Economies of scale: Scottish consolidation escalates as Irwin Mitchell announces merger with WJM

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Economies of scale: Scottish consolidation escalates as Irwin Mitchell announces merger with WJM

Just days after Scottish firms Morton Fraser and MacRoberts announced their intention to merge, Irwin Mitchell also unveiled plans to combine with Scottish firm Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie (WJM) in what appears to be the start of a Scottish consolidation movement.

While Irwin Mitchell already operates in Glasgow, focusing on banking and finance and personal injury, the merger with WJM would give it access to the corporate, private client, property, and asset management markets in Edinburgh, Dunfermline, Inverness and Dunblane. Continue reading “Economies of scale: Scottish consolidation escalates as Irwin Mitchell announces merger with WJM”

Scottish round up: Brodies and Morton Fraser achieve record breaking revenues, Freeths expands into Scotland

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Scottish round up: Brodies and Morton Fraser achieve record breaking revenues, Freeths expands into Scotland

Brodies has become the first independent Scottish firm to pass the £100m revenue mark.

The LB100 firm posted a turnover of £106.25m, marking an 8% growth compared to last year’s figure of £98.5m. Continue reading “Scottish round up: Brodies and Morton Fraser achieve record breaking revenues, Freeths expands into Scotland”

The Scots GC debate: Force multipliers

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The Scots GC debate: Force multipliers

Hamish McNicol, Legal Business: How do you build your identity and culture as a legal team? And how do you then communicate your teams’ qualities to the wider business?

Findlay Anderson, Baker Hughes Oilfield Equipment: The culture of the legal team comes from two different sources. One is the general counsel setting the rhythm for how they want their team to operate with the business. A lot of that comes down to the personality of the GC. The other factor is how the business sees its legal team: are they a hired function that sits in a corner and you call on them when you need them, or do you put them right in the middle of the decision-making of the company? Continue reading “The Scots GC debate: Force multipliers”

‘Bumpy year’: Burness Paull posts flat revenue and profit as muted Scots performance continues

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Scottish independent Burness Paull has posted flat financials for 2016/17 with turnover up 1% from £53.3m to £53.8m, while profit per equity partner stands at £453,000 compared to £451,000 last year.

Additionally, overall profit was down 2% from £22.5m to £22m in what the firm’s chairman Philip Rodney described a ‘bumpy year for the Scottish economy’. In 2015/16, the firm saw stronger revenue growth of 4% but PEP was down by 6%.

Continue reading “‘Bumpy year’: Burness Paull posts flat revenue and profit as muted Scots performance continues”

Better together? – Those Anglo-Scots unions in focus

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Legal Business looks under the bonnet to assess how the Scottish arms of Pinsent Masons and CMS have fared post-merger.

The ‘Better Together’ campaign, in favour of preserving Scotland’s union with the UK in 2014, maintained that Scotland was stronger as part of Great Britain, winning that particular argument by a margin of around 11%. But while the battle may have been won for now, a number of Scottish law firms are still wrestling with the decision of whether to tie-up with an English suitor – a fact most recently indicated by Maclay Murray & Spens’ aborted merger talks with Addleshaw Goddard in February.

Continue reading “Better together? – Those Anglo-Scots unions in focus”

Scottish Brexit reaction: Firm leaders urge calm in an even more uncertain environment

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With First Minister Nicola Sturgeon calling for a second Scottish referendum on UK independence amid Scottish voters overwhelmingly backing a vote to remain in the EU by 62% to 38%, law firm leaders in Scotland have urged for composure in a region which is likely to see a longer period of uncertainty than the rest of the country. Continue reading “Scottish Brexit reaction: Firm leaders urge calm in an even more uncertain environment”