Our People

Directors / Solicitors

Jennifer Simmons – COLP

Jennifer Simmons was admitted in 1976, having completed her traineeship at Jacques & Co in Gray’s Inn. Jennifer has experience in civil litigation, debt collection, employment and property management. She acts on behalf of individuals, corporate and business clients seeking advice on a wide range of issues. Jennifer is a Partner and spends most of her time managing the firm.

Desmond Taylor

Desmond Taylor was admitted in 1975 and practices in commercial and residential property law including residential and commercial, landlord and tenant, commercial and residential development and financing. He also handles Business Acquisitions and Sales.

Mark Shulman

Mark Shulman is a specialist Litigation Solicitor who deals with a wide variety of litigation matters in the County Court and the High Court. He has also dealt with matters reaching the Court of Appeal. He can conduct advocacy without the need to instruct Counsel where appropriate. He also has knowledge of Intellectual Property Law. He is able to give clear easy to understand advice and conducts his litigation in the most economical way possible for the benefit of the client. Where appropriate no win no fee arrangements can be considered.

Nicolas Shulman

Nicolas specialises in advising clients on commercial, employment and property law, particularly with regard to residential leasehold matters involving service charges, lease extensions and enfranchisement. He has written widely on the subject and is the author of Being a Leaseholder – The Essential Guide to Owning a Flat.

Nicolas also regularly advises clients on employment related matters including employment contracts, grievances, dismissals and discrimination claims. He has particular experience in representing senior executives and management and in resolving disputes by way of a settlement agreement.

He is often asked for opinion and comment in the local and national media and has appeared on BBC News, BBC Radio, and in The Times, The Daily Express, The London Evening Standard, The Metro as well as many other websites and magazines.

Solicitors

Harvey Shulman – Solicitor and a member of ILPA

Harvey Shulman was admitted in 1972 and has had nearly four decades of legal experience. In particular, Harvey works with early stage start-ups in diverse industries, seeking to turn them into highly successful ventures. He has been involved with designing and implementing several highly successful investment schemes. Harvey has also been on the Board of numerous companies, both public and private. He has a Master’s Degree in Law (LLM) specialising in Company Law, Tax and Intellectual Property. Harvey regularly speaks at conferences and webinars relating to  business immigrations start up companies and has a wide network of business contacts. He has a wide experience in most areas of law and specialises in Business Immigration. Harvey is a member of the Immigration Law Practitioners’ Association.(ILPA)

Lydia Pratt

Lydia Pratt was admitted in 1995, having completed her traineeship at Wood Nash Kimber in Gray’s Inn, following an earlier career in healthcare. Her areas of practice are civil and commercial litigation, employment, wills and probate. She acts on behalf of individuals, corporate and business clients seeking advice on a wide range of issues.

Lydia is a member of APIL. She studied law and modern languages at Surrey University. She is bilingual with previous experience in advising French insurance companies and individuals.

Edward Mackewn

Edward has been with the firm since 2010 and qualified as a solicitor on completion of his training contract. He has experience of property management and development and litigation but specialises in corporate and commercial matters with a strong focus on start up companies.

Diane Brodkin

Diane is a very experienced solicitor who was has been in private practice since being admitted in 1972. She specialises in residential conveyancing matters as well as undertaking Wills and probate work. Her conveyancing expertise covers both leasehold and freehold sales and purchases as well as matters relating to lease extensions and enfranchisement. Diane’s undoubted expertise and vast wealth of experience, allied to a friendly, personal service provide a high quality of service to all her clients.

Haris Ahmed – Solicitor

Haris was admitted as a solicitor having previously been at the Bar. He joined the firm in November 21. He specialises in litigious matters and has extensive experience in a variety of areas ranging from complicated commercial disputes in the High Court to small consumer litigation matters in the County Courts. This is further complimented by his experience in various Land and Employment Tribunals.  In the past Haris has advised clients on, inter alia, complicated commercial contractual disputes, partnership and company disputes, copyrights claims, professional negligence, land and boundary disputes, probate including claims under the 1975 Act, various insolvency and landlord and tenant disputes. Haris is also at ease drafting pleadings and conducting his own advocacy wherever necessary. Having experience in a full range of disputes ensures that Haris is consistently able to provide his clients commercially sensible and no-nonsense cost-effective advice. Outside of work Haris enjoys sports, travelling to exotic locations and BBQs.     

Claudio Cervo – Solicitor 

Claudio Cervo was admitted as a Solicitor in April 2021 after having spent more than five years as a paralegal and Trainee Solicitor in both English and Italian practices. He is also an accredited Level 2 Senior Caseworker under the Law Society’s Immigration and Asylum Accreditation Scheme. He joined the firm in November 2021. After obtaining an Italian Law Degree in Rome he moved to the United Kingdom where he completed his studies at the BPP Law School. He then started his legal career assisting clients in Asylum and Immigration matters. Claudio feels hugely rewarded by the tangible ways in which individuals’ lives have been impacted by his contribution to the provision of legal services and he remains committed to tackling social injustice and social exclusion at all levels. Claudio speaks Italian and English fluently. 

Hinnah Azif

Hinnah  joined the firm in October 2021 She has obtained a qualification in CILEX Level 6 Immigration Law. She graduated with an LLB in 2012 and joins us after 5 years with the Home Office. Hinnah began her career with Citizens Advice where she supervised and quality assessed advice in areas such as debt, housing, benefits and immigration. Hinnah then joined the Home Office where she gained extensive experience of drafting responses to judicial reviews and later worked on a Brexit team dealing with applications and refusals from the Settlement Scheme. Points based system, Curtailment ,Overstaying ,Asylum, Human rights, EU settlement scheme, British nationality disputes, right of abode. Hinnah is fluent in Urdu and Potohari. In her spare time, Hinnah enjoys travelling, reading and interior design.

Immigration Lawyers 

Michael Rodrigues – Registered Foreign Lawyer 

I am an Immigration Lawyer registered and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) in the UK, the Portugal and the Brazil Bar Associations.

I have almost two decades of immigration experience by working for some of the world top-ranking corporate firms, including PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Fragomen and Ernst and Young (EY), on a variety of private and corporate immigration matters.

I am also Global Immigration experienced, where I successfully managed several medium to large-sized projects helping global market-leading companies to move their employees across the globe.

I understand the pain, the anxiety and the burden an immigration process can bring to applicants, their family and their employers and stakeholders. I am pleased to be in a position to make this process as smooth as possible for all parties involved.

Qualifications:

  • LLB – Brazil, Toledo University in Sao Paulo, Brazil – 1998
  • LLM – Constitutional and Public Law – Estacio University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 2000
  • LLM – European Law, University of Lisbon, Portugal – 2002
  • GDL – University of Hertfordshire, St Albans, UK – 2003
  • PhD – Constitutional Law and its implications on the international legal framework, Estacio University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – 2015

Memberships:

  • The Law Society, UK
  • Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), UK
  • Immigration Lawyers Practitioners (ILPA), UK
  • Free Movement, UK
  • Ordem dos Advogados de Portugal (OAP), Portugal
  • Ordem dos Advogados do Brazil (OAB), Brazil

Marcio Dos Santos – Immigration Adviser

Marcio graduated from Universidade da Amazonia (Brazil) with a first-class Law Degree in 2008. In March 2008, Marcio was admitted to the Brazilian BAR (Ordem dos Advogados do Brasil) and, later (2016), to the Portuguese BAR (Ordem dos Advogados). In 2017, Marcio started practicing Immigration Law in the United Kingdom and, in January 2019, was admitted to the Office of the Immigration Services (OISC)Commissioner as an Immigration Adviser. Marcio has been practicing Electoral Law, Public Law and Litigation for over 13 years within Civil Law jurisdiction and Immigration Law in the United Kingdom for over 3 years.

In his spare time, Marcio enjoys playing sports of the likes of football and reading, specially about History.

Trainees

Trang Chu

Trang started her training contract on 22nd November 2021 having studied law at Queen Mary, University of London. She obtained a Masters in Law with Merit in commercial and Corporate Law.

Business Executives

Muzaffar Saydiganiev

Muzaffar came to Canfields Law with a strong background in finance and venture capital, having worked in banking at a high level. He holds an MSc in International Business Economics from City University of London and is expert in matters relating to business immigration.

Finance

Stuart Veitch – Finance Director

Paralegal & Support Staff

Pauline Curham – Senior Administrator & Legal Support Team

​Pauline is very experienced and has had over 30 years working for legal firms.