An expansive year geographically, combined with a strong performance in corporate and disputes, has seen Fieldfisher announce a 34% increase in turnover for 2016/17, from £121.5m to £165m.
The increase in turnover amounts to a 50% growth in revenue over four years, and UK turnover now sits at £110m, breaking the £100m mark for the first time.
Profit per equity partner (PEP) at the firm also saw significant growth, rising 16% from £550,000 to £640,000. This year’s eye-catching performance follows a strong year in 2015/16, where turnover grew 7% and a 9% increase in PEP.
Managing partner Michael Chissick (pictured) told Legal Business: ‘It’s a combination of all our offices doing well and all our practice areas doing well. The standouts have been our disputes practice and our corporate practice and in the life sciences and technology sectors.
Chissick indicated that the disputes practice has been fuelled by significant arbitration work, and that the firm expects to have offices in Madrid and Barcelona offices open by this time next year. Both corporate and disputes are now £20m practices, according to the firm.
Fieldfisher has been particularly proactive in launching new offices worldwide – merging in Italy and opening in Amsterdam and Shanghai – and Chissick attributes the strong financial growth to this international presence: ‘Italy has had a great year, the integration has been strong there. Shanghai and Beijing has also got off to a good start, while our Silicon Valley office has just gone from strength to strength. We have the largest Silicon Valley office of any UK firm.’
The five-partner office in Amsterdam is the latest opening on 1 May and is focused on corporate and finance. Marcel Willems will lead the Dutch operation, spearheading a small group of partners who all join from local TMT specialists Kennedy Van der Laan. Willems is joined by Jan Schouten, Marinus de Waal, Frans-Josef Crousen and Louis Bouchez.
tom.baker@legalease.co.uk
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