Recruitment Heralds Growth for Bath Office of South West Law Firm
Regional law firm, GA Solicitors, has made a senior level recruitment to its Bath office, marking the start of its plans to grow the office outside of its current renewable energy focus.
GA’s Bath office, which is located centrally in Henry Street, has previously focused solely on its GA Energy arm since its opening in 2019. As part of its strategic business plans to develop its Bath offering, the firm has this October recruited Stephen Horton, a partner who will provide legal services in the private client sector, including estate planning, wills, trusts and inheritance tax advice.
Joining with more than a decade of experience, Stephen specialises in estate planning with a particular focus on clients with significant property investments and family businesses, including family run farms. He provides a range of advisory work from the drafting of wills, trusts and partnership agreements through to complex tax and trust law advice.
GA Solicitors plans for this appointment to be the first of many in the Bath area as it builds upon its growing brand in the location and utilises the modern and central office more fully.
To assist in its expansion plans across both offices, GA has this month also recruited three trainee solicitors who will follow the firm’s comprehensive training programme. At a time where recruitment is often difficult and competitive, homegrown talent will likely be the most effective route for the firm to reach its ambitious growth targets.
The success of the firm’s training programme was proven in September, with the qualification of two of its team members to solicitors, and the promotion of two previous trainees from solicitors to associates.
Commenting on the growth of the Bath office and the wider firm, managing partner Rob Zacal, commented: “We have been wanting for some time to expand the Bath offering beyond that of just GA Energy. However, this was not something we wanted to rush, we needed to ensure the right fit and experience. Stephen was the perfect candidate with a wealth of experience, a loyal client base and a specialist field in dealing with agriculture and landowners. We see Stephen’s recruitment as our first big step into the Bath and Bristol markets and are keen to continue to build on this milestone.
“We of course need to ensure that we not only have experienced and senior lawyers providing expertise, but also high-calibre junior talent to follow in their footsteps. Our trainee programme has gone from strength to strength, and we are pleased to this week welcome Michelle Broom, George Clarke and Frieda Stark to the firm. Their employment follows the qualification of both Luke Canon and Jenna Launder, and the promotion of Niall Rundle and Caitlin Weeks to associate after qualifying from the trainee programme three years ago.”
Stephen Horton, new partner in the Bath office, added: “I am very excited to join GA Solicitors and to help the firm develop and grow its offering in the Bath and Bristol markets. The Plymouth private client team is highly regarded, being ranked Band One in Chambers High Net Worth and also having won a national award only weeks ago. To be able to build on this expertise and develop the brand in a new geographical area is very exciting.
“As a solicitor and Chartered Tax Adviser, my experience complements the department well, allowing me to offer strategic and complex tax advice, particularly to landowners and agricultural clients. I look forward to sharing and utilising this knowledge and getting to know everyone in the firm.”
With more than 200 years of heritage, GA Solicitors is a regional law firm, headquartered in Plymouth, with a second office in Bath. It employs 104 members of staff and offers guidance across eight specialist departments: business; family; employment; energy; dispute resolution; wills, trusts & probate; conveyancing and personal injury.
ENDS
20/10/2026
Note to Editors
GA Solicitors can trace its roots back more than 200 years and has been advising the people and businesses in the South West for its duration. Originally based in Devonport, the firm gets its initials from Thomas Husband Gill who joined the practice in 1875 and later went into partnership with Albert E. Akaster.
Now one of the region’s leading law firms, the 104-strong team at the Lexcel-accredited LLP, has offices in both Plymouth and Bath. It is ranked in The Legal 500, Chambers UK and Chambers High Net Worth and is structured around eight practice areas, each comprising its own specialist department:
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