Burges Salmon had its core sector groups to thank as it today (27 September) unveiled a robust 10% uptick in turnover from £108.7m to £119.2m.
It marks a significant speeding of growth, after last year revenues grew by 4% from £104.9m to £108.7m.
Profitability figures were less flattering, with operating profit up by 5% while profit per equity partner (PEP) inched upwards 1% from £512k to £517k. However these figures are more favourable when factoring in the firm’s significant investments over the last year – since May 2021 Burges Salmon has appointed 15 new partners, causing overall equity partnership numbers to swell from 71 to 73.
This included a record round of partner promotions in March, which saw ten associates made up.
Managing partner Roger Bull hailed the impact of the firm’s sector specialisms and key practice areas on the successful results. He told Legal Business: ‘One of our key areas of investment has been tech, and as such we made up four of our new partners in that area. That saw a really significant increase in the last 12 months, roughly 100% growth.’
Bull further revealed that the financial services sector boosted revenue by 20%, real estate by the same margin, while its defence sector saw 30% growth. On the practice front, Bull said that the firm’s corporate practice benefitted from a transactional boom this year and increased turnover by 20%.
In terms of highlights from the year, in May the firm marked the three-year anniversary of its Edinburgh office. The office has doubled its partner count since inception, from three in 2019 to six now, as part of a 45-strong team. Such was the headcount growth, during the summer Burges Salmon revealed it had taken out 3,000 sq ft of additional space in the Atria One in the Scottish capital.
Bull concluded: ‘As it stands, transactional markets remain good. Most law firm leaders have their eyes open and are aware of uncertainty but the firm is still performing strongly. The feedback I get from partners is that we have a good strong pipeline, and combined with our strong reputation in the market, we maintain a positive outlook.’
