Osborne Clarke has reported record international revenues of €547.5m, with UK profit per equity partner (PEP) breaking the £800k mark for the first time.
The 4% hike in international revenue, up from last year’s figure of €525m, means that the firm has grown its topline turnover by 72% in the last five years.
In a statement, the firm’s international chief executive officer Omar Al-Nuaimi described the results as ‘a great achievement and testament to the hard work of our teams around the world.’
He continued: ‘This year we’re investing heavily in creating a seamless client experience by implementing a new international practice management and finance system. This sets us up brilliantly to support planned significant growth over the coming five-year strategic period.’
The UK was a top performer, with turnover rising to a record high of £256.6m, up 7% from last year’s £217.3m; a total increase of 166% over the last five years.
The firm’s UK PEP also rose to new heights, up nearly 5% to £806,000 from £771,000 last year, while the firm again rewarded its UK team with a 5% profit share.
In the UK, the firm pointed to strong performance in its areas of regulatory expertise, in particular in technology, media and communications, financial services, and retail and consumer.
It also highlighted growth in its intellectual property group, driven by an increase in patent litigation and a focus on life sciences and technology.
UK managing partner Conrad Davies said: ‘Our investments in strengthening our team and futureproofing our business are really starting to pay off.’
Davies continued: ‘We also boosted our OC Solutions offer, with a range of client-friendly innovations coming onstream that are transforming how we work with our clients.’
OC Solutions (Osborne Clarke Solutions) is the firm’s in-house client technology team, which, in addition to providing AI tools for internal use, works with clients to develop and integrate bespoke legal tech platforms.
The firm also saw another strong year for partner promotions, with 17 partners promoted internationally and ten partners made up in the UK in May – only one down from last year’s record promotion round of 11.
The firm also had a strong year for lateral hires, bringing in ten new partners internationally and a further six across the UK. These included a trio of partner hires earlier in the year, with competition litigator Aqeel Kadri and construction and engineering disputes partner Helen Waddell joining in London from Hausfeld and Pinsent Masons respectively, and Gowling life sciences legal director Mathilda Davidson joining as a partner in Bristol.
Meanwhile, Penningtons Manches Cooper has reported a 7% uptick in revenue, up to £120m from £112.2m last year, marking the 16th consecutive year of growth for the firm.
PEP jumped 25%, hitting £555,000 from £440,000 last year.
The firm also announced that its CEO Helen Drayton has been re-elected, after standing unopposed, for a second three-year term, beginning on 1 October.
Commenting on the results and her re-election, Drayton said: ‘We’ve laid the foundations—and now we’re accelerating. It’s a genuine privilege to continue leading such a talented and ambitious team.’
Finally, Burness Paull has also posted its financial results, with turnover hitting £93.5m. The firm reported £60.1m in revenue for 2023-24, when it ran a truncated eight-month financial year to combine with HMRC basis period reforms.
Profit, meanwhile, hit £35.9m, up from £24.3m for the shortened 2023-24 financial year.
