Alex Canham

Managing Partner, Head of Corporate
0118 989 9717

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+44 7825 012 589

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alex.canham@hc.law

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Alex Canham

Alex Canham

Managing Partner, Head of Corporate

Alex advises clients on a variety of corporate matters, including, share sales and purchases, corporate restructurings, company option schemes and shareholders’ agreements. Alex has extensive experience advising clients in the financial services and accountancy sector.

Alex is responsible for the firm’s international offering and is a member of the IR Group. Alex was named Member of the Year in 2019 by his fellow members in the network.

Away from work, Alex is a keen traveller who uses time away from the office to explore new places with his family.

Alex is listed as a Leading Partner by the Legal 500 in 2025.

  • Financial advisory business acquisition for £3,500,000.
  • The sale of an owner-managed IFA practice for £2,750,000.
  • London-based IFA practice on a series of 4 acquisitions, each with a deal value of circa £2,500,000.
  • Advising the sellers of an owner-managed regional IFA on its sale of shares for a mix of cash and equity in the acquirer’s business.
  • The sale of shares of an IFA business to a mid-market acquirer for a mix of cash and equity, with an ongoing role for the seller.
  • The acquisition of an award-winning discretionary fund manager.
  • Acquisition of a financial advisory business for £5,600,000.
  • Supporting a regional wealth management practice with in excess of 10 acquisitions having a combined deal value of more than £35,000,000.
  • Advising multiple business as part of a phase 1 and phase 2 acquisition strategy by a private-equity back consolidator, with each deal in excess of £4,000,000.
  • Advising on the sale of an award-winning discretionary fund manager for a consideration in excess of £18,000,000.
  • UK intellectual property advice for international organisations on the protection of their portfolio.
  • English legal advice on implications of international joint venture and supply contracts.

Client Success Stories

I found Alex and Edward to be responsive, on point, quick to answer queries, professional, efficient and the ability to explain complex issues in layman’s terms. An excellent service and one I would recommend to all.

Ian Morrison
Calton Wealth Management

Alex, Ed and the team at Herrington Carmichael provided us with excellent advice and support for our company sale, with their knowledge and experience making the process very efficient.

Mark Brown

We found Alex, Ed and the commercial team at Herrington Carmichael to be very knowledgeable, helpful and attentive from start to finish when we were selling our IFA business. We would have no hesitation in recommending them.

Commercial Client

It was our first company acquisition and we knew we needed first class legal support; we certainly struck gold when with Alex and his team at Herrington Carmichael. Edward in particular was fantastic and guided us through the whole process with pragmatism and a level of calmness that was professional and reassuring. The experience was outstanding.

I was very pleased to be introduced by my accountants to Alex and Ed. They demonstrated from the beginning an in-depth knowledge of the market place dynamics, let alone the subject matter which clearly showed their mastery in this area. When it came time for the asset purchase agreement and negotiations which for me was the first time, Ed provided a comprehensive and professional approach which I found very supportive. All matters proceeded to a successful conclusion.

Peter S

A big thank you to Alex and his team in particular Melissa who worked diligently and at all times looked to serve our best interests. They were constantly available to provide reassuring advice through a sometimes difficult transaction and fraught period. Despite the tight deadlines and significant workload I was delighted with their performance.

Simon Redhead
Wealth Solutions (UK) Ltd

When selling a business, you only get one chance to get it right and I will be forever grateful for the skill and advice provided by Alex and his colleagues.

Paul Thomas
Generic Financial Management Ltd

Herrington Carmichael were recommended to myself and my fellow directors to act in the selling of our financial services company. Throughout the process I found Alex Canham and Melissa Deutrom to be knowledgeable about our particular industry, they acted in our interests in a diligent but pragmatic way, gave sound advice, were responsive to our requests and focussed on achieving the deadline that we required. I would have no hesitation in recommending them to others in a similar situation.

Andrew Vince
National Financial Advisory Business

Alex and Melissa provided a very professional service whilst also ensuring we negotiated some key inclusions and protection into our business sale agreement. Alex was a real ally ensuring that we negotiated the best possible outcomes and found solutions to areas where one didn’t seem to be present. His work alongside Melissa ensured a cohesive delivery of our complex sale – thank you both.

Richard Lord

Alex Canham, Ed Beedham and the team did a tremendous job steering us through the sale of Chadney Bulgin. With so many CB Partners involved, their comprehensive presentation of the contracts, together with excellent communication throughout (vital in this type of deal), enabled both a fast & efficient sale process. Much appreciated.

Wealth Management Business

I found Alex and Edward to be responsive, on point, quick to answer queries, professional, efficient and the ability to explain complex issues in layman’s terms. An excellent service and one I would recommend to all.

Ian Morrison
Calton Wealth Management

Alex and Ed were throughout very professional as you would expect, but also always available to settle our concerns and talk us through the procedures. Something that they clearly had plenty of experience at, which showed through and gave us confidence. They took control of the situation, kept us informed and moved swiftly to conclude the business sale, for which we were very grateful.

Alan Weston
HFMC Wealth

We appointed Herrington Carmichael to act for us in the sale of our Chartered Financial Planning business. From the outset we were impressed with Alex and Lucinda's professionalism. This impression was backed up by helpful and knowledgeable support from them and their team throughout the sale process. All aspects of the sale discussions were dealt with carefully and efficiently resulting in a satisfactory outcome for us as sellers.

Robert Young

Alex, Ed and the team at Herrington Carmichael provided us with excellent advice and support for our company sale, with their knowledge and experience making the process very efficient.

Mark Brown

From the start we were impressed with Alex’s understanding of our needs and experience which no doubt helped with our transaction. The whole team were professional and attentive which was refreshing given the complexities involved. What impressed us most was the ability to convey quite technical matters in a way that could be understood.

Jonathan Briggs

Excellent level of service provided by Alex, Joel and the team. Our sale was not particularly straightforward, quality advice provided in a timely manner. I am not sure we could have completed our sale without them. Would highly recommend!

Steve Burns
Lewis Brownlee Financial

We have worked with Alex Canham and Melissa Deutrom at Herrington Carmichael on two separate acquisitions together with numerous general corporate activities. We have always found them to be highly responsive, timely and accurate. We would definitely recommend them to other financial services companies like ours.

John Cusins
Lumin Group

Alex Canham is very knowledgeable - he also has a good appreciation of what is the minimum standard and what represents potentially less commercially needed aspects.

Legal 500, Client Feedback

We were very pleased with the service provided by Alex and Harry at Herrington Carmichael. Appointed approximately two months ahead of completion, they demonstrated exceptional diligence and attention to detail throughout. We’re delighted with the outcome and felt thoroughly looked after during the entire process. If you’re looking for a firm to support you through a business transaction, I would have no hesitation in recommending Herrington Carmichael.

Jeremy Phelps
Financial Solutions Wales Limited

We found working with the team a positive experience. We had early contact with Alex who was reassuring and confident, but from then on, we dealt mainly and personally with Harry who we thought was excellent, especially in the final stages which were quite stressful for us.

Tim and Anna Fellows

It was clear to us from the outset that we were in safe hands and we very much appreciated having the reassurance of Alex and Harry’s ongoing support throughout the process.

William and Elizabeth Orenstein

Having appointed Herrington Carmichael to act for us in a complex and lengthy transaction, the decision proved to be a very good one. Alex, Harry and the team were knowledgeable, speedy and very willing to help with all aspects of our dealings. I would not hesitate to highly recommend Herrington Carmichael for their first class service.

Neil McGann

A big thank you to Alex and his team in particular Melissa who worked diligently and at all times looked to serve our best interests. They were constantly available to provide reassuring advice through a sometimes difficult transaction and fraught period. Despite the tight deadlines and significant workload I was delighted with their performance.

Simon Redhead
Wealth Solutions (UK) Ltd

Herrington Carmichael were recommended to myself and my fellow directors to act in the selling of our financial services company. Throughout the process I found Alex Canham and Melissa Deutrom to be knowledgeable about our particular industry, they acted in our interests in a diligent but pragmatic way, gave sound advice, were responsive to our requests and focussed on achieving the deadline that we required. I would have no hesitation in recommending them to others in a similar situation.

Andrew Vince
Seller of Nationwide Financial Business

Alex and Melissa provided a very professional service whilst also ensuring we negotiated some key inclusions and protection into our business sale agreement. Alex was a real ally ensuring that we negotiated the best possible outcomes and found solutions to areas where one didn’t seem to be present. His work alongside Melissa ensured a cohesive delivery of our complex sale – thank you both.

Richard Lord

We appointed Herrington Carmichael to act for us in the sale of our Chartered Financial Planning business. From the outset, we were impressed with Alex and Lucinda's professionalism. This impression was backed up by helpful and knowledgeable support from them and their team throughout the sale process. All aspects of the sale discussions were dealt with carefully and efficiently, resulting in a satisfactory outcome for us as sellers.

Robert Young

Alex Canham and Joel Gocool are a delight to deal with and form a highly efficient team. They have gone the extra mile in our negotiations.