Shakeel Dad

Walker Morris

After years spent rising through the ranks at Leeds’ Walker Morris, last year Shakeel Dad was made one of the firm’s youngest ever partners – a well-deserved appointment after a superb 12 months.

2019 was a year in which he snapped up clients such as Kraft Heinz, Lucozade Ribena Suntory and Tottenham Hotspur, attracting the attention of Addleshaw Goddard as a result. He will be joining that firm’s employment team in May 2020, an opportunity he sees as an exciting platform to develop his career.

Football plays a key part in Dad’s practice, as he acts for a number of Premier League and Championship clubs. Previously, he advised Everton on the club’s managerial appointment of Marco Silva, while he worked with Mick McCarthy on his decision to become Ireland’s manager. He has also built links with Burnley Football Club.

Outside of the law, Dad is keen to inspire young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and having been educated at a state school in his native Bradford, he now mentors children at two local schools and is a governor at his former primary school. “People like me don’t end up as partners at firms like Walker Morris or Addleshaw Goddard,” Dad told The Lawyer. He undoubtedly has a bright future ahead.