Kevin Leigh

Kevin regularly appears at planning inquiries and hearings as well as in the Higher Courts dealing with planning and enforcement issues. He deals with a full range of work such as domestic development through residential schemes to commercial and industrial projects (such as retail, office, leisure, hotel and landfill), airfields and equestrian centres. 

Kevin acts for private clients, developers and authorities. 

He has a particular expertise in steering residential and mixed-use schemes from the initial scoping of a concept through to obtaining all necessary consents and agreements. 

Kevin is very highly regarded by clients as someone who is very experienced and thorougly committed to obtaining desired results. He has a hands-on, stratghtforward and tactical approach to cases. Kevin is very effective and tenacious in court and inquiries. 

He works directly with lay clients as well as professionals and is used to being part of and leading large teams of consultants, whether promoting or resisting a proposed devlopment. Kevin gives prompt, practical and commercial advice. 

Further Experience 
Kevin took 8 months out from the Bar to work full-time for a property development and construction company that also owns several golf courses where re-profiling (landfill) projects were involved. He managed an office of professionals and specialists who were experienced in the development and construction industries (including a planner, quantity surveyors, an engineer and an architectural technician). Kevin handled all aspects from site assessment and acquisition through to the obtaining of planning consent, the discharge of conditions and the preparations for construction. The schemes were mainly residential and mixed commercial and residential, mostly in the range of about 70 to 220 units. In addition, he was involved in a £250million port regeneration and re-development project, dealing with planning and strategic aspects including the LDF preparation. The residential projects included social housing provision and listed building issues. 

Kevin liaises directly with solicitors and vendors on option agreements and leases as well as negotiating on connected topics such as access rights for developments. He helps promote schemes through the pre-application process with public presentations and dialogue with the council officers and other interested stakeholders. 

In conjunction with ‘The Planning Cooperative’, he participated with seminars dealing with appeals & inquiries, enforcement and advanced enforcement & planning law as well case specific training on individual appeals. The audiences were private individuals, companies, local authority officers & members, and government agencies. 

What my clients say

I want to thank you for handling a most challenging case really well. Your cross examination was perfect and your ability to absorb large amounts of new information impressive.- Client 

Counsel picks things up very quickly & gives decisive advice taking into account commercial reality. I do not feel that the taximeter is just running for its own sake & I do not feel that I get charged for every minute of every discussion or email. I feel I get effective added value from his input & he is not afraid to lead from the front. - Client