Saffery Champness brings in Rawlinson & Hunter tax partner

SAFFERY CHAMPNESS has appointed Ben Melling as tax partner, after eight years with Rawlinson & Hunter.

Melling previously spent 18 years at Grant Thornton before becoming partner in 2000. Melling specialises in advising non-UK-domiciled clients on both onshore and offshore matters.

Saffery’s had more than 14% growth in tax fee income last year, largely underpinned by the expansion of its tax team, with the addition of a sports and entertainment arm in January 2011 when Julian Hedley joined as a partner from RSM Tenon.

Earlier this month, it was announced that a further 17 members of Tenon’s film and media team had followed Hedley’s lead and moved to Saffery’s.

Managing partner Jonathan Fox said: “Ben is a real star and his arrival is great news for us as we seek to build further on our excellent tax practice. He has a huge amount of experience and with him on our side, clients both UK and internationally can expect further development of our high-quality advisory services as we look to cement our reputation as one of the leading private client firms in the UK.”