Martyn Tennant is Partner and Head of the Corporate and Commercial team at Swinburne Maddison. Principally a transactional lawyer, he has significant experience in corporate restructuring and regularly advises a diverse range of clients, largely consisting of SME owner-managed businesses and privately-owned larger corporates, within the North East.
Martyn joined the firm in 2005 as a Trainee solicitor and qualified in 2007. He was later promoted to Partner in 2010 and is a highly regarded corporate lawyer in the North East of England.
Make yourself a cuppa and let’s get to know Martyn!
Tell us about your role at SM…
This could take a while!
First and foremost, I am head of the corporate and commercial team, which now includes 13 members of staff. Managing the team certainly takes up most of my time, along with managing my own caseload. As a lawyer, I specialise in M&A and work on transactions of varying size, from the sale or acquisition of small businesses and MBOs up to larger mid-market transactions with enterprise values up to £55m in recent years.
In addition to the above, I am also an equity partner, which means that as an owner of the business, I am responsible along with the other partners for setting strategic objectives and goals. As a member of the firm’s management team, I am also responsible for delivering those objectives through day-to-day managerial decision-making.
The corporate team has grown significantly over the years. What are your plans for2024?
We would like to continue to grow. A lot often depends on factors outside of our control and related to macroeconomics, but we are focussed on continuing to differentiate our services from our competitors and on providing a top-quality, responsive service.
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I’m never happy ‘standing still’ and I’m always looking for ways in which we can grow, become stronger and improve what we are doing. I don’t want to look back on my career and regret not trying to achieve the most I could with the opportunities that came my way. We’re all really proud of our achievements as a team, to grow to be one of the largest, most respected teams in the region. There are some big ideas that could kick the whole process on even further if they are executed correctly – that’s exciting. The first step in this process will be to operate our commercial practice as a dedicated service line and to recruit a head of commercial to progress the development of this separate team.
What’s a common misconception about corporate law?
I imagine it is the view that corporate lawyers are fairly boring. It is difficult to do what we do creatively or with any flair, but we try our best. I find corporate law fascinating and I don’t know any boring corporate lawyers – read into that what you will!
We do have a fantastic, friendly and energetic team. We all get on and enjoy each other’s company. It makes for a great team spirit and a really enjoyable working environment; we bring that passion to the service we provide our clients. I can hand on heart say that none of our team are boring (notwithstanding Mike’s hobby for collecting postcards of canals!).
Why did you want to be a lawyer and why corporate law?
I’ve always been interested in business and had a natural ability at school with the subject which I went on to study at A-Level. When I decided to become a lawyer, the theme continued in the selection of my electives during my degree and whilst on the Legal Practice Course. Subjects like business law, commercial law and M&A are all areas that felt more accessible to me and are areas in which I achieved my best results.
In an early stage of my career, the opportunity arose, in what was a much smaller firm at the time, to take the lead in some corporate services offered. I enjoy working with businesses of all sizes and with individuals with different skill sets and experiences. Working in the corporate arena allowed me to do that and, the more exposure I received, the more experienced I became. It’s a really enjoyable experience to provide legal advice to businesses and, at the same time, offer a pragmatic and commercial view of the advice you are delivering.
The decision was therefore a gradual one. I don’t think anyone entering the profession can map out exactly what they intend to do, as it often hinges on experiences and the opportunities that come your way.
Who would win a 100m race? You, Alex Wilby or Craig Malarkey?
Ha! This is a hot topic in the team at the moment for some strange reason. I think it began when Alex recently declared that he was the fastest man in the office. I know this is not true from playing five-a-side football regularly with him. Craig hasn’t really suggested that he could beat either of us in a race and tends to keep quiet about the topic, so on that basis, I’m definitely going to say me!
Magpies or Black Cats?
100% Magpie. I do feel like I’m in the minority across the office though.
This interview was previously featured in our Winter 2023 edition of Prism Magazine which can be viewed online by clicking here.
