Law firm delivers third consecutive year of growth

Ian Austin

European law firm Fieldfisher has seen a 17% increase in annual revenue to £242m for the year 2018-2019.

This is its third consecutive year of double digit growth with total revenue increasing by 137% over five years.

This year’s rise was down to organic growth, lateral partner hires and new offices in Barcelona, Frankfurt, Guangzhou, Luxembourg and Madrid.

Average profit per equity partner (PEP) increased by 7% to £805,000, rising by 94% since 2013-2014.

The group’s technology sector consolidated its position as one of Europe’s leading teams with revenue climbing 12%.

European clients include Wirecard, Cognizant and Alibaba.

Dispute resolution was the largest practice, posting a record performance again. It continues to handle some of the biggest litigation and arbitration in the City, including the widely-reported PrivatBank and Yukos cases (the latter is one of The Lawyer’s Top 20 Cases for 2019).

Meanwhile, the Manchester office has announced a 35% increase in fee income (£4m) for the year 2018-2019.

The Peter Street office has also seen the number of staff rise from around 100 to 170.

During the year, Fieldfisher’s Manchester office reported a number of lateral partner hires including real estate partner Kirsty Tinsley Fenney and medical negligence partners Claire Horton and Julia Hamilton, as well as the internal promotion of brand development partner James Corlett.

These hires bring the office’s total partner count to 21.

Key client deals over the past year include Opencell’s sale to a private equity fund which corporate partner Tom Ward led on, as well as eight more acquisitions by Fieldfisher corporate client Marlowe plc.

Also in June, the firm’s real estate finance team advised Arbuthnot Specialist Finance on its first loan completion. Other key clients – many of which are North West-based – include British Cycling, The Co-op, Liverpool Football Club and Stagecoach Group.

Ian Austin, managing partner of Fieldfisher in Manchester, said: “The results show another year of considerable growth in Manchester and across the entire firm, which is a fantastic achievement.

“Our vision is to continue to build on this success, strengthening our position in the North West and being recognised as a leading law firm in the region.

“Our growth is a reflection of the hard work of our people and the support of our clients. We plan to continue to prioritise recruitment across a number of sectors, including real estate, medical negligence, technology and corporate.”

Michael Chissick, Fieldfisher managing partner, said: “We again set ourselves some challenging targets. We have worked even more closely with clients in our priority sectors to help them face their challenges and leverage opportunities successfully.

“This focus has greatly contributed to revenue ahead of budget and above market trend. I am especially pleased that investment in our new European offices is already making a big impact.

“The Fieldfisher brand is gaining a lot more traction across Europe. We are attracting some great new people and fantastic clients who recognise that we have a compelling sector-led proposition backed by innovative products from Condor ALS.

“Our core international strategy is now complete and this year we are consolidating and also integrating our newest offices, including Dublin which opened in May. We are incredibly optimistic about the future and all credit goes to everybody across the firm who has maintained their drive and focus.”

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