Jo Probert

Jo is a corporate lawyer with more than 20 years’ experience at some of the top law firms both nationally and in the South West region. After graduating from the University of Kent she spent her early career with Dickson Minto W.S., a specialist mergers and acquisitions law firm in the City of London. During her time with Dickson Minto she led on a Euros 800 million private equity transaction.

Prior to joining Probert Legal Limited, Jo was part of the Business Group at Michelmores LLP for nine years, where she rose to become a Corporate Partner. Over the last few years she has worked on transactions ranging from £250,000 to £90m. These included the MBO of Dartington Crystal and the sale of the UK’s largest solar park.

She has been singled out for praise by the Chambers Legal Guide.

Client Feedback

British Solar Renewables – Corporate Transactions

Jo has carried out corporate transactions for British Solar Renewables since 2010. Fran Button, Head of Legal Services, says:

“Jo Probert is a genuine one off. She is absolutely outstanding as a corporate lawyer. The phrase ‘trusted advisor’ is one that gets bandied around a lot, but in the case of Jo Probert, I would use it emphatically. I have total trust in her. Jo always puts the client first.

She is utterly reliable and completely dedicated to her clients.

Jo cares passionately about our business and it shows in every last aspect of her service as a corporate lawyer. You always feel that she is giving you more than 100%. We have had several occasions where Jo has made the impossible happen meeting very challenging deadlines for us!

What’s more, Jo is extraordinarily organised and she is always completely on top of every last detail. She can recall a tiny detail from years ago and apply it to a current situation, to the benefit of the business. It’s a quite remarkable gift. Because of Jo’s passion and her level of involvement with our business, we are always confident that she will really stand in our corner for us.

The last few years have shown me that it’s not about the law firm, it’s about the individual you deal with. With Jo Probert as our corporate lawyer, I receive a level of customer service that is quite simply unbeatable.”
Fran Button, Head of Legal Services – British Solar Renewables

BP Marsh and Partners PLC – Private Equity

BP Marsh is a specialist private equity investor in early-stage financial services businesses, working with a portfolio that covers companies serving the United Kingdom, Australia, Europe, North America and elsewhere.

The company typically invests amounts of up to £2.5m in people businesses with good management and also provides follow-on funding for successful companies in their portfolio when required for further growth.

Jo Probert has provided services as a corporate lawyer to BP Marsh for over 6 years. This has included investment negotiation, equity re-structuring, loan financing and securities, as well as managing other aspects such as tax and employment.

Group Company Secretary Sinead O’Haire says:

“As our corporate lawyer, Jo has a wonderful ability to make complex legal matters simple and straightforward. She explains everything extremely clearly. This is especially important to us, given that the businesses in which we are investing may not have previous experience of private equity involvement. Jo is brilliant at explaining things to the other side and bringing them on board. As well as being clear and straightforward, Jo has a highly personable friendly manner, which helps foster a constructive positive relationship in any negotiation.

Jo doesn’t come back with ‘management speak’ as many corporate lawyers have a tendency to do. She cuts through any complexity and jargon, getting straight to the point and creating clarity for everyone. There are often some quirks in the agreements that we have to manage with existing shareholders and we know we can rely on Jo to handle this with aplomb. Another aspect which makes Jo Probert stand out is that she has a quite outstanding grasp of our business and our business priorities. Because she is so in tune with what our business is about, you are always completely confident that she will do her utmost to help us achieve our objectives. And because she has such a great understanding of our business, it means I don’t have to spend time explaining what we want in detail – Jo gets it straightaway. She will immediately be able to get on to whatever work is required to move the business forward.

Everything we need is carried out swiftly to an incredibly high standard and where we have deadlines to meet, we know that Jo will move mountains to ensure we meet them. We really could not ask for anything more in our corporate lawyer.”
Sinead O’Haire, Group Company Secretary – BP Marsh and Partners PLC

Practice Areas

Client Feedback

British Solar Renewables – Corporate Transactions

BP Marsh and Partners PLC – Private Equity

Articles by Jo Probert