Best brains in ...

Development, regeneration and surrounding myself with cleverer people.

Highlight of your career so far?

Seeing the 1.4m sq ft Mailbox scheme in Birmingham open: the largest single-building mixed-use scheme in Europe. I was lucky enough to be involved from the start, wandering round the vast hulk of the defunct original building with the visionary Alan Chatham and Mark Billingham. It was like being on the set of the X-Files at that point.

Most challenging job you've ever done?

Advising a group of property companies under the onslaught of a hostile receivership. Forcing the receivers back out of the companies and the bank that had appointed them to pay their heavy costs.

What's your definition of going the extra mile.... And when have you done it?

Sourcing and brokering the deal which secured a 400-acre strategic development site for a plc client, off-market and at a favourable price.

Best example of a non-legal solution?

In a political and PR battle between rival developers, I spotted a potential PR trap laid for my client. I advised on how to avoid it and persuaded a key journal to change its editorial to a more friendly line.

How do you get under the skin of a client's business?

Ask lots of open questions. Visit lots of people and sites. Listen hard but understand that 1) what is not said is as important as what is said and 2), the public language – brochures and so on - is often little guide to the reality.