We’re continuing our growth drive with the appointment of employment law specialist Terence Merck as a partner in our Edinburgh office, alongside 18 senior promotions across our Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh teams.
This combined announcement reflects our sustained investment in senior talent and our strategic focus on building a fully integrated, pan-Scotland business.
Terence’s appointment marks a further strengthening of our employment law offering and reinforces our strategic focus on developing our Edinburgh presence.
Before joining Ledingham Chalmers, he built a strong reputation in employment law at the Scottish Bar. He succeeded in various high-profile cases in the employment tribunals, representing respondents and claimants in complex, often sensitive disputes, including discrimination claims involving the public sector. He has continued to provide trusted advice and specialist representation to employers from numerous FTSE companies to local businesses. He was recognised in the 2025 Law Awards.
He joins our established employment law team, Sine Mackay, Dani Donald and Kate Matheson, and his arrival strengthens our ability to deliver a consistent employment law service across the UK.
Last year we introduced the legal director role into the firm to support career progression and recognise senior lawyers with strong technical expertise, leadership capability and responsibility for client delivery.
This latest round of promotions spans our Commercial Property, Private Client, Institutional Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Rural, Corporate and Residential Property teams across all three of our offices.
Four of our colleagues have stepped up to Legal Director, taking on greater responsibility for client delivery and team leadership:
Melanie Ballantyne - Commercial Property, Aberdeen
Mhari Michie - Commercial Property, Aberdeen
Laura Marwick - Private Client, Inverness
Marie Cartney - Institutional Litigation, Edinburgh
Our additional promotions include:
Promoted to Senior Associate:
Rosie Allan - Commercial Litigation, Aberdeen
Adam Grant - Commercial Property, Aberdeen
Allan MacKenzie - Commercial Property, Aberdeen
Sarah McCaffery - Institutional Litigation, Inverness
Emma McNay - Institutional Litigation, Edinburgh
Promoted to Associate:
Hannah Black - Rural, Aberdeen
Eve Cooper - Private Client, Inverness
Stacey Grubb - Private Client, Aberdeen
Christopher Lawson - Private Client, Aberdeen
Promoted to Senior Solicitor:
Kasia Adamska-Paterson - Corporate, Inverness
Lauren Bell - Rural, Aberdeen
Rebecca Esson - Institutional Litigation, Edinburgh
Dean Fraser - Residential Property, Inverness
Suzanne Grandison - Residential Property, Aberdeen
Victoria Leslie, our joint managing partner, said:
“Over the past year, we have continued to make strong progress against our strategic priorities, with sustained investment in our people and leadership playing a central role in that success.
“The appointment of Terence further strengthens our employment law capability and supports our ongoing development in Edinburgh as part of a truly integrated offering.
“Alongside the wider promotions across the firm, this demonstrates our continued focus on building depth of expertise and leadership across all offices as we move forward with momentum into the next phase of our growth strategy.
“I’d like to congratulate all those promoted - these are thoroughly deserved and highlight the depth of talent we’re continuing to build across the firm.”
Terence Merck, our new partner, added:
“I’m excited to be joining a fantastic team just as we gather clear momentum all across Scotland. As we strengthen our employment law offer in both advisory and advocacy capabilities, we hope to introduce to a wide range of clients our exceptional employment law advice and representation, with real clarity and forward thinking that is required to meet the challenges ahead.”
Find out more about our employment law team here.