Do you remember your business’s first office? The thrill of opening the door on a new space, and making it your own? That tingle of excitement when the newly connected phone rang for the first time?

We do! At LGFL Ltd, we’ve always wanted our office spaces to reflect our company values of friendly professionalism, privacy and pragmatism. We could have opted for sleek, City-style offices, but instead we valued the discretion, calming aspect and private parking of our various country house locations. Due to expansion, we’re on our third period property office suite in 10 years!

However, we do know that not everyone has the time or ability to come to our offices in Swallowfield, how ever lovely they are. So we looked for a solution that gave those working in central Reading or commuting to London an option to see us when it suited them best.

BUT, and it was a big BUT, that location needed to be discreet as well as accessible.

That’s why we chose Spaces at Reading. It’s a busy office building with shared areas divided into meeting zones. Here you can meet, have a coffee and be part of a crowd of professionals doing exactly the same thing.

So why is this discreet? As the saying goes, there’s safety in numbers.

• Nobody there knows who you are meeting, or why.
• That person opposite you might be a web designer, an accountant, a prospective client or just a friend.
• Your conversation is private yet also relaxed, just one of so many happening in the building.

This is a new initiative for us, but so far, clients who have met us have raved about Spaces. They like the easy access, the relaxed ambience, the flexible timings - and the excellent coffee!

If you work in Reading, why not meet us at Spaces. Just call us or book a 30-minute consultation, and we’ll do the rest.

To celebrate our 10th anniversary, LGFL Ltd invited 30 guests to a Downton Abbey styled dinner at Highfield Park, a lovely country house hotel just 5 minutes from our offices in Swallowfield Guests were treated to a prosecco reception on the terrace, and had just enjoyed speeches by Directors Rita and Anne when - a scream filled the room.

A mysterious woman rushed in to announce that her father had been found dead! Quickly the butler took charge, asking for help from any ‘sharp legal minds’ as the family really didn’t want the police to be involved…

So, during the course of a delicious dinner, the six main suspects dined with our guests, and were grilled to discover information and clues to the identity of the murderer, the location of the body and the murder weapon used (á la the board game Cluedo). Our intrepid teams also trooped around the country house to key location such as the bedroom, the kitchen and the hall, to discover envelopes of background information.

By the end, there were lots of sound theories and a couple of scandalous suggestions involving the butler and his relationship with his master, before said butler asked each team to give their solution.

In a final twist not even planned by the excellent troupe of murder mystery actors, none of our teams got the final solution right! (Possibly something to do with the wine on the table and the constant stream of G&Ts flowing from bar to dining room!) However, one team did get the murderer right (nobody else did) and the weapon - and there wasn’t a single lawyer involved…

It was a wonderful night, very entertaining and so lovely to spend time with business colleagues, partners, staff and interns just having fun!

To celebrate our 10th anniversary, LGFL will be making 10 Acts of Kindness during 2018.

As a company, we’ve always supported charities be they small and local or international. Usually we have a charity of the quarter, linked to our interest in supporting families and children, which we support with donations. We also participate in charity days and events, such as the Macmillan Cancer Support’s World's Biggest Coffee Morning, and Jeans for Genes day.

However, this year we decided to do things a little differently. We’ll be supporting ten worthy causes that touch our hearts, one for each year we’ve been in business. You’ll see our posts on our chosen charities and AoKs (Acts of Kindness) during our celebration year. Our aim is to identify and help local community projects that will benefit both from our donation and the exposure too. So, make sure you Follow us on social media to find out what we’re up to.

We’ve already started with our first Act of Kindness, by supporting something that’s quintessentially English and special to the summer months - cricket!

Theale and Tilehurst Cricket Club needed new practice nets. These specialist nets form a cage that ensures their team can practice bowling and batting without fear of losing cricket balls or injuring anyone. Needless to say, they are not cheap, but with the help of a small donation from us (and others), a new net cage and nets will be constructed to comply with the latest ECB guidelines. However small the donation, every little bit helps.

Our link to the club is Rita’s sporty son Milan, who inspired his mum to contribute after making a donation of his own wicket money! Milan wrote on the fundraising website: “So far this season I’ve taken 10 wickets across club, county and school, plus £1 for the LBW I should have called. (I’m) donating it to the club that got me started and made me love cricket.” So, both LGFL Ltd and Milan have made a contribution each! (More on the fundraising progress at Theale and Tilehurst CC Nets Refurbishment)

We’ve also been shopping for Smalls for All, a charity that collects and distributes underwear to help women and children in Africa. To date, the charity has collected 743,827 items of underwear - that’s quite a pile of pants! It’s such as simple idea yet makes such a difference, such as enabling children and teenage girls to access education. If you’d like to help too, all you have to do is buy a new packet of ladies’ or children’s pants and send them to the charity. (More details at Smalls for All)

An innovative toilet twinning charity was brought to our attention by the actions of a young girl we know, who is raising awareness. Our directors were so moved by Idina’s Toilet Twinning Mission, reminding us that some people don’t have access to basic sanitation, that we immediately made a donation. (More info at Toilet Twinning)

Looking ahead, we’re planning to help local charities working to support a diverse range of those in need, plus some national campaigns.

Watch this space.

For the last two weeks we’ve been counting down to our BIG anniversary. We can’t quite believe it’s ten years since we first started the business, and how much we’ve achieved in that time. So, here’s our story and our milestones, and why we’ll be raising a glass or two today to celebrate - after work, of course!

Early days

Rita and Anne first met in 2001 when working for a local family law firm. However, it wasn’t until December 2007 that Anne rang Rita and suggested they go into business together. Since Anne decide to ring between Christmas and New Year, Rita initially thought that it was a “wind up”, but luckily Anne persuaded her otherwise!

In just six short months, we had set up our law practice. LG Law first opened its doors on 1 July 2008 with just 8 case files in hand. Word quickly spread and soon we were in demand for our soon-to-become-signature divorce services with a more personal touch. The bespoke nature of our services, along with our individual reputation, meant that our filing cabinets filled up quickly!

Moving on

We started off in Saddlers Court, a set of converted stables on Yateley high street. As our business grew, so did the need for bigger business premises. So, three years after we first opened our doors, we moved into larger offices. That move away from the high street gave our clients the discretion that they deserved and needed. It was to set the pattern for all our subsequent offices – welcoming yet discreet.

Professional Recognition

At LGFL Ltd, we’re immensely proud of our achievements within our field of family law. It’s often hard for a boutique law firm like us to make a big impact, but through determination, hard work and a commitment to helping others, we have gained the respect of many fellow professionals.

As a company, we were thrilled to be listed as a Leading Firm in the Legal 500 UK at the first time of applying in 2017, with both Directors individually included. LGFL Ltd were also listed in Chambers & Partners on the first time of applying as a Recognised Practice.

For 2019, LGFL Ltd will have a firm ranking in the Chambers and Partners UK Guide in the Family/Matrimonial section for Reading and Surrounds. In addition, Directors Anne Leiper and Rita Gupta will be listed. Our 2019 ranking position and the Chambers editorial commentary will be published in November 2018.

Achievements and Awards

Our Directors have also been recognised for their achievements.

Rita Gupta

Rita deals with all areas of Family Law covering divorce, finances, cohabitation issues, and with particular expertise in cases involving children. Rita’s commitment to developing herself and nurture new legal talent extends to being:

• A former member of the Law Society’s Children Law Panel

• On the Law Society Mentoring Scheme

• In charge of our popular internship scheme at LGFL

Awards and recognition include:

• Legal 500 Recommended Lawyer

• Chambers and Partners listed

• Lawyer Monthly's Family Law Solicitor of the Year 2017

• Finalist for Hampshire Professional of the Year 2017 at the Venus Awards

Anne Leiper

Anne has worked solely in the area of Family Law since qualification. She has a particular expertise in financial settlements and solutions on relationship breakdown, and regularly deals with high net worth clients and complex financial matters. Anne is a:

• Member of the Law Society’s Family Law Panel

• Resolution Accredited Mediator

• Fully accredited collaborative lawyer

• Long-standing member of Resolution

Awards and recognition include:

• Legal 500 Recommended Lawyer

• Chambers and Partners listed

• Help and Support for Separated Families (HSSF) Mark

Helping clients access our advice and service

In our anniversary year, Rita now offers appointments at Spaces in central Reading. This smart business space offers a bustling atmosphere and more informal meeting space, ideal for the popular free 30-minute consultation we have offered for many years. It also allows our clients to pop in during their lunch break or before returning home, without friends or partners being aware. This location is particularly popular with those clients who commute into London, as it is within a stone’s throw of Reading main station.

We also offer consultations via Skye or telephone for those unable to meet us in person, especially those ex-pats living abroad. This isn’t actually anything new for us: one ex-client was based in Hong Kong, and Rita never met him until after the divorce, when she was on holiday in Honkers!

Our multi-location service is part of our drive to improve our services to suit our clients in terms of flexibility, accessibility and empathy. We have big plans too for increasing accessibility to our services online - keep your eyes on our blog and social media for further details!

Looking ahead with confidence

In the meantime, we’re just delighted that LGFL Ltd has done what we set out to do - provide a more personal, empathetic yet pragmatic way to get divorced and deal with family issues than other firms offered. We are delighted that we have long-term clients that we help with various issues, but also pleased when a client comes once, we solve their issue, and they can move on.

If you’d like to experience the LGFL Ltd level of service, just contact us for an appointment. There might even be a slice of birthday cake left over if you’re quick!