Antony Hodari picks up insolvent Tandem

LAW firm Tandem Law has been bought out of administration by personal injury specialist Antony Hodari.

It is the second such deal in a month for Liverpool-based Antony Hodari which acquired Preston-based Ashton Fox out of administration at the beginning of April.

It will merge the businesses under its AVH Legal arm as part of a plan to diversify away from personal injury. The value of the acquisitions was not disclosed.

Under the terms of the deal all 45 staff at Tandem’s offices in Preston and Manchester will be kept on.

Both Ashton Fox and Tandem Law are understood to have suffered cashflow problems after the collapse of Cayman Islands-registered Axiom Legal Financing Fund which went into receivership in February.

Tandem Law has around 18,000 live cases including human rights claims against the British government brought by Kenyan Mau Mau activists, and claims resulting from the 2011 Sonae factory fire in Kirkby, Merseyside. It is also handling professional negligence cases involving right-to-buy mortgages and healthcare and other professional negligence cases.

Antony Hodari said the deal would allow it to diversify its business as new rules come in that will hit the personal injury market. Since April claimants, instead of defendants, have had to cover up to 25% of lawyers’ fees from their compensation in personal injury cases.

Tandem’s managing director Andrew Lindsey and head of marketing and development Xavi Rodriguez will join AVH as legal technical director and operations director respectively.

Antony Hodari’s chief executive Mark Grover said: “While our commitment to personal injury remains undimmed, this acquisition continues our post-LASPO (Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012) strategy of sensible diversification. The hard work of recent yearsreshaping Antony Hodari is paying off as we have a lean and efficient business that can act quickly when opportunities such as this present themselves. I do not expect this to be the last deal we do.

“Tandem Law has a very healthy work in progress with quality, interesting cases. It has fast established itself as the go-to firm for a range of specialist claims and we are confident that together we can continue to grow the practice.”

James Sheridan, head of corporate at Turner Parkinson, advised Antony Hodari. Tandem Law was advised by lawyers at Gateley and Julien Irving of administrators Leonard Curtis.