Plaudits

“As an entrepreneur, I would like to wholeheartedly recommend OnHand Counsel for their outstanding advisory services. Andrew provides invaluable assistance as a business advisor and legal counsel. In a landscape where finding someone with a harmonious blend of business acumen and legal proficiency is rare, Andrew truly stands out. His contributions have been integral to the success of our endeavours, and we look forward to continued collaboration with him in the future.

I sought the services of OnHand Counsel to serve as both legal counsel and a business adviser, akin to a mentor. In the entrepreneurial landscape, establishing trust with key individuals who can provide guidance and act in the best interests of the entrepreneur, business, company, and overall direction is paramount. Andrew successfully fulfilled these roles, offering invaluable advice and acting in alignment with the overarching objectives.

Andrew proved to be an outstanding advisor, offering targeted guidance on crucial aspects such as safeguarding the business, including but not limited to ownership, shares, product, contracts, relationships, and company matters. His dual role as a business advisor and legal counsel brought a unique and highly valuable perspective that is often challenging to find in one individual.

Andrew demonstrates an exceptional ability to seamlessly integrate business strategy and legal expertise. His insight and adeptness in brainstorming ideas, aligned with the specific needs of our business, was instrumental.

One of Andrew’s standout qualities is his capacity to swiftly comprehend complex business concepts and requirements. Unlike many professionals, Andrew required minimal explanation; a single phone call or email sufficed for him to grasp and address our specific needs promptly.

In my experience, it is a rare occurrence to find an advisor who seamlessly combines expertise in both business and law. Andrew not only possesses this unique blend but also demonstrates exceptional flexibility in listening to new ideas. His ability to provide immediate, factual responses, coupled with insightful suggestions, sets him apart in the realm of advisory services.

For any entrepreneur seeking comprehensive guidance that encompasses both legal intricacies and strategic business considerations, OnHand Counsel proves to be an invaluable partner. I have personally benefited from their expertise, and I am confident that others will find their services to be of immense value as well.”

Jonathan Greenwood, XYZ IP Holdings Limited

“I needed help with a shareholder agreement for my new business as well as IP advice to ensure my IP was protected. Andrew was extremely knowledgeable and gave concise and clear responses to all my questions. He explained things in plain English to me which really helped!  Andrew provided a great service in excellent time and I would recommend OnHand Counsel.”
Vanessa Moulton

“OnHand Counsel provides an excellent service, thorough and professional. Andrew specifically is really everything I would want when reaching out to a lawyer. Friendly, clear, reliable, grasping the situation quickly, providing sound advice and elegant solutions. Andrew was personable, reliable and his advice was spot on – I would absolutely recommend his services.” Adam Norsworthy, Fusion Telecom Limited

“Andrew is highly personable and responsive, quick to assess the matter at hand and has a knack of providing expert advice which is straightforward and not unnecessarily complex. Working together was a positive experience because of my complete confidence in his extensive knowledge and interpretation of the law’. Chris Grimes, SALSA Food

“To get this level of experience and acumen from a larger firm would cost at least 50% more. It’s good to know someone with experience at a high level is directly dealing with your legal matter. Andrew has a wide knowledge of general company/commercial topics and is approachable and flexible. On this occasion Andrew drafted an agreement for me to bring in a new business partner – I needed something bespoke, concise and without too much fuss, and that is what was delivered.” Peter Wastell, Verulam Advisory

“I was very grateful to Andrew James at OnHand Counsel for taking on the legal duties at short notice concerning the acquisition of my company. Andrew was understanding, dedicated and diligent from the outset and also right through to the completion day when he was literally ‘on hand’ to support, assist and advise. Andrew made the whole process as straightforward as possible and his recommendations and attention to detail certainly ensured that the sale and purchase was completed on time and to our full satisfaction. I wholeheartedly recommend Andrew’s services to any future client.” Andrew Johnston (sale of Quiller Publishing)

“OnHand Counsel provides a senior partner level service for the cost of an associate in a London firm. Andrew and I have worked on various matters together. He is excellent value and gives high quality and efficient advice for clients. He’s also a thoroughly nice bloke!”
Luke Harrison, Keidan Harrison, disputes and insolvency lawyers

“Andrew is that rare beast amongst lawyers – trustworthy, unpretentious, speaks plain English and doesn’t overcomplicate matters. Andrew was a great help to me when I sold my business several years ago, and again recently when I needed him for something more small-scale. I am very happy to recommend his services.”
David Abbott

“We asked Andrew to help us with a purchase contract and some shareholder agreements. He responded quickly and was always available either on the phone or by email. He provides a personal touch and we consider him to be our company solicitor and our first port of call!”
Gill McCaughey, Forum Events

“Andrew provided a timely, comprehensive, efficient and cost-effective solution to a one-off situation. He was friendly and approachable and made it very easy to work with him. We were delighted with the result and would highly recommend the services of OnHand Counsel. Thank you, Andrew, you took away all the stress.” Heather White, Smarter Networking

“Andrew offers a personal, thorough and affordable service. He explains the issues clearly, responds to queries promptly and delivers on time. He helped me with the purchase of a company and the creation of licencing and shareholders agreements and I would firmly recommend his service to others.”
Dani Zur

“Andrew is our ‘go-to’ legal advisor and commercial solicitor. His attention to detail and understanding of the wider aspects of law especially what can or cannot be a potential legal minefield in due course after everyone’s signed on the dotted line is incredibly useful. In the past, Andrew has helped us with setting up complex commercial UK and international contracts in addition to understanding legalities when it comes to equity dilution and raising funding. All in all, Andrew is brilliant at what he does besides having a crisp sense of humour and timing it to perfection. Highly recommended.”
Ashish Raina, Ardentisys Limited

“Many thanks to Andrew for his help with the sale of our business – it has been a pleasure to deal with him. A sane voice in the insanity!”
Pam Farrant

“Andrew helped me with the sale of my business. I would highly recommend him as a lawyer who is easy to work with and always ready with problem-solving advice. He dealt in layman’s language and took a pragmatic approach to the issues we discussed. He worked quickly, and offered ideas on how to keep the costs down without compromising the integrity of the end result”  Danielle Pinnington

“Andrew offers a first class service. He is personal, friendly, knowledgeable and provides superb value for money. Due to his extensive knowledge he was able to produce the documentation we required in a concise manner.”  Colin Vier, Hannaford

“Andrew from OnHand Counsel legal services in St Albans has been an amazing help to us over the years. He has helped me personally settle a rather complicated commercial matter involving many months of negotiation and his fair charging structure made this whole situation affordable for me. Andrew has since been on hand for the years following to answer any questions about my business dealings and has made fantastic recommendations of other legal professionals we have needed along the way. I highly recommend Andrew and OnHand Counsel.”  Gregory Moulton, Let Me Properties

“…I would like to say a very big “Thank You” for all your hard work and
commitment in helping to achieve this deal in such a short space of time, it
shows a standard of professionalism that is rare in the business world. I
would have confidence in recommending you to any one who requires your
services.”  Bob Jones (purchaser of accountancy practice)

“Reassuring in manner, expert in advice. Andrew has helped us with an international licensing agreement and with checking new client contracts. I would recommend his services which were professional and friendly.”  Tina Worth, React – Acting for Business Ltd

“Andrew is an unusually approachable lawyer with the knowledge of a corporate but the delivery of an independent adviser. I would recommend him for his high level of technical expertise and explanation, friendly and down-to-earth approach and good sense of humour.”  Chris Wallace, Visionary Accountants

“In retrospect it was fun.”  Marcus MacLeod

“Andrew supported us through the negotiation and completion of a trade sale. We were very pleased with the quality of the work and the high level of personal service. Happy to recommend.”  Nick Siragher

“When I went to your site I didn’t know whether you would deal with ‘little people’, as it seemed like you only dealt with large commercial clients. So I was relieved when you responded. There are probably a lot of people who need your expertise who are not large commercial clients. We really appreciated your help and engagement with our problem and your no-nonsense, pragmatic but thorough responses. It was reassuring that you were holding our hands through the process. Good to work with you. You’re in our resource book for the future.”  LK (consultancy owner)

“I hope you don’t mind me referring folks to you, as I have always found your approach collaborative and practical. xxx spoke very highly of you.”  Nina Barakzai

“A good reliable and professional service. What I most liked was dealing directly with you, rather than some junior. You were professional and value for money.”  Mitesh Dhanak, Precious Homes Limited

“The ability to obtain advice at short notice with minimal need for briefing etc. Personal, flexible, responsive service.”  Tom Pinnington

“Remaining objective and saying it as it is! No jargon to tie me up in knots.
You have a good network of professionals to call upon – you know a man/woman who can if you can’t!
Quick responses – don’t have to wait days/weeks for answers.
I can ask anything and not feel like an idiot! – approachable.
Extremely helpful and thorough in your research and advice. Willing to talk about things and made me feel at ease.
You are a ‘human’ and take a genuine interest in the needs of your clients.”  Monica Moynihan

“Dealing with one person throughout the process. Range of services, experience and fee structure.”  Richard Malone, Hillier Hopkins

“We trust you to understand what we are trying to do.
Personal touch.
Commercial approach to solutions rather than risk averse.
Good quality legal advice from an experienced lawyer at a fair price.
Having known Andrew for many years, I trust his advice and would recommend his service happily.”  Richard Stewart, Director, Mazars Employee Benefits Limited

“Immediacy of advice. Professional and approachable.”  Paul Vukovich, Formech International

“I like your approach and attitude. You are a real person who needs my business. You are entrepreneurial. You know when to bring in other expertise. I think you are very unusual for a lawyer. I love your sense of humour. It’s what makes you different and approachable.”  Perry Burns, Working Capital Partners

“Expertise and quick access to contract templates. Local, personal service.”  Lucinda Carney, Advance Change

“Liked your personal service. Your experience produced something that was exactly suitable for us. Benefits of ‘London experience’ without London prices. Quick and efficient.”  Dale Emery, Clamcleat Limited

“Personal service. You gave me confidence that you knew what you were talking about and that you had our best interests at heart, plus a strong network available to you to give us advice on a range of issues.
You talk to me in a language that I can understand. You give me confidence that you will help us achieve the best outcome for our business.
You gave us great advice and gave us peace of mind regarding our legal position on the matter – you helped our problems go away.
I would recommend the OnHand Counsel service without doubt – you gave me complete confidence that you would steer us as successfully as was possible through our situation.”  Paul Dougal, Hannaford

“Proximity and availability + level-headed advice with a sense of humour thrown in.
I enjoyed working with Andrew even though the process of extracting myself from the existing company was at times painful. I found him supportive but realistic.
Good value for money service.
Pragmatic, value for money local firm.”  Marion Jones, Spotlite Claims

“Over the last ten years Andrew has acted for a number of companies for whom I was acting as CEO/CFO. He has acted on a couple of management buy-outs as well as other M & A work and various other company and commercial work.
Andrew is a pragmatic and personable lawyer. Do not be fooled by his nonchalant exterior. Andrew has integrity, loyalty and a willingness to go the extra mile.”  John Smithurst, Smithurst & Ryan Limited.

“Andrew was recommended to me by a colleague in the UK. Andrew went out of his way to assist me and my colleagues at short notice on an important but unusual and difficult transaction. He quickly identified the major issues and risks involved, and gave some very practical and sensible advice.”  Torsten Meyer-Vandenberg, Concert-Channel.biz

“I instructed Andrew on a deal in early 2009 which involved a combination of M&A and joint venture work. Andrew was a very conscientious and effective operator. He immediately understood the objectives and concerns of the parties involved. He added enormous value to the deal process by helping to structure a deal which all parties were happy with, and he put together all the documentation which was needed quickly and efficiently (and very cost-effectively!).”  Franz van Dyk. Director, Alchemea Limited.

“I was referred to Andrew by my accountants for assistance in drafting a transaction. Andrew’s experience, practical and sensible advice resulted in clear legal documentation being emailed to me within 24 hours! His continued guidance coupled with swift response times made the process smooth and straightforward. I will be using his services again and would not hesitate in recommending him.”  Farhan Ebrahimjee. Director, London Eyewear Ltd.

“If you want a really good business lawyer at your side, then Andrew is the lawyer for you. I have instructed him on a number of occasions (both acting as MD for large companies and on my own as a business consultant), ranging from dealing with a major customer which was going into liquidation, where Andrew’s assistance was pivotal in urgently recovering a large amount of money, to sitting down with me and drafting an innovative limited liability partnership agreement from scratch in one half day session. So Andrew is clearly extremely competent, and very adaptable in what he can do. With his network of experienced specialist lawyers it really is worth talking to Andrew first whenever you need any legal work done for your business.”  John Fordham, JetStream Profit.

“I have known Andrew for over 10 years and he has been a trusted source of sensible and expert legal advice over that time. Many organisations struggle to find a pragmatic and cost effective solution to the issue of accessing decent legal guidance from a suitably experienced lawyer and Andrew solves that problem.”  Richard Stewart. Director, Redbourne Limited.

“I have known Andrew for many years, and have worked with him on a range of things from corporate transactions to sorting out the constitutions of golf clubs! Andrew has a very strong skills set which he can apply to a broad range of corporate and commercial matters. He quickly spots where the real issues lie and suggests creative and effective ways to resolve them and to get deals done. He is reliable and responsive and I would be happy to recommend him to any business owner who wants a pragmatic business lawyer offering excellent value for money and with a refreshingly personal touch.”  Robert Twydle. Partner, Hillier Hopkins LLP.

“I was referred to Andrew via Business Link following a request for legal advice on some company documentation. He answered my initial enquiry promptly and set up an initial consultation meeting for the following day. Andrew was able to give me some good advice which has enabled me to move forward with one of the key areas relating to my business. I would recommend his services to anyone in the early stages of setting up a business.”  Andy Grant. Director, Blue Marble Recruitment Limited.

“I met with Andrew initially following a referral via Business Link for some advice on contracts and insurance requirements. He gave me some very good advice then and whenever we have spoken since. He has given me confidence and reassurance and I would have no hesitation in recommending his services.”  Alison Page. ACP Marketing.

“I have worked with Andrew on several occasions when Andrew was acting for various investors on a wide range of deals from a West Indies hotel development to soft furry electronic toys. Andrew is very conscientious, has very strong lawyering skills, is intelligent, enquiring and perceptive, and adds value to any deal. We have always been very pleased with his service and are happy to recommend him.”  Graham Payne. Finance Director, McGee Group Limited.

“I have instructed Andrew in the past on a variety of M&A deals. Andrew is an understated but effective operator. He has an enquiring, pragmatic and solutions-driven approach, unlike the ‘checklist’ approach so many lawyers take, which means that he can add value on a wide variety of deals and issues. Andrew is genuinely interested in his clients and the issues they face, and is a pleasure to deal with.”  Roy Simmons. Director, Roy Simmons Marketing Consultants Limited.

“I had need to pass a Client to an experienced Company Commercial Solicitor and Andrew James matched my Client’s needs exactly. On passing the details across, Andrew immediately grasped the complexities of the transaction, advised the Client and was able to steer the matter to a swift and satisfactory conclusion. Both my Client and I were impressed with Andrew’s depth of knowledge, experience and the swift response to the varied issues that arose and by the detailed documents he prepared. Andrew successfully beat deadlines and quietly but confidently overcame any problem that arose. He exceeded both my Client’s and my own expectations and I will have no hesitation in recommending him again.”  Ian Brand, Ian Brand Solicitors

360 feedback: the following comments were made about Andrew by solicitors in Andrew’s department at a previous firm when asked for their feedback on the partners in that department:

• ‘the best lawyer’;
• ‘a respected lawyer’;
• ‘the most intelligent’;
• ‘the most approachable’;
• ‘a naturally gifted lawyer’;
• ‘he will always pick up on the right issues quickly’;
• ‘technically very competent’;
• ‘good motivator’;
• ‘gives up his time generously and enjoys seeing others progress’;
• ‘honesty and integrity’;
• ‘rapid identification of the important client issues’;
• ‘easiest to deal with’;
• ‘enjoys close loyal relationships’;
• ‘very good at drafting agreements’;
• ‘no interest in status’;
• ‘possibly too nice to be really successful’;
• ‘prone to thinking aloud which can confuse people’ (no-one’s perfect!-ed)

Andrew is a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice. He has been known to remodel train stations in his lunch breaks, making them more efficient in the area of heat retention. He translates ethnic slurs for Cuban refugees, writes award-winning operas, he manages his time efficiently. Occasionally, he treads water for three days in a row. He woos women with his sensuous and godlike trombone playing, he can pilot bicycles up severe inclines with unflagging speed, and he can cook Thirty-Minute Brownies in twenty minutes. He is an expert in stucco, a veteran in love, and an outlaw in Peru.

Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, he once single-handily defended a small village in the Amazon Basin from a horde of ferocious army ants. Andrew plays bluegrass cello, he is the subject of numerous documentaries. When he’s bored, he builds large suspension bridges in his garden. He enjoys urban hang gliding. On Wednesdays, after school, he repairs electrical appliances free of charge.

Call Andrew to discuss your needs