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.

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The Board’s Responsibilities

  • Highlighting and exploring industry pain points ahead of new product planning
  • Providing feedback on existing solutions and how they could be adapted for changing client needs
  • Ensuring best practice is upheld as and when new changes to the law occur e.g. up-to-date precedents
  • Ongoing assessment of Arken documents in line with best practice
  • Reviewing output of client feedback

Ian Bond

Ian is a Partner at Irwin Mitchell, specialising in Lifetime and Estate Planning and a Member (and former Chair) of the Law Society of England & Wales’ Wills and Equity Committee.

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 twitter @ianbondtep

Christopher Brewer

Chris founded DPL, Arken.legal’s predecessor. Prior to his retirement in 1991, 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 is also a Fellow of the Society of Will Writers, a member 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.

Samantha Warner

Samantha Warner is Head of Product at Arken.Legal. She read law at Cambridge and qualified as a barrister and solicitor in New Zealand, working in large firms there for a number of years.

Samantha has held company directorships and legal advisory roles in diverse industries including technology, hospitality, intellectual property and cosmetics. Samantha has a passion for product and the many benefits that legal tech can bring to estate planning practitioners.

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