Meet Our Legal Advisory Board
Legal expertise has been the backbone of Arken’s software since 1992, shaping product development and maintaining our professional standards. Our Legal Advisory Board, made up of highly experienced legal professionals, ensures our software upholds legal best practices and keeps precedents up to date – so you don’t have to.
Ian Bond
Ian is a solicitor specialising in Wills, Trusts & Probate; Law Society ’Wills & Equity’ committee member; Member of STEP and Association of Lifetime Lawyers; Charity Trustee; and, CLTi External Tutor ‘Administration of Trusts’.
Ian is also a contributor to the Law Society publication ‘The Probate Practitioners Handbook’; the 9th edition and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), the Law Society Private Client Section and is a Trustee of the independent Law Society Charity. Ian champions the use of technology in the legal sector for the benefit of professionals and their clients.
You can follow him on LinkedIn @ianbond
Christopher Brewer
Chris founded Documents Plus Limited (the former name of Arken.legal) in 1992. Prior to his retirement from private pracitce, Christopher was senior partner in a South London legal practice for 15 years, where he specialised in providing private client services.
He then set up and led a group of successful companies delivering software to provide high level professional Will writing and Trust solutions both for the UK and internationally for over 24 years. He undertook responsibility for the legal content of those systems.
From 2016 onwards, he has continued to act as a consultant advising upon Will and Trust systems.
Christopher is a practising solicitor and STEP member.
David Barnes
David joined the Executor and Trustee side of what is now Lloyds Private Banking in September 1959 and held many senior technical and branch managerial appointments during his 36-year career there. He was, for a number of years, the Senior Manager of the London Area Office.
A Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (Trustee Diploma in 1964), David was also a Fellow of the Society of Will Writers, a member and ex CEO of STEP and former Chairman of STEP Sussex Branch. He was appointed to STEP Council in 1994, serving as a member on a number of committees until 2003, and was appointed CEO of STEP 1999-2001.
David ran his own consultancy, dealing with Will preparation, inheritance tax, general succession planning and training. He was also a tutor with Central Law Training for the STEP diploma examinations and lectured on succession law at Croydon College for ILEX and Introduction to Law Students.
David now acts as a consultant and is involved in the development of software solutions for Will writing and technical knowledge resources.
Krithika Sahi
Krithika is a Private Client Lawyer who supports Arken by maintaining and developing legal content that empowers estate planning professionals to work more efficiently and with greater confidence. Krithika is passionate about making legal information accessible, whether through simplifying complex legal language or designing intuitive workflows that make a real difference.
With experience as a solicitor across several law firms, Krithika brings valuable insight and expertise to ensure Arken’s content remains practical, accurate, and user-focused.