Recently formed national player Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co has unveiled the combined results of its legacy firms for the last financial year, having created a firm with £172m in revenues and £58.7m in profit, operating at a margin of 34%.
Wedlake Bell’s acquisitive streak continues as Christopher Tite and Louise Gowman join from LG; Clive Thorne from RPC
The recent acquisitive streak by Wedlake Bell has seen the UK top 100 firm bring in legacy Lawrence Graham’s (LG’s) former head of corporate Christopher Tite and projects and infrastructure partner Louise Gowman, alongside RPC IP and technology partner Clive Thorne. Continue reading “Wedlake Bell’s acquisitive streak continues as Christopher Tite and Louise Gowman join from LG; Clive Thorne from RPC”
Partner promotions: CMS promotes 30; Clyde & Co nine; Lawrence Graham five
The latest round of partner promotions among the top 20 UK firms has this week seen CMS Cameron McKenna announce the appointment of 30 associates to partner across Europe, including five in the UK, while Clyde & Co has promoted nine and, outside the top 20, Lawrence Graham has made up five new partners.
Continue reading “Partner promotions: CMS promotes 30; Clyde & Co nine; Lawrence Graham five”
Wragges announces post-merger management line-up but Addleshaws faces scrutiny over leadership team
For Addleshaw Goddard the timing could have been more flattering. On the day that national rival Wragge & Co confirmed a new look management line-up in anticipation of its tie-up with Lawrence Graham (LG) in May, uncomfortable attention has been focused on the leadership of national rival Addleshaws.
In the wake of Wragges’ announcement in December that its £171m merger will go ahead, with Wragge Lawrence Graham expected to edge ahead of Addleshaws in the LB100 top 25 for the first time, the firm today (17 February) confirmed that its five core practice group heads have now been decided, all who will sit on the management board, with four of the appointments coming from Wragges and one from LG. Continue reading “Wragges announces post-merger management line-up but Addleshaws faces scrutiny over leadership team”
LLP results 2012/13 – CC reveals drop in management committee pay as LG records further decline in turnover
Clifford Chance’s (CC’s) limited liability partnership accounts for the 2012/13 year have revealed a 5% drop in total remuneration paid to the firm’s management committee, according to the latest filings with Companies House.
Published on 23 December, the accounts show that the 16-strong management committee team received £18m this year, compared to £19m for the 2011/12 financial year.
Sealed at last – Wragges secures major City merger as vote backs LG tie-up to forge £171m practice
After years of rejecting the need for a City presence – and subsequent years hunting for a major London deal – Midlands giant Wragge & Co has finalised its tie-up with Lawrence Graham.
The proposed deal, which was confirmed last month, was backed in a partner vote earlier this week, with the combined firm set to unify as Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co from 1 May 2014.
With a majority of more than 75% required from both partnerships, the combination will create a £171m business with 1,300 staff, including 770 lawyers, operating from ten offices worldwide. Continue reading “Sealed at last – Wragges secures major City merger as vote backs LG tie-up to forge £171m practice”
Comment: ‘Mishcon’ no more but a City player at last? Wragges needs a big deal and the old magic
‘Wragge & Co was the Mishcon of its day.’ That statement from a former veteran of the Midlands giant sums it up in many ways.
In the late 1990s Wragges wasn’t just the best law firm the English regions had bred, it was a firm that broke the rules. The mix of flair, quality lawyering and an ability to astutely break away from the herd had few if any direct comparisons at the time. Wragges had a recognition and respect in the City absent from most national and regional competitors. More than that, Wragges stood out from rivals and could quicken the professional pulse in a way that Mishcon de Reya does today. Continue reading “Comment: ‘Mishcon’ no more but a City player at last? Wragges needs a big deal and the old magic”
If the shoe just about fits – Wragges in merger talks with Lawrence Graham
Proposed merger promises Birmingham firm significant City presence.
The announcement last month that Wragge & Co and Lawrence Graham (LG) are in merger talks makes a lot of sense on many levels, although competitors have inevitably been quick to point out obvious pitfalls.
Both firms have been hunting for suitors for a long time and for Wragges, the talks could provide the serious London foothold that has so long eluded it, despite a series of high-profile Birmingham transfers and London hires.
Continue reading “If the shoe just about fits – Wragges in merger talks with Lawrence Graham”
‘Mishcon’ no more but a City player at last? Wragges needs a big deal and the old magic
‘Wragge & Co was the Mishcon of its day.’ That statement from a former veteran of the Midlands giant sums it up in many ways.
In the late 1990s Wragges wasn’t just the best law firm the English regions had bred, it was a firm that broke the rules. The mix of flair, quality lawyering and an ability to astutely break away from the herd had few if any direct comparisons at the time. Wragges had a recognition and respect in the City absent from most national and regional competitors. More than that, Wragges stood out from rivals and could quicken the professional pulse in a way that Mishcon de Reya does today.
That’s not to say that the intervening years have been a disaster. The 119-partner firm remains a perfectly respectable performer. But along the way too many strategic shuffles and an uncertain crack at the City has stolen Wragges’ mystique. The firm also arguably allowed its practice to become too diffuse and lacked clarity over which section of the market it was focusing on, to the detriment of its corporate practice. Wragges’ famed morale is now, well, just like the rest.
At last a City deal for Wragge & Co? Midlands giant aims for £170m tie-up with Lawrence Graham
Wragge & Co at last has the prospect of achieving its long-held dream of securing a substantive City merger, with the Birmingham-bred giant today (18 November) informing its partners of discussions with Lawrence Graham.
The proposed talks could create a £170m legal practice, with over 700 lawyers and a strong City presence.