ABOUT CHANCERY LEGAL

We find brilliant lawyers for dynamic law firms.

Who we are

We connect the very best lawyers with the right law firms. Specialists in partner-level and team hires, we have 20 years experience of making the right introductions.

We have helped the UK’s best regional, national and international law firms to launch new offices, build new departments, attract senior leaders, hire established teams and recruit the very best partner level talent.

We have also opened doors for a whole host of aspirational lawyers – partners and those on the brink of partnership – helping them find the optimum career move to ensure they can prosper and grow.

What makes us different

Bespoke Approach

Every client and candidates is unique. Flexible in our approach, we develop solutions that are tailored to your specific needs and objectives.

Deep Sector Knowledge

Our strong understanding of the legal sector, its pressures and its direction of travel helps us to identify opportunities for you on the horizon.

Outstanding Contacts

We have built our people network over 20 years. Our relationships have depth, helping us to know which clients and candidates will be right for one another.

Director led approach

Our director-led approach will ensure that your project is handled with a reassuring level of experience. We are focused at all times.

Proven Expertise

Law firm leadership teams have entrusted us for many years to deliver on complex projects. We have a strong track record of finding the best people.

Relationship Driven

Our relationship with you starts from the first conversation and will put your goals at the heart of our work together.

Leadership

Emma Potts is the energy and drive behind Chancery.

Emma was at the forefront of legal sector headhunting as it developed in the UK in the 1990s.

Since establishing Chancery in 2001, she has helped law firms to launch new offices, grow new teams, merge, find new leaders and recruit experienced partners across all legal disciplines.

Law firms say that she has a skill for understanding what makes their businesses tick and the sort of people that will thrive in their cultures. She is a headhunter in the truest sense, working to specific and demanding briefs to find the right talent.

Emma also works with individual lawyers and legal teams who want to explore their options and find law firms that will value their contribution and help them grow. Her approach is commercial and holistic, always focused on finding the absolute right fit, to enable lawyers to build exciting futures together.

Emma is a qualified solicitor and Henley Business School trained Executive Coach. Outside of work she is a keen runner and hill walker. She lives in the Cotswolds with her family and a very energetic dog.

OUR LEGAL COMMUNITY

Chancery is a business based on other people. Chancery exists because of and for talented lawyers. It is your appetite to grow that enables us to thrive and your challenges that give us a reason to be.

20 years ago we were untested as a business. We owe a debt of gratitude to those managing partners and partners that instructed us in the early days and gave us the chance to deliver.

Without your early support we may not have been where we are now. Certainly, it would have been much less fun without you.

20 years on, almost all our work continues to be driven by personal recommendations and repeat instructions. We are thankful to be part of a thriving legal sector, fortunate to work with people with drive, innovative thinking and robust values. Good people attract other good people and we appreciate every time that we have been recommended by one lawyer to another as the right legal headhunting business to work with. There’s no better endorsement of our work than a personal recommendation.

What our clients say...

Emma worked with me to fulfil strategic external partner appointments over a ten year period on a wholly exclusive basis as we developed from a regional to a national business. She brought a hugely professional approach to the brief and became a tremendous ambassador for our law firm. Her grounded, comm…

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Managing Partner - Top 50 UK Law firm

Emma worked with me to fulfil strategic external partner appointments over a ten year period on a wholly exclusive basis as we developed from a regional to a national business. She brought a hugely professional approach to the brief and became a tremendous ambassador for our law firm. Her grounded, common-sense approach was matched by tireless loyalty. Emma had a rare knack of ensuring her personal support to prospective hires in the critical post offer stage ensured that we never received backword once.

Managing Partner - Top 50 UK Law firm

I was first approached by Emma when she was acting for a Top 30 international law firm. The time was not right to move but she kept in touch and when the time was right for me, she was my first point of contact. Emma displayed a great understanding of the insurance market and signposted us to appropriat…

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Regional Head of Insurance - Top 30 international law firm

I was first approached by Emma when she was acting for a Top 30 international law firm. The time was not right to move but she kept in touch and when the time was right for me, she was my first point of contact. Emma displayed a great understanding of the insurance market and signposted us to appropriate legal advice on navigating employment covenants during the move. She was supportive at every stage throughout what can be a difficult process and was an effective liaison throughout. I shall be using her when I am looking for other people who might help grow our practice.

Regional Head of Insurance - Top 30 international law firm

Emma has now placed me twice, both times at significant points in my career. On both occasions she was hugely supportive and spent as much time as it took for me to be certain that the moves were right for me as well as for my new firm. Both placements have proved to be extremely successful.

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Employment Partner and Head of Regional Office - Top 100 law firm

Emma has now placed me twice, both times at significant points in my career. On both occasions she was hugely supportive and spent as much time as it took for me to be certain that the moves were right for me as well as for my new firm. Both placements have proved to be extremely successful.

Employment Partner and Head of Regional Office - Top 100 law firm

Emma was instrumental in helping me to make some key strategic hires at a time when we were launching a new regional office and had to get the right people on board. She had an excellent appreciation of the type of person/mindset/ values that were needed for our firm and completely understood the opport…

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Regional Managing Partner - Top 100 law firm

Emma was instrumental in helping me to make some key strategic hires at a time when we were launching a new regional office and had to get the right people on board. She had an excellent appreciation of the type of person/mindset/ values that were needed for our firm and completely understood the opportunities we were creating and she took the time to make sure she properly represented our business to potential recruits. As a result of Emma’s efforts, we have been able to recruit a number of senior people, all of whom have been great additions and who themselves appreciated Emma’s thoroughness and responsive, understanding approach to what can often be an incredibly stressful time for them. Emma commits herself thoroughly to the process and has a very hands-on, sensible approach. She can be trusted to deal with the most sensitive of circumstances and provides great support for recruiters and candidates in equal measure. She is definitely someone I would choose to work with again.

Regional Managing Partner - Top 100 law firm

Contact us today to see how Chancery can help you with your legal search and legal recruitment needs