Knights has completed its acquisition of Moore Barlow, and Moore Barlow became part of Knights Professional Services Limited on 1 November 2026. If you are a franchisor or franchisee with work open at Moore Barlow, the people advising you have moved to Knights and your matters carry on with them, according to the transfer notice on Knights’ website.
What Knights has bought
Knights first announced the deal on 21 August 2026, describing it as the purchase of Moore Barlow’s commercial and private wealth business. That announcement said it would bring more than 160 legal professionals to Knights and give the firm a presence in Guildford, Lymington, Richmond and Southampton. Moore Barlow’s personal injury, clinical negligence and Court of Protection services did not go to Knights. They joined Fletchers instead, the transfer notice says.
With the deal done, Knights says it now has 33 locations across the UK. It describes itself as the UK’s largest regional legal and professional services business and says the acquisition adds depth in corporate, commercial, dispute resolution, employment, family, real estate disputes and private client work. It also names stronger sector teams in education, charities and not-for-profit, and landed estates and rural business. Knights says it was established in 1759.
What it means for franchise clients
Both firms were already listed here as franchise solicitors. Moore Barlow ran its franchising work from its commercial and technology team, acting for brand owners building a network and for people buying into one, with a fixed-fee report on a franchise agreement for prospective franchisees. The partners named on those franchising pages, John Warchus and Sarah Crookall, now appear in Knights’ people directory as Commercial Partners, based in Guildford and Southampton.
Knights already had a franchising sector team. Its franchising page covers drafting and reviewing franchise agreements and disclosure documents, network growth and compliance, protecting trade marks and know-how, and disputes between franchisors and franchisees. For franchisees it covers agreement reviews before signing, leases for franchise premises and disputes with a franchisor. So for most clients the practical change is the name on the letterhead and the contact details, rather than who does the work.
Knights’ CEO David Beech said in the completion announcement that the firm shares Moore Barlow’s belief that “professional services should be personal”, and that clients should know the people advising them and be able to reach them when they need them.
What to check if you used Moore Barlow
The old moorebarlow.com pages now send visitors to Knights, so any links or bookmarks you hold for Moore Barlow’s franchising pages no longer work. If you have a franchise agreement review, a resale or a dispute in progress, it is worth confirming your adviser’s new email address and phone number from the Knights people directory, and checking that any invoices and engagement letters now show Knights. The main Knights enquiry line is 0344 371 2562.
You can see the firm’s franchising team on our Knights listing, and compare other UK firms on the franchise agreement solicitors page. If you are looking at legal advice before buying into a network, our guide on how franchise agreements work and the clauses that matter covers what a review usually looks at.
This item is based on desk research of Knights’ published announcements and its website. We have not spoken to either firm.
Sources
- Knights, Knights strengthens national business with major expansion in the south, 1 November 2026, checked 3 November 2026.
- Knights, Acquisition of Moore Barlow, checked 3 November 2026.
- Knights, Knights expands in the South through Moore Barlow acquisition, 21 August 2026, checked 3 November 2026.
- Knights, Franchising, checked 3 November 2026.
