5% earnings growth for Stephensons
LAW firm Stephensons says it has “weathered the storm’ after achieving revenue and profit growth.
The Leigh-based firm, which has a network of offices, saw profits rise 5% to £4.5m on revenue of £17.6m, up 8%, in the year to April.
It put the success down to the fact it has not been overly reliant on one source of income. There was a “considerable’ rise in fees from family law, residential property and probate.
The firm, which has 470 staff, had 36 partners during the year with the highest earner receiving a profit share of £299,000, down from £323,300.
In the accounts the firm said: “Many other legal firms are struggling and the year has seen some noticeably larger firms either closing down or being rescued. All in all, we have weathered the storm well, reaching our profitability targets and operating within our cash-flow forecasts.”
In a statement managing partner Andrew Welch said: “The firm provides a wide range of legal services to businesses and individuals but is not overly reliant on one source or legal sector; a conscious decision to minimise our risk. The legal sector has experienced many challenges and changes. Not least the removal of legal aid in some areas of law, as well as new entrants to the market, a lot of consolidation/mergers and the decline of some high street practices.
“Against this backdrop, we’re incredibly proud of our growth over the last five years, with turnover up by 40% and profits up by 86% in a five-year period. This year we have continued along our path of overall growth. The underlying profitability of the firm is strong and fee income has risen considerably in areas such as family law, residential property and probate.
“The partners agreed a strategy to give the firm a strong infrastructure and platform to create expansion and longevity to survive the challenges and continue to be competitive. This year, we have implemented a 12-month programme of upgrades to our existing offices, involving several office relocations and improvements to existing offices.”
Stephensons has offices in Manchester, London, Altrincham, Bolton, Wigan, St Helens and Leigh.
