There have been a number of new appointments and promotions in Liverpool city region’s professional sector including a new managing director for property consultancy Walker Sime.

The firm, which has offices in Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds has promoted Duncan Firth to the managing director role. He joined the business in 2015  and was tasked with establishing its project management division. 

Walker Sime founders Des Walker and Jon Sime have assumed new roles focusing on quality, governance and client relationships. Mr Firth’s career includes the delivery of the City of Manchester Stadium in time for the Commonwealth Games.

He said: “We have a unique culture here that places our clients and our staff front and centre and it will be more of the same. The team here have built a really solid business over more than 20 years and my job will be to help them develop it further.”

Liverpool law firm Jackson Lees Group has appointed an experienced litigator, Anna Salisbury, to its commercial litigation team.

Ms Salisbury specialises in insolvency (both personal and company), general debt recovery, commercial and civil disputes including breach of contract and professional negligence claims.

With over 12 years’ experience, she has worked across the North West; representing clients at both Liverpool and Manchester High  Court on high value complex cases – including being involved in a two-year fraud case recovering assets over £18m.

Another Liverpool law firm, Brabners, has strengthened its private client team with the appointment of consultant Liz Braude. She joins from Laytons and was previously the head of private client at Pannone before the firm merged with Slater and Gordon.

Ms Braude has 20 years’ experience covering all aspects of the private client field and has acted for high net-worth families across the North West. 

The Liverpool office of  accountancy firm KPMG has grown its deal advisory practice with the appointment of Charlie Berry as a corporate finance associate.

The Wirral native joins KPMG’s Princes Parade office from Grant Thornton’s transaction services practice in Manchester, where he specialised in vendor due diligence for private equity and corporate transactions.

Ben Russell, chief executive at recruitment firm Russell Taylor Holdings, has been appointed to the board of Wirral Chamber of Commerce.

One of the region’s leading entrepreneurs, Mr Russell has driven the Wirral-headquartered business, originally set up as a father and son operation, to one with a multi-million pound turnover and currently employing more than 400 staff.