Having one of the largest residential development legal teams and a leading private client practice, we are uniquely placed to help landowners, developers, promoters, local authorities, and rural businesses unlock the potential of land for development.
Julie Sharpe
Partner
Lucy Smallwood
Partner
Elizabeth Newson
Partner
Richard Walford
Partner
We have always received a rapid and comprehensive level of service and responsiveness from Michelmores.
Chambers UK 2025
At Michelmores, we understand that land isn’t just an asset —our clients are navigating complex, high-stakes decisions that can affect their legacy, finances, and long-term land use. Our nationally recognised Strategic Land team partners with landowners, farmers and landed estates to unlock long-term value while preserving what matters most. Whether you're exploring a promotion agreement, considering a joint venture, or reviewing your options—literally—we provide clear, commercial legal advice tailored to your vision.
We provide clear, commercially focused structuring advice from the outset of a transaction. Whether you're entering into promotion agreements, strategic options, conditional contracts, overage arrangements, joint ventures or collaboration agreements, our team ensures your interests are protected and your long-term goals are supported. We help structure deals that are robust, future-proof and aligned with your land strategy.
Our Strategic land services
We advise on:
Navigating the planning process is complex and often critical to a project’s success. We offer expert advice on planning agreements, such as Section 106, as well as planning appeals and associated environmental issues. Our planning lawyers work closely with local authorities, consultants, and developers to help secure timely consents while managing environmental, heritage and biodiversity considerations.
Our integrated tax and trusts advice helps landowners structure transactions and long-term plans in the most tax-efficient way. We advise on issues related to joint ventures, land pooling arrangements and capital gains, while also supporting broader estate planning and succession goals. Whether you’re looking to minimise exposure or optimise inheritance strategies, we ensure your land assets are managed effectively for future generations.
We help you navigate the legal and practical complexities of third-party occupation, including Agricultural Holdings Act tenancies, Farm Business Tenancies, residential leases, and commercial occupiers. Our focus is on achieving vacant possession where needed and resolving tenancy issues with minimal risk and delay. Whether you’re preparing land for development or restructuring estate use, we’ll support you with clear, strategic advice.
We have a genuine knowledge of landowners and their aspirations and concerns in a strategic land deal meaning that we are well placed to anticipate and overcome issues that can frequently arise.
As part of our Destination 2030 Strategy we seek to deliver our legal services through Collaboration, Commerciality and Creativity. Collaboration underpins everything we do. Working alongside you as a business means team-on-team integration, wider commercial support and access to our extensive offering of knowledge, thought leadership and industry events. As a firm, Michelmores has a proud record of working with many key clients for several decades, and relish the prospect of forming longstanding relationship with our promoter clients. Commerciality drives our approach to transactions and the way we will provide legal services. We are a friendly and approachable team, and always ‘solutions-driven’. Creativity sets us apart from our competitors. We are embracing the role of AI and its ability to drive efficiency in providing legal services, and we prize working in an entrepreneurial environment where we think of the best way to solve problems.
Decades of experience in acting for private landowners, landed estates and trustees across England and Wales.
We pride ourselves on forging lasting relationships—our clients trust us to navigate the complexities of strategic land from first step to final completion.
We understand the development landscape, market cycles and how best to structure deals that deliver enduring value whilst managing risk and tax exposure.
No one-size-fits-all here. Every agreement is bespoke and shaped around your land, your values and your long-term goals.
Our strategic land team has a proven track record of advising landowners on complex, high-value projects across the country. From early-stage structuring to final delivery, we’ve supported clients in unlocking the full potential of their land while navigating planning, environmental, and legal challenges. Below is a selection of recent work that demonstrates the breadth of our expertise, the strength of our partnerships, and the real-world results we help our clients achieve.
Advising landowners in relation to an equity participation arrangement to facilitate the promotion and development of a 35 acre mixed use development site comprising a number of separate land parcels. Advising the owner on land assembly as well as tax and financial structuring to ensure disposal proceeds qualified as capital rather than trading receipts.
Negotiating an option agreement in respect of a strategic development with a major housebuilder for over 1,000 homes. Option agreements were entered into with multiple landowners with equalisation provisions in respect of costs and market value across the whole scheme.
Advising a landowner entering to an Option Agreement with a regional housebuilder in relation to development of land in Kent. The transaction involved prior allocation of adjoining biodiversity land owned by the landowner for BNG purposes. It also involved renegotiation of existing complex overage terms in order to release the site for development.
Acting for a landowner family in relation to the sale of land strategically located to unlock the wider allocation of thousands of homes in the Local Plan Area. It involved negotiating and documenting complex overage terms to clawback future ransom value.
Acting for landowners across the County in respect of promotion agreements. Dealing with small to national size promoters, closing drafting loopholes and protecting landowners interests such as with robust guaranteed minimum returns, capping of costs and ensuring alignment of project and/or legacy objectives. project
Acting for a landed estate in respect of their landholdings north of Manchester including dealing with a recent c.£16m sale of land for residential development which included agreeing marketing and cost sharing arrangements with two other landowners and a land promoter, agreeing overage payable and negotiating easements over third party land.
Advising a landowner of 3 sites for a total of c.2,000 dwellings. Involved the sale of 2 sites to housebuilders subject to planning, involving complex shared drainage arrangements, and a promotion agreement relating to the third site with requirements relating to access and services over sites 1 and 2.
Acting in the sale of land in Somerset to national housebuilder for c.120 dwellings pursuant to an option with provision for release of overage, access and servicing and involving expert determination of the purchase price.
Michelmores were prompt to respond and contactable despite high-pressure workloads and tight timescales. It was flexible to adapt to our changing deadlines.
Chambers UK 2025
From early-stage land strategy and heads of terms through to planning, infrastructure and eventual sale, we combine technical excellence with personal attention. Our team brings fresh thinking to every project and a determination to help you unlock both land potential and peace of mind.
Ready to Talk?
We’re here when you are. Let’s discuss how we can help you navigate the path ahead with confidence. Contact our Strategic Land team.
