The Business Exchange Swindon & Wiltshire September 2014 Edition | Page 19

IN PROFILE What sectors of law do you specialise in? Thrings, as a firm, specialises in a number of sectors. We don’t have too many though, as we want to be true specialists in our field. The core areas of our expertise are agriculture and food, defence and aerospace, energy and waste, financial services and technology. What areas of law are you particularly passionate about? I particularly enjoy mergers and acquisitions, downstream oil, defence and engineering and FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods). However, the real passion for me is the client and the people I work with. I deal with all kinds of organisations – from owner managed businesses to global PLCs – and each comes with different emotions and pressures that require different support and guidance. JOHN DAVIES Partner Thrings Last month, TBE visited Thrings’ offices in Drakes Meadow, Swindon, to interview Client Partner, John Davies. Originally from Mountain Ash in the Cynon Valley, South Wales, John has been with Thrings for 17 years. He joined the firm (then Townsends) in 1997 as a paralegal and completed all of his legal training before climbing the ranks to the position of partner in 2003. John is a very approachable and down-to-earth character and perhaps this is where his success lies. Not one to tie you up in legal jargon, John is straight talking and makes law sound remarkably uncomplicated. We chatted to John about his time at Thrings, his greatest achievements and the firm’s plans for the coming years. What would you class as your biggest career achievement? My long-t