Shoosmiths is pleased to announce the appointment of Simon Collis as Partner in the firm’s Real Estate practice in London.
Published: 3 March 2026
Simon joins from Steptoe International (UK), bringing significant commercial real estate experience and a diverse client base spanning private equity firms, data centres, developers, investors and financial services in the UK and internationally. His arrival builds on the recent hire of Jasvinder Sahotay from Steptoe, reinforcing the firm’s strategic investment in and focus on real estate.
Simon’s practice focuses on the acquisition and disposal of investment assets, the complete lifecycle of development projects, and landlord and tenant leasehold and management work. On the investment side, a substantial portion of his work involves corporate real estate transactions, often with real estate finance. Simon has in-depth experience advising on resort and leisure development projects.
Shoosmiths Partner and Head of Real Estate, Joe Mazzucca, said: “Simon’s expertise complements and enhances our market leading Real Estate practice, and we’re thrilled to have him on board. He has a proven track record of developing and maintaining strong client relationships in both the UK and internationally, particularly on complex, transaction-led mandates.
“His hire reflects our continued investment in Real Estate, one of Shoosmiths’ three market-facing pillars, as part of our 2030 ambition. We remain focused on attracting high-calibre partners who add depth in defining our market leading practice and Simon’s addition does just that.”
Commenting on his appointment, Simon said: “Shoosmiths has a well-established and multi-disciplinary Real Estate practice, and I’m delighted to be joining the team. The firm’s commitment to Real Estate as a core practice area, combined with its deep national, and increasingly international, reach and collaborative culture are compelling propositions. I look forward further to strengthening our offering and building on the strong foundations already in place.”
In recent months, Shoosmiths has made several partner hires to its Real Estate team, reflecting increased focus on the most complex real estate client work and the firm’s strategic priority to build a market-leading practice. Simon’s addition also continues strong growth momentum in London, with the firm adding 15 lateral partners since April 2025 as it continues to deliver on its dynamic 2030 strategy. These additions, which include banking and finance lawyers John Dawson and Graham Knight, technology lawyer Sarah Reynolds, and real estate finance lawyer James Salford, deepen capabilities across Shoosmiths’ three core practices in Corporate, Litigation and Real Estate and underline the firm’s strength in key sectors like technology and energy & infrastructure.