Irwin Mitchell boss upbeat ahead of ‘momentous year’
THE head of law firm Irwin Mitchell’s Manchester office has hailed a year of success, and said the firm is prepared for a “momentous” 2012.
Grahame Codd told more than 200 guests at an event to celebrate the firm’s fifth anniversary in the city, that turnover had risen 20% last year to £17m, and is looking to grow further in the coming months.
Central to the firm’s growth aspirations is its plan to use the new Legal Services Act to develop an ABS – Alternative Business Structure (ABS), which will allow it to take on outside investment to fund expansion.
Mr Codd said: “The legal sector is on the cusp of some truly momentous change and Irwin Mitchell wants to be at the forefront – we were among the first wave of applicants to the SRA (Solicitors’ Regulatory Authority) to become an ABS.”
He said the firm’s Quay Street-based Manchester office was “well balanced” between private client work such as personal injury and clinical negligence, and commercial legal activities.
It is understood the commercial arm will be bolstered further in the first part of this year by the addition of a corporate team – which would deliver on a long-held ambition.
Mr Codd said turnover in the five years since opening the Manchester office had risen from £3m to £17m.
Looking forward, he added: “We are well positioned in a market that is seeing sweeping changes. It’s our centenary year, and I believe we must continue to be innovative and enterprising and positive and passionate for our clients.”
