The office Marveen Smith chose for her new law firm sat next to a saddlery, close to home, practical rather than prestigious. That was 24 years ago.
Now PainSmith Solicitors, the specialist property practice she built from that modest beginning, has been acquired by Clifton Ingram, a full-service firm with offices across Berkshire and Surrey. The deal marks a founder-led succession for a practice that carved out a national reputation without ever advertising.
Smith started her career in accountancy and tax before retraining as a solicitor, drawn by what she calls law’s problem-solving nature and the chance to work directly with people. She founded PainSmith on a straightforward premise: landlord and tenant law demands technical precision, but clients need to understand what they’re being told.
Over two decades, that philosophy built something unusual. The firm grew almost entirely through referrals, with Smith personally drafting key documents and running a helpline for landlords and letting agents that clients describe as feeling more like “phoning a friend” than instructing a law firm. PainSmith advises property professionals, landlords and tenants across England and Wales, alongside international clients operating in the UK market.
The timing reflects broader shifts. Legal sector consolidation has accelerated over the past five years, with specialist boutiques increasingly joining larger practices to access infrastructure and cross-disciplinary expertise. Meanwhile, landlord and tenant law has grown more complex as regulation tightens—recent changes around energy efficiency standards, rental reforms and tenancy deposit rules have left property professionals navigating an increasingly technical landscape.
“I have always believed in doing one thing well,” Smith said. “Landlord and tenant law is highly specialised, and clients need advice they can understand and act on. Joining Clifton Ingram allows us to continue delivering that same service, giving clients access to a broader range of legal expertise when they need it.”
For Smith, succession planning wasn’t about an exit strategy. It was about continuity. She points to the young solicitors who trained at PainSmith and went on to qualify as her proudest achievement—a measure of legacy that extends beyond client lists and revenue figures.
“For me, success is continuity,” she said. “It is about clients being supported properly, staff developing in their careers, and knowing what we have built will continue in the right way, with a firm who shares our values.”
Jonathan Foulds, managing partner at Clifton Ingram, framed the acquisition as strategic rather than opportunistic. “We are delighted to welcome Marveen, her team and her clients to Clifton Ingram,” he said.
He acknowledged the changing regulatory environment as a driver. “Landlord and tenant law has become increasingly complex over recent years. Clients need advice that is not only technically sound but also practical and commercially realistic. Bringing PainSmith into Clifton Ingram allows us to offer exactly that, alongside our wider dispute resolution, property and other legal services.”
The deal embeds PainSmith’s specialist capability within a larger structure while preserving the personal approach that defined its reputation. Clifton Ingram, which operates from Farnham, Reading and Wokingham, expects demand for landlord and tenant advice to continue growing as regulatory change accelerates.
What began beside a saddlery, built on practicality and proximity to real life, now enters its next chapter. Smith’s emphasis on training and continuity suggests she understands that firms, like client relationships, are built over years—and dismantled quickly if succession is handled poorly.
Whether the “phoning a friend” feel survives integration into a larger practice will depend on how carefully that transition is managed. For now, the deal represents something increasingly rare: a founder choosing her firm’s future rather than being forced into it by market conditions or retirement deadlines.
