"Department head Paul Harbour gathers praise from clients for his 'enormously effective' advice and for 'doing whatever it takes to get a deal over the line'. His broad real estate practice encompasses acting on transactions, landlord and tenant work, site assembly and contract matters."
Chambers UK, A Client's Guide to the UK Legal Profession, 2017
Paul became a partner in 2004 and heads up the Real Estate Department. He is a top ranked lawyer in Real Estate in Chambers UK 2019 (a client's guide to the UK legal profession) where he is ranked Band 1 as a leading individual for Real Estate: Lower Mid Market London.
Areas of expertise
Paul has particular expertise in dealing with:
- Commercial and residential development work
- Large scales site assembly
- Contracts and options conditional upon planning consent/planning promotion agreements and collaboration agreements
- Overage agreements
- Landlord and tenant work
- Investment acquisitions and disposals
Recent work
- Acting on the sale of one of the few remaining riverside development sites in Westminster with planning permission granted for a high quality residential scheme for in excess of £23M. He was able to resolve a number of issues with the site that added significant value.
- Acting for the developer of the The Signal on Newington Causeway Elephant & Castle, which is a 22 storey residential tower. Paul handled, inter alia, the site acquisition, the negotiation of the S106 Agreement, professional appointments, financing and is currently supervising the off plan disposals by one of his department’s solicitors.
- Acting for a West London developer in connection with the optioning up a block of flats, with large communal grounds, the subsequent exercise of the options and completion of bank financing. The development has planning permission for a high value development of residential houses.
- Acting for a client on the purchase of a redundant delivery office in London from Royal Mail Estates for £4.7M, intended for a mixed use development, subject to a turnover overage and planning overage.
- Acting on a £40 million acquisition of a long leasehold interest in a new office and studio development situated in central Soho for an owner occupier client, with a geared rent. The purchase was also subject to a pre-let of a new restaurant on the ground floor and basement.
- Acting on the sale of a multi-let industrial estate in Belvedere for £7.3M.
- Acting on the purchase of a circa 87,000 square foot office building in Tower Hill for a longstanding client.
Professional Societies and memberships
Paul Harbour is recommended for his "long experience and very good technical knowledge"
Chambers and Partners 2018
“...Paul Harbour is highly recommended for the commerciality of his advice, while clients also appreciate his provision of "straightforward advice' and his 'dedicated and diligent' approach to deals”
Chambers and Partners UK
He "advised Amsprop Cheapside on the letting of 5 Cheapside, London."
Legal 500 2016
