I hope this message finds you well during this busy festive party season and you are looking forward to enjoying a well-deserved break over the holiday period to spend time with family and friends.
As your newly elected Chair, I wanted to introduce myself and your new Executive Committee for 2025/26, as well as share some updates on the PLA’s plans for 2026 as we look ahead to the next phase of the Association's growth.
Firstly, a monumental thank you to our outgoing Chair, Rebecca Campbell. Rebecca was the Association’s 30th chair and she dedicated significant time and energy to PLA work during her tenure, spearheading our largest programme of events for the landmark 30th-anniversary celebrations and ensuring the PLA maintained its position as an influential, authoritative voice within the real estate industry during a period of intense legislative change. Her legacy is robust, and we are grateful for her leadership. Rebecca led us to UKREiiF and has also created relationships to help us make a difference in terms of social mobility.
I am delighted that Rebecca has agreed to continue supporting the Association in the new role of Immediate Past Chair, where she will act as a key advisor to the Executive Committee for the next year. So, we will not be letting Rebecca put her feet up just yet!
YOUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: A VIBRANT NEW CHAPTER
For those of you who don’t know me, I am Kate Andrews and am privileged to have been appointed as your new Chair. I have been a member of the PLA since 2003 and have spent the past 19 years actively involved in PLA committees, initially as a member of the Education and Training Committee (ETC), followed by roles as Vice-Chair of the ETC, Chair of the ETC and Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee.
At our AGM on 20 November, the new Executive Committee was elected. In my “speech” to guests at the Annual Dinner, I said thank you to all those that work behind the scenes on the Executive Committee as well as all of the sub committees, to all our supporters and friends, and those that make it happen. I also gave thanks to all of you, our members. Especially for those that take time out of their busy working day to read – and comment and give feed back – on our social media content and to help us continue to improve to make sure the Association gives you what you want.
My Vice-Chair is Paul Barker, Partner at Gowling WLG. Paul has been an exceptional Chair of the Regions for several years, ensuring our national membership feels connected and valued. Paul and I will be supported by a brilliant Executive team who all bring a wealth of experience and passion from years of dedicated service on PLA committees:
- Anna Mullins, Honorary Treasurer;
- Lindsey Whittle, Honorary Secretary;
- Paul Tonkin, Chair of the Law Reform Committee (LRC);
- James Teagle, Chair of the Education and Training Committee (ETC);
- Perry Swanson, Chair of the Junior PLA Committee (JPLA);
- Frances Richardson, Chair of the Wellbeing Committee;
- Chhavie Kapoor, Chair of the EDI Committee;
- Isabel Emerson-Lich, Chair of the Website and Marketing Committee (WMC); and
- Rebecca Campbell, Immediate Past Chair.
We say goodbye to Tim Reid who stepped down as chair of the WMC, and to Rachael Studman as chair of the JPLA, both of whom we shall miss.
You can view all our Executive profiles and contact details on the PLA's About page.
The Executive Committee are robustly supported by our six national sub-committees and our active and growing regional sub-committees. In total, over 50 volunteer members are working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure our Association continues to thrive and deliver exceptional value for our members—all while balancing busy day jobs! I look forward to working closely with every single one of them over the next 12 months.
The PLA was founded in 1995 by a pioneering group of seven members who sought to build a supportive community of property litigators. The Association now boasts over 1,700 members nationally across the UK and Ireland. We continue to see record attendances at our flagship events, demonstrating that despite sometimes being the fiercest of adversaries, property litigators quite enjoy spending time together!
THE YEAR AHEAD: SHAPING THE FUTURE OF PROPERTY LAW
As we look ahead to 2026, the Association will be busier and more influential than ever. We anticipate continued activity surrounding major legislative changes. Our dedicated ETC and LRC Committees will be helping members keep on top of these complex changes, and we actively welcome member feedback on how any new legislation is working in practice.
We will also continue to strategically develop the PLA’s relationships with other key industry bodies in the property sector, including the BPF, the British Council for Offices, and RICS, to help understand their approach to law reform, collaborate on essential wellbeing and EDI initiatives, and share learning.
We are entering a pivotal period for the profession, and I believe this is an important time for us to strategically plan ahead for our next decade of growth and influence. To do this, we need the next generation of enthusiastic members to get involved!
If you would like to join any of our dynamic committees or have any ideas or suggestions as to how we can better support the wider membership, please do get in touch. You can email: admin@pla.org.uk or contact me or any of the Executive Committee directly.
Finally, on behalf of the entire Executive Committee, thank you for your incredible support for the Association over 2025. I wish you all a restful break over the festive period and a very happy and healthy New Year.
Kate Andrews
PLA Chair
December 2025