an image of Rachel Martin, a commercial property solicitor

Rachel Martin

Partner


Contact Rachel

I am Co-Head of Commercial Property and a Partner based at our Bramhall office. Having previously worked at national firms in Manchester city centre, I joined Butcher & Barlow in 2018 and was simultaneously promoted to Partner and acting head of the Firm’s Commercial Property Department in April 2021.

To reflect the continued growth of our Commercial Property Team in recent years, I now jointly head-up the department with Zoe Paton-Crockett, having particular oversight of the team’s investment and landlord and tenant work.

I qualified as a Solicitor specialising in Commercial Property law in 1999 and have extensive experience in a variety of commercial property matters including:

  • Conditional and unconditional sales and acquisitions of freehold and leasehold land (with and without funding);
  • Development: acting for developers, land owners and occupiers in connection with new build agreements for lease, development agreements and conditional contracts, option and promotion agreements, rights of pre-emption and overage;
  • Estate management and Landlord & Tenant matters: agreements for lease, leases, assignments and underleases, alterations, renewal leases, variations and surrenders;
  • Portfolio refinancing and secured lending: acting on behalf of both borrowers and lenders;
  • Acting for NHS Trusts, Primary Care Organisation and Medical and Dental Practitioners;
  • Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) Schemes; and
  • Solar farm options and leases.

Work highlights include:

  • The grant of an option to purchase 20 acres of agricultural land to a national house-builder; and
  • Acting for a technology client in connection with the grant of an agreement for lease and lease of 20,000 sq. ft. of new-build ‘headquarters’ offices in the North West.
  • Acting for a medical practice in Manchester in connection with the surrender of their existing premises to facilitate local regeneration and an agreement for the development and long lease of alternative premises within a community hub;
  • Acting for a Cheshire-based manufacturer in the funding and acquisition of a small industrial estate subject to occupational leases, for a purchase price in excess of £5 million;
  • The refinancing of a £15 million residential property portfolio for a commercial and residential property investment company based in Manchester.

I strive to always provide pragmatic, commercial advice to clients and take pride in being approachable and working collaboratively to bring each transaction to a successful conclusion. I am recognised as a ‘Next Generation Partner’ in the most recent edition of the Legal 500.

When not working, I enjoy spending time with my family and long walks with the dog!

Specialist Areas

Commercial Property
Commercial Property

Accreditations

The Legal 500 Recommended Lawyer 2024 The Legal 500 Next Generation Partner 2024 The Legal 500 Recommended Lawyer 2023 UK Next generation partner 2025 UK Recommended lawyer 2025

What our clients say about Rachel

TEP has utilised Butcher & Barlow LLP on a number of occasions to provide commercial legal advice. We continue to return to the Firm on the basis of the high standards of customer service delivered by the team. The advice provided is always thorough, tailored to meet our specific company requirements and prompt. In this instance, both Rachel and Mark assisted with completion of a new lease agreement for our offices and dilapidations support in regard to our prior property. We would recommend and use this practice again.