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Allan Wernham

Managing Director, Scotland

Portrait ofAllan Wernham

Allan Wernham

Managing Director, Scotland

Contact
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP
1 West Regent Street
Glasgow
G2 1AP
United Kingdom
Languages English

Allan Wernham is Managing Director Scotland and is a partner in the Real Estate group based in Glasgow.  

With over 25 years’ experience, Allan specialises in major development and regeneration projects with a particular focus on prime retail and city centre assets, and in advising large energy and utility companies on their property needs.  Allan’s experience covers the whole range of development work, from initial acquisitions and development agreements through to letting, financing and disposals.  He advises major players in the UK real estate market, including Landsec, Hammerson and Nuveen.  

As Managing Director Scotland, Allan is responsible for leading the firm’s ambitious growth strategy in Scotland, building on over 260 years of heritage and a market-leading reputation in the key sectors of the 21st century economy.   

Allan, alongside the other real estate partners based in Scotland, works closely with the wider UK real estate team to provide a seamless service north and south of the border.  

Allan is dual qualified to practice as a solicitor in Scotland and England & Wales.  

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‘delivers excellence time and time again and for the right price’.

Chambers UK

"extremely responsive and pragmatic."

Chambers UK

"jewel in the crown of the practice."

Chambers UK

‘delivers excellence time and time again and for the right price’.

Chambers UK

"extremely responsive and pragmatic."

Chambers UK

"jewel in the crown of the practice."

Chambers UK

Relevant experience

  • Nuveen on its £1bn St James Quarter development in Edinburgh, providing strategic advice on land acquisition, CPO, asset management, residential/hotel/joint venture and funding, including negotiation of voluntary third-party agreements against the background of a CPO to enable development to take place.  
  • Landsec on the development of a major mixed use development site on Buchanan Street in Glasgow, including initial site acquisition from an insolvent seller, and developing and executing a site assembly and vacant possession strategy within the framework of an existing CPO.
  • Landsec on the £224.1m sale of The Centre and Almondvale West Retail Park, Livingston, Scotland's second-largest covered shopping centre, to HSBC Alternative Investments. 
  • Hammerson on the sale of Silveburn Shopping Centre, Glasgow to Eurofund Group & Henderson Park.  
  • National Grid on the management and disposal of National Grid's surplus land portfolio including the disposal to various residential and commercial developers of major development sites, involving advice on planning, title and minerals issues, input into commercial negotiations on overage and environmental liabilities, and dealing with remediation obligations and related security structures. 
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Education

  • 1997 - Dual Qualification in English Law, College of Law
  • 1993 - Dip LP, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen
  • 1992 - LLB, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen
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Expertise

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28/02/2024
On Point: Insight paper series
Navigating the business landscape in Scotland and beyond presents numerous challenges. From escalating costs to talent scarcity, evolving regulations, and technological advancements, alongside political uncertainties. At CMS Scotland, we are committed to working with our clients to support them with these complexities.
Publication
13/11/2023
CMS launches new Strategic Secondment Unit
International law firm CMS has introduced an innovative new offering to the Scottish legal market with the launch of its Strategic Secondment Unit (SSU). The new unit provides a dedicated and experienced...
News
13/11/2023
Strategic Secondment Unit: Flexible secondment resource
Anticipating our clients' current and future needs is at the heart of our approach at CMS Scotland.  The legal landscape is constantly changing, and we acknowledge the growing demand from our clients for adaptable secondment resources. That's where our Strategic Secondment Unit, or SSU, comes into play. Our team of lawyers, with expertise spanning various sectors and experience levels, is well-equipped to meet this demand across our Scottish clients.
Publication
10/11/2023
Driving sustainability in real estate and construction
Contributing to the fight against climate change and creating social value are now priorities for the real estate and construction sectors.   The long-term nature of the built environment means that resilience and sustainability should be considered at every stage if buildings are to be environmentally and socially responsible. This brings both opportunities and challenges for the businesses that create, own or maintain it. They must consider the evolving technical, regulatory and market landscape, to ensure that their investments are future-proofed commercially, as well as environmentally and socially. This section of Bandwidth looks at some of the ESG issues that confront developers and property owners, and how they can incorporate practical solutions into their businesses.
Publication
09/10/2023
On Point: Doing Business in Scotland in Challenging Times
Our inaugural CMS Scotland conference took place on 5 October at the National Museum of Scotland. The conference was designed to bring our key clients and contacts together to dive deeper into the challenges...
Publication
27/03/2023
Sustainable Tourism
Sustainable tourism is vital for our economy, having been identified in the Scottish Government’s Scotland's Economic Strategy (2015) as a growth sector where the country can build on existing comparative advantage as well as increase productivity.
Publication
28/11/2022
Scottish independence - The road to a second referendum?
On 18 September 2014, the Scottish electorate voted on whether Scotland should become an independent country. The result was 55/45 in favour of remaining part of the United Kingdom but in the aftermath of Brexit support for Scottish independence has increased. Recent opinion polls have shown that Scots are evenly split on the issue of independence. In the run-up to the Scottish Parliament elections on 6 May 2021, the two main pro-independence parties, the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Scottish Greens, campaigned for a mandate to hold a second independence referendum whilst the pro-Union parties campaigned against a further referendum. Whilst the SNP were one seat short of an overall majority, the election produced a clear pro-independence majority in the Scottish Parliament with 72 out of 129 seats. The First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has made it clear that she views the election result as being a mandate for holding an independence referendum during the lifetime of the current Scottish Parliament.
Publication
16/06/2021
Rebound & Remodel: Scotland's road to recovery
Much of our attention has turned to Scotland’s road to recovery post pandemic, post-Brexit and post-election.  As a nation, Scotland is still addressing a catastrophic pandemic and is in the midst of an uncertain economic landscape ahead. It is dealing with the UK’s exit from the EU and the recent Scottish general election, which has firmed up the prospect of another independence referendum in the medium term.  
Publication
01/10/2020
Scotland: Building opportunities
CMS Scotland worked with a number of key industry leaders and surveyed over 100 executives of four of Scotland’s most important future industry sectors to create our Thought Leadership report Scotland:...
Publication
02/04/2020
Registers of Scotland & Coronavirus (Scotland) Bill - taking forward commercial...
Closure of Registers of Scotland Background In response to this unprecedented situation, Registers of Scotland (ROS) closed the Application Record on 24 March 2020, and therefore is not accepting any...
Law-Now Coronavirus (COVID-19)
25/03/2020
Registers of Scotland - Temporary Closure of the Application Record due...
Background On Tuesday 24 March 2020, the Registers of Scotland (RoS) took the decision to close their offices to protect the health and safety of their employees, in line with the UK Government’s advice...
Law-Now Coronavirus (COVID-19)
19/11/2018
On the world stage
Following last year’s three-way merger CMS became the world’s fifth largest firm by headcount with more than 1,000 partners and 4,500 lawyers operating in 74 offices across 42 countries. Here in...
Publication
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