Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) has appointed two new legal directors to its Edinburgh office, reinforcing the firm’s continued investment in Scotland and its commitment to growing the office’s specialist banking and construction capabilities.
Ainsley Reid joins WBD’s Banking team, bringing extensive experience in real estate finance and wider banking work across Scotland, England and Wales. Dual qualified in Scotland and England and Wales, Ainsley advises lenders and borrowers on a broad range of real estate finance transactions and has strong relationships across the Scottish banking market, including with clearing banks and alternative lenders.
Ainsley began her career in real estate before moving into banking, training and qualifying at CMS in Edinburgh before holding senior roles at Maclay Murray and Spens, Dentons and Morton Fraser MacRoberts. Her appointment will support the continued development of WBD’s Banking practice in Scotland, complementing the firm’s existing banking capability and strengthening its real estate finance offering for clients with both Scottish and UK-wide requirements.
Keith Bishop also joins the Edinburgh office as a legal director in WBD’s Construction team. A highly experienced construction lawyer, Keith is dual qualified in Scotland and England and Wales, and has advised on both contentious and transactional construction matters throughout his career. He has held senior roles in private practice and industry, including heading the Construction team at Muckle and working internationally on major projects through Systech in South Africa.
Keith’s appointment will add further senior resource to WBD’s construction disputes and transactional offering, supporting the firm’s work across energy, manufacturing, infrastructure and real estate. His experience will further enhance the firm’s ability to advise clients on complex projects and disputes across Scotland, England and Wales, while strengthening WBD’s presence in the Edinburgh market.
WBD opened its Edinburgh office in 2017 and has since grown its Scottish practice across a number of key sectors and services, including Real Estate, Financial Institutions, Energy, Banking and Construction. The latest appointments reflect the firm’s ongoing growth strategy in Scotland, focused on building specialist teams that can support local, national and international clients.
Victoria Redman, partner and board member at Womble Bond Dickinson, said:
“Ainsley and Keith are excellent additions to our Edinburgh team and their appointments underline our continued commitment to investing in Scotland. Both bring strong technical expertise, deep market knowledge and the kind of collaborative, client-focused approach that is central to how we work.
“Since opening our Edinburgh office in 2017, we have been focused on growing in areas where we can add real value for clients. Ainsley’s real estate finance experience will further strengthen our Banking practice, while Keith’s contentious and transactional construction expertise will add significant depth to our construction, energy and infrastructure offering. Their arrival is an important step in the next phase of our growth in Scotland.”
