Managing Partner and Head of Dispute Resolution Team
Neil heads up the Dispute Resolution team and is the Managing Partner of Machins Solicitors. He joined the firm as a solicitor in 1997, became a Partner in 2002, was appointed Head of Legal Practice (HOLP) in 2022, and stepped into the role of Managing Partner in January 2026.
With over 30 years’ experience, Neil has built a broad commercial practice. His expertise spans contractual disputes, director and shareholder disputes, joint venture and partnership disputes, professional negligence, corporate and personal insolvency, and aviation disputes.
Neil has been recognised in The Legal 500 as a leading partner and praised for “acting in complex, multi-party commercial litigation.” He is commended by clients for his “excellent communication skills”, for being “a very good strategist and able to get great deals for his clients and for having “a great wealth of experience to draw upon.” His stellar reputation as a seasoned litigator has led to frequent instructions from insolvency practitioners, accountancy firms, and other law firms.
Neil regularly deals with cases in the County Court, different divisions of the High Court and the Court of Appeal. Over the years, Neil has gained extensive experience across many different areas of law which he uses to secure early and commercially sensible settlements where appropriate. His advice is pragmatic and focused on delivering added value for clients.
Machins Solicitors is pleased to announce the appointment of Neil O’Callaghan as Managing Partner. Neil succeeds Kathryn Ainsworth, who returns to lead the firm’s highly regarded Family Law department.
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It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Robert Bedford, a former partner of Machins Solicitors LLP, who passed away on Saturday, 15th February. Robert joined Machins in 1993 from Penman Johnson, a firm based in Watford. During his time with us, he specialised in employment and personal injury law, working on
The number of compulsory company liquidations soared by 66% in the year to January, according to the latest figures from the Insolvency Service. The number of all company insolvencies was 5% higher than the number in January 2023. Of the 1,769 registered company insolvencies in January 2024: Nicky Fisher, President of R3, the UK’s insolvency
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