From Solicitor to Member of Parliament
29th Jun 2010
A North East solicitor has said his farewells to his law firm after starting a new career as a Member of Parliament.
James Wharton made his official departure from BHP Law with the blessing of senior managers at the regional firm after winning the seat of Stockton South in the General Election.
He had campaigned first for the Conservative candidacy in 2007, then fought to win the seat itself before and during the Election campaign, while working as a solicitor in BHP’s company law team, based in Darlington and Stockton.
Partner and head of the company law team, Gary Copeland, said he was delighted that James was able to fulfil his long held ambition to be an MP, though also sorry to see him go.
He said: “James worked incredibly hard for his clients at BHP while at the same time working to win the seat of Stockton South. He suited our client centred approach fantastically well and I’m sure will apply that same concern for people to his new role.
“He showed himself to be highly committed and capable and would have been able to secure a senior position in any law firm very quickly. He is an extremely dedicated and talented individual and I have no doubt he will be outstanding MP.”
James said: “The one thing that remained consistent throughout was BHP’s support and understanding, which allowed me to have an active involvement in politics while also gaining valuable experience across BHP’s many legal services.”
James, who comes from Wolviston, studied law at DurhamUniversity before joining BHP Law in 2006.
He completed his training with the firm, which has offices in Newcastle, Durham, Darlington, Stockton and Halifax, and qualified in September 2008.
Gary said the firm appointed him in the full knowledge of his political ambitions.
He explained: “It was very much a partnership and I can say that, despite the amount of work James put into becoming an MP, there was not a single occasion when it detracted from his professionalism and work rate for the team.
“As a result of his positive experience while working within the firm he will undoubtedly prove to be a great ambassador for BHP and the region going forward.”
He added that James had played a particularly important role when the firm negotiated with the Department for Energy and Climate Control on behalf of North East firm, eaga plc, for the Warm Front programme.
James added: “The breadth of experience I was able to gain with BHP, in criminal and family law, litigation, commercial property and latterly with the company team, is proving invaluable in my new role as MP working for individuals, families and businesses large and small in the constituency.
“In particular, the large and diverse range of clients BHP attracts has given me precious insight into business and industry, from start-ups and SMEs to large industrial and commercial organisations and national, public companies, and allowed me to work comfortably with sole traders as well as chief executives of corporations.”
He added that his first few weeks as a new MP had been hectic but he had begun tackling some of the issues facing the area, including stepping in an immigration case, negotiating over a hostel for the homeless and keeping closely involved over Barclaycard, Garland call centres and the Wynyard hospital proposal.
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