A BRIGHTON team has won a top national award.

Renaissance Legal has been named Boutique Law Firm of the Year at the 2017 Society of Estate and Trust Practitioners Private Client Awards.

The company - based in Tower Point, North Road - specialises in legal advice to families and carers of disabled and vulnerable people.

It saw off competition from hundreds of firms worldwide to win the prestigious award which recognises excellence in private client law.

MD Philip Warford said: “To reach the finals in this global award scheme was exciting enough but to walk away with the award for Boutique Law Firm of the Year on the night was truly incredible.

“We have worked enormously hard to create a firm dedicated to the unique needs of disabled and vulnerable people, their families and carers, and this award means a great deal to our team.

“We were in the company of many outstanding experts on the night and to be announced by our peers and the STEP judges as winners is the biggest achievement in our firm’s history.”

The awards are seen as the hallmark of quality within the legal industry.

Open globally to both STEP members and non-members, the prestigious awards recognise and celebrate excellence among private client solicitors, lawyers, accountants, barristers, bankers, trust managers and financial advisors.

This year saw a record number of entries from 24 countries around the world.

The judges said: "We much admired the energy and commitment that comes through in Renaissance Legal’s submission.

"The size of the firm is ideally suited to the very specialist client group that it serves, and the fact that other firms with their own private client departments make referrals to them, is testament to their high level of expertise."

The team was also finalists in the Vulnerable Client Advisory Practice of the Year category.