Ashtons Legal advise on TaxAssist Accountants first franchisee assisted buyout

Ashtons Legal has recently advised the TaxAssist Direct Group Limited on what is believed to be the UK’s first ever franchisee-assisted management buyout.

TaxAssist Accountants – the national accountancy network which brought tax advice for small businesses to the high street – has a UK-wide network of 190 franchisees, a fee income of more than £30 million and rank 25th in the UK’s Top 50 Accountants.  The management buyout will see the business 32% owned by franchisees, 53% by the senior management team and 15% by long-standing external business partners.

The senior management team will be supported on the Board by two Non-Executive Directors, one of whom will be John Chambers, Corporate and Commercial Consultant with Ashtons Legal.

Mark says: “It was a pleasure working with the team at TaxAssist on this unique deal.  This is the first franchisee-assisted MBO the UK has seen so it was an exciting challenge for the team at Ashtons Legal.”

“We were able to assist the client by drawing on the expertise of lawyers from across  our regional offices using a team of experienced lawyers and support staff from a range of disciplines – it was a real team effort and showed the genuine strength in depth of our commercial practice.”

Karl Sandall, TaxAssist Group Ltd Chief Executive said: “We greatly appreciate the assistance given by the team at Ashtons Legal in helping us complete this distinct and challenging deal.”