A GROWING York legal operation is celebrating playing a leading role in deals worth than £70 million in 2016.

One of the transactions worked on by the York office of Andrew Jackson Solicitors posed an unusual challenge, according to corporate partner Philip Ashworth.

The sale from administration of Scottish specialist vehicle manufacturer Penman Engineering Ltd to Martin Williams (Hull) Ltd was hailed for saving the business.

But Penman products include armoured vehicles for the Ministry of Defence - so parts of the site and business were off-limit to the prospective purchasers until they had actually completed the deal and could be properly vetted.

“They asked me: ‘What do you think?’ and I said: ‘I don’t know what we’re buying’,” Mr Ashworth recalled. Despite this unusual situation the deal went ahead after an intensive six-week process.

It joins a list of completed deals for the York office this year, with others still in the pipeline, which Mr Ashworth said was “very creditable”. They included the sale of roof timber company John Brash and Co to Marley Eternit Ltd, the acquisition of 87 student properties from the University of Hull by Kexgill Ltd and a management buyout at York architects and building surveyors WR Dunn and Co.

Mr Ashworth, who has worked in corporate law since 1982 and in York since 1992, said the Brexit vote had an effect on people’s views, but had not stopped any deals.

For example, the J Brash deal had involved a sale to a concern with a French parent company.

“I have seen people take a step back and say: ‘Let’s see what happens,’ but I haven’t seen anybody say: ‘We’re not going to do that’.”

He said the work completed this year in Andrew Jackson’s local office - which opened in December 2013 - showed it was “building up”, with six lawyers working on deals and more recruitment due to come in 2017.

“I’m delighted with the progress and I’m delighted with the outlook,” he said.