Mairead Powell

Mairead is a senior solicitor who qualified in 2011, with over a decade of experience advising businesses on the full spectrum of commercial contracts across both private practice and in-house legal teams. Mairead specialises in advising on supply arrangements and trading terms, acting for clients ranging from SME start-ups to global multinationals across sectors including healthcare, retail and the public sector.

Having worked in both private practice and in-house legal teams, Mairead brings a rounded, commercially minded perspective to every instruction, understanding not just the legal position, but the practical pressures organisations face when navigating legal agreements.

Mairead qualified into the Outsourcing, Technology and Commercial team of Wright Hassall, a large regional firm based in the Midlands, where as an Associate she advised clients across multiple sectors on their commercial agreements. During her time there, Mairead was seconded into the in-house legal department of a leading healthcare provider. In 2018, she moved in-house, working as a Commercial Solicitor for Warwickshire County Council and subsequently Cellnex UK Limited, a global telecommunications company, before joining Harper James in 2022.

• Advised a large manufacturing company on its standard terms of trading and day-to-day commercial agreements, acting as its trusted first port of call for a £30 million turnover business.
• Advised a leading national retailer on its supply arrangements, securing terms that protected margin and continuity of supply.
• Advised a large wholesaler on its distribution arrangements, helping it trade with confidence and manage supply-chain risk.

"No two contracts are the same, and for a non-lawyer, they can feel like reading a foreign language, but they don’t have to. I see my role as translating complexity into clear, accessible advice that is genuinely tailored to each client's business."