Lightfoots Solicitors has acquired Rachel Stafford Legal Services in Thame following the retirement of its founder, transferring the practice’s clients and wills to the established local firm.
Lightfoots Solicitors has acquired the Thame-based practice Rachel Stafford Legal Services following the retirement of its founder, bringing its clients and stored wills into the larger firm’s Wills & Probate team.
The acquisition completed on 30 September, with Carol Barnes, who worked alongside Rachel Stafford, also joining Lightfoots’ Wills & Probate team in Thame.
Stafford established her practice in 2015, advising families in Thame and the surrounding area on wills, estate planning, lasting powers of attorney and probate. She said she wanted to ensure that her clients continued to receive local support after her retirement.
“I wanted to hand this work to a firm that is local, established, and shares the way I have tried to look after people,” Stafford said.
Lightfoots, which was founded in Thame in 1853, is taking responsibility for the practice as its successor firm. Clients whose wills were held in storage have had them transferred to Lightfoots’ secure storage in Thame, while existing and former clients have been contacted directly about the change.
Clients do not need to take any action. Those who would prefer to transfer their files to another solicitor can arrange this without charge.
The acquisition adds to Lightfoots’ Wills & Probate operation, which covers wills, trusts, estate planning, lasting powers of attorney and probate. Barnes’ arrival provides continuity for clients who had worked with the Stafford practice.
For Stafford, the decision marks the end of a practice she built in the town where she lives.
“I have been fortunate to do this work in the town I live in, for people I see in the street,” she said. “I did not want to simply close the door.”
Lightfoots managing partner Joe Middleton said the firm’s long-standing presence in Thame had been an important part of the transition.
“Rachel wanted her clients to stay in Thame, with a firm that will still be here for their children,” he said.
Lightfoots employs more than 170 people across offices in Thame, Princes Risborough and Marlow, and provides legal services to individuals, businesses and lenders across the UK.
For Thame, the acquisition represents a change in ownership for a small established legal practice while retaining its client relationships and Wills & Probate provision within the town.
