Matthew Braithwaite

Partner

Private Client

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Expertise

Matt advises a wide range of UK and international clients, from individuals, families, trustees, beneficiaries and family offices on a wide range of private client issues, including UK tax, estate and succession planning.

Matt acts for high net worth individuals and families including business owners, professional executives and entrepreneurs.  Matt advises on the establishment and use of trusts and other wealth holding structures, and also on the succession of family trusts and businesses and governance issues.

He also advises on Wills and wider estate and succession planning issues.

Recent Experience

  • Matt assisted UK resident and domiciled family business owners with their succession planning including gifting of shares in the business to the next generation, corporate advice to support the succession of the business and personal support concerning the preparation of Wills and Lasting Powers of Attorney.
  • Matt has advised UK resident US persons and UK nationals resident in the US in connection with their succession and estate planning, working with US advisors to ensure a joined up approach with both tax advice and Will drafting.
  • Matt has providing ‘pre-arrival’ UK tax planning to non-UK domiciled persons coming to the UK from, amongst other countries, Hong Kong.
  • Matt regularly provides UK tax advice to both UK and international clients in connection with the purchase of high value UK residential property.  He also regularly drafts Wills, Lasting Powers of Attorneys and lifetime trusts to mitigate tax or carry out estate or succession planning.

Career History

Matt trained at a national law firm based in Bath and, upon qualifying as a solicitor in 2005, he practised as a solicitor in Bath before moving to their London office in 2008 to develop the firm’s private client services.

In 2011, Matt joined BDO in London before moving back into the legal world in 2013 to take up a role in the Private Wealth team at another London based law firm. He joined Wedlake Bell as a Partner in 2018 and heads up the Offshore team.

Matt is a full-time member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and a member of STEP’s Responsible Stewardship of Wealth Though Leadership Group.

Matt coordinates the firm’s involvement with an education and social mobility charity.

Publications

Matt has co-authored chapters for the International Comparative Legal Guide: Private Client, including a series chartering the reforms to the taxation of UK residential property and has written widely for industry publications and the national press.  Matt also talks at industry conferences both in the UK and internationally.

Endorsements

Matt is listed in Citywealth’s Leaders List 2018 and was awarded silver for Partner of the Year at the Citywealth Future Leader Awards 2016.

Matt was listed in the eprivateclient “Top 35 Under 35” in 2014 and 2015.

Proactive and user friendly. Keen to help; good at seeing the job through and always happy to go the extra mile. Matthew Braithwaite has wide knowledge and is polite yet persistent and always gets the job done.

Legal 500, 2025

Matthew Braithwaite and Camilla Wallace are leaders in the market, and both speak impressively in public.

Legal 500, 2025

Matthew's background in tax is clear and he is incredibly technical.

Chambers, High Net Worth 2023

Matthew is very good. He has a lot of patience and comes across well.

Chambers, High Net Worth 2023

Matt is a terrific partner in dealing with delicate matters. He makes clients feel supported.

Chambers, High Net Worth 2023

The team is known for its straightforward answers and expertise in helping international clients navigating through complex UK tax issues. I work with Matt Braithwaite. Approachable, no nonsense and always helpful!

Legal 500, 2023

Matthew Braithwaite advises wealthy clients on cross-border succession and estate planning, as well as taxation matters. "He is my go-to private wealth lawyer in London. He is very patient and has a lot of experience in advising high net worth families on tax-related issues," states a source.

Chambers, High Net Worth 2022

Matthew Braithwaite is very responsive and easy to work with.

Legal 500, 2022

Matthew Braithwaite, Camilla Wallace and Jenny Cutts – each with their own style; all three are technically excellent and provide solution driven advice.

Legal 500, 2022

He is very collaborative, he is very responsive and very knowledgeable," and another comments: "He is someone I'd highly recommend. I like him a lot. He is really bright, responsive and easy to deal with.

Chambers, High Net Worth Guide 2021

Matt is brilliant. Matt is first of all a very approachable and very down-to-earth individual, the other thing that stands out about him is that he has a very good grasp of matters and can explain things to clients in an understandable manner.

Chambers, High Net Worth Guide 2021

News

Wedlake Bell helps drive new STEP family business campaign and succession planning

STEP, the industry body for trust and estate practitioners, has released results of their family business survey, which shows 69% of family business owners do not have a succession plan detailing whatRead more

News

Private Client team’s commentary on Autumn Budget published by eprivateclient, Practical Law and wealthbriefing

Following the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget last week, our Private Client team’s thoughts on what the announcements mean for their clients and the wider economy have been featured in a numberRead more

Globally Speaking

Globally Speaking: Stop Press The Autumn Budget 2024

In this “stop press” edition of our Globally Speaking e-bulletin, we provide our initial thoughts on the most highly anticipated Budget in the UK for a generation; the first byRead more

Globally Speaking

Globally Speaking: Welcome from the Editors Autumn 2024

Welcome to the Autumn 2024 issue of our international e-bulletin for private client, family office and trustee clients and contacts. Understandably, the focus of the private client offshore industry remainsRead more

Globally Speaking

What does it mean to be a responsible steward of wealth?

Wealth holders have always been stewards of their own wealth; increasingly that stewardship requires wealth holders to act responsibly. But what does being a responsible wealth steward mean, and whoRead more

Globally Speaking

Relocation planning for non-doms

Following on from the announcement in the Spring Budget in March 2024 that the UK’s preferential tax regime for non-UK domiciled individuals (“non-doms“) will change from 6 April 2025 (forRead more