Law firm announces £1m investment plan

A BLACK Country law firm has announced a £1m investment plan to strengthen its private and corporate offering.

Talbots, which has operated in the area for the past 25 years, will enhance its network of offices, introduce a series of innovations and take on new lawyers across its Residential Property, Business Services and Trusts and Estates teams.

The ambitious growth is focused on £10m annual fees in 2016 and will also see Talbots leave the QualitySolicitors brand in May after being involved in the network for five years.

The plan, which sees the firm move in larger premises in Wolverhampton on April 1, also marks its attempt to move on from the sudden death of its lead partner, Martyn Morgan in December.

“2015 was a strong year for the business and saw us grow our clients across all legal services, with conveyancing a particular highlight,” said Mary Mocklow, director at Talbots.

“When we sat down to plan our strategy for the next 12 months, we made a conscious decision to commit even further to our vision of being the preferred legal services provider in the Black Country and Worcestershire.”

She said the firm’s future would best be served by deepening its local roots, rather than focusing its efforts towards being part of a national brand like QualitySolicitors.

“It was a tough decision to make as we’ve had some really good years with them,” she said.

“As a standalone business, we are free to innovate and launch exciting new products and services at a pace that suits us and, importantly, adds even more benefits to our clients.

“The £1m investment is all about improving the customer experience even more and will be spread across hiring new legal specialists, the installation of state-of-the-art technology and developing our network of offices, including looking at larger and more suitable premises in Kidderminster and Stourbridge.

Talbots employs 194 staff across its seven offices in the Black Country, Staffordshire and Worcestershire, including Codsall, Dudley, Halesowen, Kidderminster, Stourbridge, Stourport and Wolverhampton.