Sarah Elliott

Partner

Head of Construction Team

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Expertise

Sarah is a construction specialist advising on a wide range of construction projects from inception to completion. She leads the construction team at Wedlake Bell and acts principally across the living, hotels, offices and life science sectors. She is described by clients as ‘highly professional, personable and a very effective operator“, has been ranked in Chambers & Partners every year since 2011 and is recognised as a leading partner in her field in Legal500.

 

Sarah’s clients include developers, funders, consultants, contractors and private clients.  She has been involved on numerous market-leading deals and projects include new build and refurbishment of high end residential, office, retail, hotel, hospital and mixed use developments. Sarah also advises on the construction elements of complex property transactions acting for landlords, tenants, purchasers or sellers.

 

Sarah provides commentary and articles for Lexis PSL in her capacity as Editorial Board member.

Recent Experience

  • Advising various clients on the implications of the Building Safety Act (including the new gateway process), including acting for owners of higher risk buildings dealing with cladding remediation works
  • Acting for tenants in relation to fit outs of various high profile office buildings
  • Acting for international hotel group in relation to all construction aspects of the refurbishment of its 5-star flagship hotel in Knightsbridge
  • Advising various well known housebuilder clients in relation to large build to rent schemes for global asset managers
  • Advising large overseas developer client in relation to construction of large aparthotel and various large residential schemes across London
  • Advising developers and private individuals on numerous super prime residential projects in prestigious areas including Belgravia, Kensington, Knightsbridge, St George’s Hill and the Wentworth Estate

Career History

Sarah has a degree in mathematics from Imperial College London. She attended the College of Law, London to obtain her legal qualifications and then qualified as a solicitor in 2002 having trained at Wedlake Bell and became a partner in 2012.

She is a member of the Lexis PSL Construction Consulting Editorial Board and the Society of Construction Law. Sarah also regularly sits on the Joint Contracts Tribunal (JCT) drafting sub-committee.

Sarah is easy to talk to and offers excellent advice. She is very experienced and qualified in construction contract law. She leads a great team and no challenge is too much trouble for her.

Chambers UK, 2025

Sarah Elliott's support on the property side of matters has been brilliant and so knowledgeable.

Legal 500, 2025

Sarah Elliott is always very quick to respond and so knowledgeable. Sarah has really assisted me in driving some matters forward in a timely manner.

Legal 500, 2025

She's a delight to work with and is incredibly helpful and proactive.

Chambers UK, 2023

Sarah is highly sophisticated, with great commercial acumen. She has an excellent understanding of client needs.

Chambers UK, 2023

Sarah Elliott is exceptional – exceptional contract knowledge and goes out of her way to support her client in whatever is needed.

Legal 500, 2023

Sarah Elliott in the construction team demonstrates dedication to the client’s needs. She understands the way the client operates and tailors her service to suit.

Legal 500, 2022

"Sarah is a recognised practitioner"

Chambers UK, 2018

Sarah Elliott is also a key contact.

Legal 500, 2017

She provides a ‘first-class service.’

Chambers UK, 2013

Clients praise her ability to ‘get straight to the nub of the matter'.

Chambers UK, 2012

Sarah is 'very eloquent, accessible and responsive'.

Chambers UK, 2011

Building Safety Act

Building Safety Act In Practice: Questions & Answers

We set out below the questions asked at our seminar “Building Safety Act In Practice” and our answers to them. For further information please visit Wedlake Bell construction team insightsRead more

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ISG Administration Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Contents What has happened? What is an administration? Am I affected? Will I get paid? Might I be paid by the ultimate employer or funder? What should I do now?Read more

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – 2024 Joint Contracts Tribunal (JCT) Update

Questions Can I still use JCT 2016 contracts for my projects and are there changes to all JCT contracts? Has there been any change to the risk profile in theRead more

News

JCT Design and Build 2024 is published: read our introduction to the top ten changes

JCT Design and Build 2024 has been published this week and is first of the new suites of JCT contracts forming the 2024 edition to be published. We will beRead more

Building Safety Act

Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA): Works to Hospitals and Care Homes

Potential areas for misunderstanding are emerging as the construction industry gets to grips with the Building Safety Act (BSA). It is now generally understood that hospitals and care homes areRead more

Building Safety Act

Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA): Mandatory Occurrence Reporting for Higher Risk Buildings (HRBs) during construction

Under the Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023 there is now a responsibility on the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor responsible for HRBs to carry out Mandatory Occurrence Reporting (MOR) whereRead more