Monday Interview: Tim Halstead, managing partner at Shulmans

Tim Halstead

Tim Halstead is this year marking his 25th year as managing partner of Leeds-based law firm, Shulmans.

The firm has just reported its ninth year of consecutive growth, with turnover increasing by 9.25% from £16m last year to £17.6m for the year ended 31 March 2019, with profits rising by over 50% since 2017.”

Halstead has overseen the firm grow from 10 to 235 colleagues. Shulmans has never undertaken a merger and all staff are now based under one roof at Wellington Place, which he feels is important to the way in which the firm retains both staff and clients.

Speaking to TheBusinessDesk.com, Halstead said: “I am really pleased to report good, positive growth. We have achieved that by have a positive, strong culture and being clear on following our own path – not just chasing turnover.

“We are operating in a marketplace where there are lots of national firms in the same space. We are one of the few that has kept to a single site and we are very much rooted in this region.”

Reflecting on how the legal sector had changed over the years, Halstead said it had become harder to attract the right talent, with the firm now having “to make a lot more noise” about how it differs from competitors. That said, he said the firm had lots of experts, including “homegrown talent”  – something he is keen to encourage.

Halstead added: “My job really is a people job, I am here to ensure that people have the tools in which to do their job well.

“We have some really strong regional and national clients and can undertake some quality work.”

These include Clipper Logistics, Town Centre Securities, Barratt/David Wilson Homes, Magnet Limited and Lidl.

The firm is investing around £1.5m in technology and infrastructure this year, which he said was critical as technology had changed the legal sector dramatically over the years.

Reflecting on patterns in the business community, Halstead added: “Ten years ago, there were businesses that ran out of cash and didn’t survive, which just showed it was so important to have a plan; to know what you are doing and not to be afraid to take action.”

Halstead, who is also the chair of trustees at Martin House Children’s Hospice, said: “In terms of our future plans, it is more of the same. Yorkshire is a great place to be, and businesses are well connected.”

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