Will Jones

Practice Areas

I am an experienced and versatile insolvency expert. I’ve focused entirely on insolvency and restructuring for virtually my entire career.

I undertake both contentious and non-contentious insolvency work although the majority of my work highlights relate to the non-contentious turnaround projects that I have been involved with. Within the last four years I have been directly involved in two projects that have been recognised as turn around deals of the year, one acting for the Norwegian purchasers of the Deltic Nightclub chain out of Adminsitration (in December 2020) and then again acting for the Administrators (Special Education Needs Limited where I acted for Alvarez and Marsal) (2021).

I work with a range of insolvency practitioners and funders alike and tend to be involved in more difficult projects due to my experience of problem solving and knowledge of the respective insolvency processes.

I have been involved in providing board support to significant companies with often complex group/investor structures and have expertise in structuring distressed funding.

Career

I was originally a trainee at Farleys solicitors in Blackburn and worked in their general corporate team between September 2004 – December 2005. In my final seat I was approached to transfer my training contract to the corporate insolvency team at a boutique Manchester firm Turner Parkinson LLP (“TP”).

I qualified into the Corporate Recovery and Insolvency team at TP in April 2006, was made an associate in May 2008 before being made its youngest ever partner in May 2010 (at 4 years qualified).

I was a junior Seller when TP sold to Knights where I was a partner in their insolvency team from January 2019 to October 2020 before leaving Knights to join Hill Dickinson LLP as a partner in November 2020.

Since Joining Hill Dickinson ran the insolvency group whilst Paul Spence was on sabbatical, became a deputy MLRO (2023 onwards) and currently sit as a board member on the LLP’s Board (2024 onwards).

Professional Memberships

Law Society

Personal

Outside of the law I enjoyed playing rugby recently retiring from the grass roots game.

I am married and have two daughters.

Together we run a small family farm in the Ribble Valley where I spend my spare time raising a small flock of sheep, fattening pigs, rearing chickens and running a small apiary. This provides a complete contrast to the pressures of my legal career and helps to provide my children with a good grounding an understanding of the importance of and the rewards that flow (quite literally in the case of honey) from hard consistent work.

Work Highlights

My career has always been in insolvency and I have been involved in a number of high profile projects over the years including a number acting for administrators:

- The administration of Chester City Football Club (acted for the administrator)

- The administration of Castle & Minster Credit Union (which I understand may have been the first credit union to use the Administration process).

- The Administration of Prescott & Conran Limited (Sir Terrence Conran’s family business chain)

- The Administrations of Unilad on the sale to Ladbible (multi-million pound sale of a tech business via a hostile creditor appointment)

- The Administrators of Special Educational Needs Limited*

- The Administrators of Fairlane Yachts Limited

- The Administrators of HH Law Limited

- The Administrators of

For Purchasers:

- Key Forensic Services Limited – acted for the PE house backed purchaser*

- Promotional Logistics Limited (“Prolog”) acted for PE house backed Cotton Traders in the purchase of its logistics business.

- Scent Global Limited

- Acted for the purchase of the Deltic Group*

For Funders:

- Kiss Flights, acted for its funder Penmarric Plc using its security position to best protects its interest before dealing with the multiple million pound guarantee claim brought by the Civil Aviation Authority in respect of its parent Company guarantee.

For Boards:

- Pexion Group

- Outspoken Logistics Limited (trading as Zedify)

Expert in these Jurisdictions

England and Wales.

Limited cross border work although have acted regarding the cross border recognition of Chapter 11 proceedings in England and Wales and the impact of the Chapter 11 on England and Wales based funders.

Extra territorial use of delivery up powers in bankruptcy where we pursued a bankrupt in New York for information.