of administration, obtaining interim grants of probate and full administration of estates, including dealing with IHT issues.
Grant also has experience of dealing with contested wills and contested estates and challenging care fees.
Graeme Ross
Legal Advisor
Graeme Ross
Fee Earner
Graeme started working for Butterworths in 2013, initially with a business development mind-set and acted in a triage role, fielding enquiries and taking instructions for a variety of matters, including personal injury and payment protection insurance. Graeme joined the private client team in 2016 and takes instructions for wills and estates. Graeme also fronts our free-advice sessions in Silloth, Aspatria, Alston and Longtown.
Sue Fearon
Legal Assistant
Sue Fearon
Legal Assistant
Sue started her career as an office junior in 1988 in a solicitor firm before progressing to a legal secretary. Sue has worked in various departments over the years and has gained masses of experience.
As part of her role in the private client team, Sue assists Grant Harrison in the administration of estates, including obtaining and organising relevant documentation. She also liaising with clients, executors, beneficiaries, and other relevant parties and handling various administrative tasks, such as scheduling meetings and preparing correspondence.
Nicola Stainton
Legal Assistant
Nicola Stainton
Legal Assistant
Having worked in various administration roles since 2002, Nicola started as a legal assistant at Butterworths Solicitors in 2009.
Nicola assists the private client teams. She assists the fee earners in various tasks, such as dealing with new enquiries, opening files, updating spreadsheets, sending out documents to clients and dealing with clients’ enquiries.
Our Personal Injury Team
Our Personal Injury Team have a wealth of experience dealing with Serious Injuries, Spinal Injuries, Head Trauma and Medical Negligence.
Jonathan Ditchburn
Head of Personal Injury
Jonathan Ditchburn
Head of Personal Injury
Jonathan obtained a Law Degree from Sheffield Hallam University and completed the Legal Practice Course at the University of Sheffield before qualifying as a solicitor in 1998.
After qualifying, Jonathan worked for 15 years at a niche personal injury firm in Carlisle, 9 of those being as a partner or director, before joining Butterworths in 2014. Jonathan is the supervisor for the firm’s personal injury department at Butterworths and undertakes a wide variety of personal injury claims including those involving multiple and life-changing injuries.
He has dealt with thousands of claims and has a very broad range of knowledge. Jonathan also assists with risk assessment and strategic decisions in the clinical negligence work undertaken by the firm.
Catherine Oakley
Head of Medical Negligence
Catherine Oakley
Head of Clinical Negligence
Catherine obtained a B.Sc. (Hons) Zoology from the University of Edinburgh, before completing her PhD within the College of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh.
After three years of post-doctoral research at Queen Elizabeth College, the University of London, funded by the Arthritis Research Council, Catherine was appointed as Assistant Professor in the College of Medicine, Sultan Qaboos University where she taught medical students during their pre-clinical years of study.
Catherine qualified as a solicitor in 2004 after obtaining her CPE and LPC qualifications from Northumbria University.
Catherine joined the Personal Injury team at Butterworths in 2015. With a broad knowledge of the law and understanding of medical matters, Catherine has specialised in claims for personal injury and industrial diseases since 2004.
Catherine deals with a wide range of claims from low-value online Portal claims relating to road traffic accidents, employers’ liability and public liability, to more complex high-value multi-track claims. Catherine also has a wide range of experience in medical negligence claims.
Victoria Hewat
Personal Injury Paralegal
Victoria Hewat
Victoria graduated from Lancaster University with a First Class Law Degree in 2022 and joined Butterworths Solicitors as a trainee solicitor in 2023.
Victoria works as part of the personal injury team as a trainee where she is constantly developing her skills. Victoria deals with her own caseload as well as supporting other solicitors with theirs.
Andrew Kirkpatrick
Personal Injury Solicitor
Andrew Kirkpatrick
Consultant
Andrew qualified as a solicitor in 1988 after studying at Liverpool University and the College of Law in Guildford. Coming from a large medical family, he moved into the field of personal injury immediately upon qualification and has developed considerable expertise and experience over a 30-year period.
He has previously worked in Blackburn and Manchester before relocating to Cumbria in 1990. Having previously served as a panel solicitor for trade unions in the health and transport sectors, he has acted in relation to a wide range of injuries.
These have included not only road traffic accidents but accidents at work or in the home as well as industrial diseases such as asbestosis, hand-arm vibration injury and occupational asthma.
He has a particular interest in catastrophic spinal and brain injuries and has achieved individual settlements in excess of £5m. He appears regularly in cases issued in the County and High Courts and has previously been retained to assist bereaved families through inquest procedures, appearing as an advocate for them in the Coroner’s Court.
The majority of his work now is in relation to acquired brain injury. He chairs the local branch of a brain injury support charity. He works closely with therapists and care teams providing rehabilitation for injured clients, ensuring that appropriate funding is provided for housing, transport or care needs and that the best medical and rehabilitative intervention possible is available throughout a claim.
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