UK top 30 firm Withers has seen partner profits fall 12% while its top line passed the £190m mark amid a sharp increase in headcount on the back of international expansion.
Revenue at the private wealth specialist rose 9% to £193.2m in 2018/19 following a modest 1% increase to £176.6m the previous year. But profit per equity partner (PEP) fell back below the £400,000 mark to £354,000. Continue reading “Withers’ profit drops as revenue approaches £200m amid Asia and America expansion”
Picking the right solicitor for you can be a daunting experience, particularly when there are so many to choose from, with most claiming to be experts or specialists in a certain field of law. Your legal issue is important to you and you will want to ensure you get it right the first time. Just like purchasing a car, you will not buy it from the first auto shop you come across. You will want to shop around and ascertain that the level of service is unparalleled, the price is right and the after-sales team will be able to take care of your ongoing needs. In the legal world, you will want a solicitor that can do the same.
Most people pick their solicitor just for convenience, or just have a habit of going back to them after a previous issue. This can be compared to a doctor; they will deal with most of your medical complaints and symptoms in general practice, but if your matter calls for a specialist opinion, they will then refer you to a specialist. Sometimes, this means that you may have to travel in order to get the best opinions and results, and that is no exception in law. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Lawyers in Dublin – How to find a good solicitor in Dublin”
If you need a solicitor to represent your interests in court, or just require one for a personal consultation on a negotiation that is ongoing, it is best to hire a good personal injury solicitor instead of an ordinary one. This allows you to build adequate confidence to ensure a comfortable legal process on your personal injury case.
Nowadays, there are numerous solicitors with adequate knowledge to successfully handle a personal injury claim, but you should take time to pick one with the proper experience and skills to stand for your interests in the case. Regardless of the years of experience, avoid choosing a lawyer who works with an insurance firm as it is only normal for them to put the interest of the insurance firm first before yours. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Claims and compensation review | Personal injury claims solicitors in Dublin”
Latham & Watkins’ leadership is moving out of London after four years with City-based chair and managing partner Rich Trobman is set to relocate to his native US just over a year into his first term at the helm of the firm.
The firm confirmed today (29 July) that Trobman is moving to its New York branch almost 20 years after relocating to London in 2000 in a symbolic shift for the partnership of the Los Angeles-born firm. Continue reading “Latham turns focus to Manhattan as chair Trobman relocates from London”
A lot of solicitors assume that their reputation is enough to continue generating a stream of clients. The fact is, the industry has become more competitive than ever before and the best way to compete is by actively engaging in various forms of marketing, including online marketing. Online marketing specifically can be very beneficial to lawyers who are looking to attract new clients. Below, we will be going over some of the top online marketing ideas for lawyers.
A longstanding legal wrangle that saw Mark Prevezer, Watson Farley & Williams’ former head of real estate seek £300,000 in damages from the firm, has been settled out of court.
The move puts an end to a law suit that was expected to head to trial at the High Court in November this year, in which Prevezer alleged breaches of a consultancy agreement signed by the parties in March 2016 and for reputational harm suffered for ‘wrongful removal’ from his position of global head of the firm’s real estate practice. Continue reading “WFW and former real estate head settle £300k High Court claim”
The leadership at Osborne Clarke (OC) is conscious of any complacency creeping in after more than doubling in size in the last five years.
The firm recorded another year of double-digit growth internationally in 2018/19, up 11% to €304 last year and with non-UK revenue growing slightly to account for 44% of turnover. Growth was a little slower in the UK, up 8% to £150m as net profit rose 3% to £63m. Continue reading “Not about PEP: OC looks long-term after surpassing €300m with 11% revenue growth”
The newly-installed British Government led by Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson will see a barrister take the role of Justice Secretary after Robert Buckland QC was appointed to replace David Gauke.
Johnson announced Buckland’s appointment on Wednesday (24 July) as part of the new Prime Minister’s sweeping cabinet shake-up that saw all but four of the senior ministers that served under his predecessor Theresa May resign or fired. Continue reading “Buckland becomes Justice Secretary as Johnson administration unveils Brexit-dominated team”
Mishcon de Reya has maintained steady revenue growth in its 2018/19 financial results, increasing its top line by 10% to £177.8m, as profit per equity partner (PEP) remained flat.
While the firm saw a greater revenue growth rate than the 8% uptick last year to £161.3m, PEP has failed to keep pace, with the flat result coming off the back of a 9% dip to £1m last year. Continue reading “PEP stays flat for Mishcon as revenue growth regains momentum”
Money laundering and workplace harassment cases are increasingly occupying the workload of the profession’s regulator, according to data from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).
The report released today (25 July) reveals the breakdown of cases the SRA has worked on and its enforcement activity between November 2017 and October 2018. The report suggests money laundering; dubious investment schemes; and workplace harassment – as well as the related misuse of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) – are increasingly pervasive within the profession. Continue reading “SRA report reveals money laundering and #MeToo cases driving increases in workload”
Stewarts Law has partly recovered from a 20% drop in turnover last year in what managing partner John Cahill described as a ‘very satisfactory’ year, although partner profits have continued to fall.
The UK’s largest litigation-only firm increased revenue by nearly 11% to £69m in the 2018/19 financial year, following a 20% drop in turnover from £77.9m to £62.4m last year. Profit per equity partner (PEP) decreased a further 16% to £1.2m from last year’s £1.4m: a figure that had dropped 28% the previous year. Continue reading “Stewarts’ PEP descends as revenue follows ‘non-linear’ growth path with 11% bounce”
Gordon Dadds has posted a pace-setting set of results that have seen revenue and profit soar thanks to the addition of Ince & Co last year.
The listed entity, Gordon Dadds Group Plc, saw revenue boosted 69% from £31.2m to £52.6m following its £43m acquisition of Ince. It is a positive set of results that come after the business suffered a share price drop to an all-time low only three months ago.
Continue reading “Ince merger pays dividends for Gordon Dadds as revenue and profit skyrocket post acquisition”
RPC has reported revenues of £108.6m for its legal business for 2018/19 after selling half of its management consulting arm.
The firm, which offloaded 50% of RPC Consulting to software company Marriott Sinclair in April 2018, announced today (25 July) that both like-for-like revenue and net profit for its legal arm alone rose 4% in 2018/19. Continue reading “‘Very encouraging’: RPC posts profit growth in shrinking partnership after splitting off consulting business”
Addleshaw Goddard managing partner John Joyce ‘would never have dreamed’ the firm would grow by more than 60% since his appointment in 2014.
But despite that strong growth trajectory, as well as profit per equity partner (PEP) growth of 89% and a £90m improvement in its cash position to £59m of reserves since the 2013/14 financial year, Joyce (pictured) said the plan is simply to ‘press on’. Continue reading “Addleshaws exceeds wildest five-year revenue dreams with 14% bump to £275m for 2018/19”
Shoosmiths believes it is still on target to hit £200m in revenue after a steady financial year which saw modest growth and steady profit per equity partner (PEP) results after an 18% surge last year to £434,000.
The results today (24 July) showed a 7% increase in turnover to £137.6m, while net profit was up 6% to £37.9m, a significant slowdown on last year’s 22% growth. PEP was almost flat, edging up 2% to £441,000, but the result comes after an impressive hike in the metric last year. Continue reading “‘Last year wasn’t a blip’: Shoosmiths revenue rises 7% as profit growth slows”
HFW has scored a litigation ‘win-win’ after adding both a £25m litigation funding deal and a litigation analytics partnership to its practice.
The firm announced today it was partnering with both litigation start-up Solomonic, which launched commercially at the start of the year and uses court data for predictions and case research, and with litigation funder Augusta Ventures. Continue reading “HFW ramps up litigation prospects with £25m funding deal and analytics partnership”
Big Four accountancy firm Deloitte has bulked up its UK legal bench by hiring Andrew Lilley, the former managing partner of Travers Smith, to spearhead its employment practice.
Lilley will now focus on building the firm’s employment presence in the UK, as Deloitte joins its Big Four counterparts in further expanding its domestic legal capability. Lilley joins alongside Squire Patton Boggs employment partner Liz Pierson. Continue reading “Former Travers managing partner Lilley joins Deloitte Legal as employment head”
DWF has landed its first major post-IPO client win after securing a five-year managed legal services mandate for BT’s insurance and real estate work.
Up to 40 lawyers from BT’s in-house legal team of nearly 400 staff could transfer from BT to DWF by the end of this year as part of the deal, which saw DWF chosen ahead of 25 other providers following a year-long process. Continue reading “‘An incredible opportunity’: DWF flexes New Law arm with BT managed services contract”
Simmons & Simmons has made a rare acquisition in the form of legal engineering start-up Wavelength for an undisclosed sum.
Wavelength – which claims to be the first Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority-regulated legal engineering business in the world – uses data science, technology and design to assist on projects in the legal industry. The acquisition will see Simmons look to expose the London and Cambridge-based team to its client base. Continue reading “Simmons gets on the legal technology and data Wavelength with start-up acquisition”
In a quiet week for lateral recruitment, Weil, Gotshal & Manges hired from Ashurst in the City as other firms made notable moves further abroad.
In London, Weil expanded its banking and finance practice with the hire of Paul Stewart, currently at Ashurst. Stewart has experience in domestic and international finance transactions as well as leveraged acquisition finance and debt restructuring. Continue reading “Revolving doors: City move for Weil as HSF adds duo in South Africa”
