Knightwood Legal
Hampshire sole-practitioner maritime law firm run by Simon Whitbourn; given two single-tender CSSF contracts by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to draft maritime law for UK Overseas Territories
| Knightwood Legal
| |
|---|---|
| Type | SRA-recognised sole practice; associated private limited company Knightwood Legal (Global Consulting) Ltd |
| Founded | 22 December 2016 (SRA recognition); company incorporated 18 August 2004 |
| Registration ID | SRA 635351; Companies House 05208724 |
| Status | Active |
| Headquarters | 12 Yewberry Way, Chandler's Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 4PE (SRA head office and company registered office) |
| Services | Maritime legal advice and legislative drafting |
| Key people | Simon Whitbourn (sole solicitor; company director) |
Knightwood Legal is the name used by Hampshire solicitor Simon Whitbourn for a maritime law practice. In 2023 and 2024 the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) awarded it two single-tender Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) contracts, worth £373,800 in total, for "legal advice and drafting of national maritime legislation for UK Overseas Territories". The MCA said the Government Legal Department "is unable to provide support for the work".[1][2] Two entities use the name at the same address:
- Knightwood Legal, an SRA-recognised sole practice since 22 December 2016 (SRA number 635351), "authorised for all legal services". Simon John Whitbourn is its only SRA-regulated solicitor, and the regulator has published no disciplinary decisions.[3]
- Knightwood Legal (Global Consulting) Ltd (Companies House no. 05208724), incorporated on 18 August 2004 as Australasian Dreams Limited. It was renamed Knightwood Legal Limited on 28 December 2016, Tangaroa Legal Consulting Limited on 15 February 2022, and took its current name on 2 March 2022. Its SIC codes are 52220, 58110, 69109 and 70229.[4]
Both Contracts Finder awards name the supplier only as "Knightwood Legal" at 12 Yewberry Way, so it is not clear which entity holds the contracts.[1][2] Knightwood Legal is not named on the published 2023–27 CSSF framework list.[5]
From MCA solicitor to MCA contractor
In December 2017 a Turks and Caicos Islands Government press release, published by Magnetic Media, described "Mr. Simon Whitbourn, Solicitor for the MCA United Kingdom" as part of an MCA team visiting the islands from 4 to 8 December 2017. His "main objective" was to meet the Attorney General's Office "to gain an understanding of the current state of TCI’s Maritime Laws and also the process for making new legislation". The release said the territory hoped to "benefit from CSSF Maritime Obligation and Contingent Liability Project so that we can draft the necessary legislation" for its Category 2 shipping registry obligations.[6]
The 2023 and 2024 contracts cover the same kind of work under the CSSF Overseas Territories programme. Whitbourn now does it as an outside supplier on single-tender awards. The release does not say whether in 2017 he was an MCA employee or already an external solicitor; the SRA recognised his sole practice a year earlier, in December 2016. A search-engine summary of a 2015 High Court judgment (Wilson v Secretary of State for Transport [2015] EWHC 2330 (Admin)) suggests he was then an internal MCA legal adviser, but BAILII blocked access and the judgment has not been read. Until his employment history is confirmed this is a possible revolving door case, not an established one.
CSSF contracts
| Awarded | Period | Procedure | Supplier name and address as published | Value (£) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 April 2023 | 13 April 2023 – 12 April 2024 | Single tender action (non-OJEU) | Knightwood Legal, 12 Yewberry Way, Chandlers Ford, SO53 4PE | 168,000 |
| 20 June 2024 | 20 June 2024 – 31 March 2025 | Single tender action (non-OJEU) | KNIGHTWOOD LEGAL, 12 Yewberry Way, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 4PE | 205,800 |
| Total | 373,800 |
[1][2] The 2023 notice justifies the direct award as follows: "Government Legal Department (GLD) has previously confirmed that it is unable to provide support for the work: this continues to be the case". It adds that "limitations on internal resource and focus on retention of European Union law within the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and wider Department for Transport also preclude this requirement from being undertaken in-house". The notice also explains that the UK, as the International Maritime Organization member state, represents the Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies and oversees the Red Ensign Group.[1]
The MCA is a Department for Transport agency, so these payments do not appear in FCDO spending data. No FCO/FCDO payment to Knightwood Legal was found.[7] Search results also point to Knightwood drafting for the Falkland Islands Government in 2024, on ship-to-ship transfer regulations and Maritime Labour Convention amendments, in Executive Council papers. These papers could not be retrieved, so this has not been verified.
Company finances
Knightwood Legal (Global Consulting) Ltd filed dormant accounts every year until 31 March 2022. It shortened its accounting period that year and has filed full (unaudited, total exemption) accounts since 31 March 2023. Its first trading year therefore coincides with the first MCA award. For the year to 31 March 2026 it reported net assets of £48,442 (2025: £53,876), cash of £61,577 and two employees.[4]
People
| Name | Role | Appointed | Resigned | Born |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simon John Whitbourn | Director; secretary; PSC (75–100% shares and votes) | 18 August 2004 | – | December 1964 |
| Helen Marie Whitbourn | Director | 18 August 2004 | 28 March 2022 | October 1972 |
| Helen Marie Whitbourn | Director (reappointed) | 8 July 2022 | – | October 1972 |
[4] Helen Whitbourn was a PSC (25–50% of shares) from 6 April 2016 until 9 July 2022.[4]
Candidate director page: Simon Whitbourn, depending on confirmation of his MCA employment history.
Gaps
- Which entity, the sole practice or the company, is the contracting party.
- Whether Whitbourn was employed by the MCA or DfT, and if so when he left. This needs the 2015 judgment or an official source.
- The Overseas Territories that received legislative drafting, and the instruments produced.
- Whether any earlier (2017–22) CSSF legal work was paid to the sole practice, which would not show in Companies House accounts.
See also
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Conflict, Stability and Security Fund Programme - Overseas Territories Legal Services Contracts Finder, published 12 April 2023.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Maritime and Coastguard Agency, Conflict, Stability and Security Fund Programme - Overseas Territories Legal Services Contracts Finder, published 18 July 2024.
- ↑ Solicitors Regulation Authority, KNIGHTWOOD LEGAL, SRA number 635351 SRA, accessed 20 October 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Companies House, KNIGHTWOOD LEGAL (GLOBAL CONSULTING) LTD, company number 05208724 GOV.UK, accessed 20 October 2026.
- ↑ BidStats, Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) (2023): award notice summary BidStats, accessed 20 October 2026.
- ↑ Deandrea Hamilton, United Kingdom Maritime and Coastguard Agency visits TCI for Monitoring Visit Magnetic Media, 13 December 2017 (TCIG press release).
- ↑ Foreign and Commonwealth Office, FCO departmental spending over £25,000 GOV.UK, 2010–2020; Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, FCDO: departmental spending over £25,000 GOV.UK, 2020–2025.