Laytons ETL, the City of London-based international commercial law firm, has promoted Alexandra Bartrope to the position of head of private client. She takes over from Ian Burman, who established the team in 1989 and remains with the firm but has stepped back from management to focus on building his private client and charity practice.

Ms Bartrope joined Laytons ETL as a partner in 2018. Prior to that she worked as a senior associate at the London firm Moon Beever (which went on to merge with Wedlake Bell in 2021), and as a solicitor at the North East firms Clarke Mairs and Browell Smith & Co.

She is a Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) qualified lawyer, whose expertise includes administering ultra-high-net worth estates across multiple jurisdictions and advising on and drafting cross-jurisdictional wills. Her recent work includes advising on, and drafting, wills to cover the EU Succession Regulation (Brussels IV), advising on the protection of assets upon remarriage, and advising on the options and tax implications when longstanding trusts come to an end.

The private client team has also been joined by associate Kloarba Dema and paralegal Eleaner Cross. Their arrival brings the departmental headcount to six, and the team also works closely with Laytons ETL’s highly regarded tax, family & matrimonial and charity practices.

Ms Dema previously worked at Hodge Jones & Allen and Bishop & Sewell, and also gained significant pre-qualification experience at Fraser & Fraser, the specialist firm of genealogists and probate researchers. She is an affiliate of STEP and a member of the Professional Deputies Forum.

Ms Cross achieved distinctions from the University of Law in both the Graduate Diploma in Law and the Legal Practice Course (LPC). While studying for her LPC she volunteered with Street Law, a free legal education programme delivered to schools and community groups.

Ms Bartrope said, “It is a real honour to take over a department that has become so well respected over the more than three decades since it was established. I will endeavour to build on my colleague Ian Burman’s achievements and am grateful for all his ongoing support and advice.

“I would also like to welcome Kloarba and Eleaner to the team. Their professionalism, knowledge and enthusiasm are already shining through, and I look forward to working with them and seeing them grow and progress over the years ahead.

“Laytons ETL employs many fantastic female partners and rising stars, and, as a woman in a profession where the opportunities for advancement have not historically been entirely equal-opportunities, I am proud to provide an example of what it is possible to achieve at our firm.”

The private client team also support many of the directors and shareholders of clients of the firm’s highly regarded international commercial practice. Michael Kashis, managing partner CEO at Laytons ETL, said, “A strong private client department is hugely important for a firm like ours, enabling us to take care of the individuals who lead our commercial clients with the same verve and diligence that we bring to matters relating to their businesses.

“I am very excited to welcome Kloarba and Eleaner to the firm. Both are rising stars in their own right, and are already making a great contribution.

“I would also like to congratulate Alexandra on becoming head of department. I know her leadership of the team will be second to none, and I have high hopes for the growth of the private client practice under her stewardship.

“The recent developments in the private client team herald the future for the department, and for our firm, and I look forward to seeing this new generation make their mark and drive our success over the years ahead.”