Simmons & Simmons has re-elected Jeremy Hoyland as managing partner for a third term on the back of a year of substantive investment and revenue growth.
Hoyland, who was first elected as managing partner in May 2011, was uncontested in his re-election, with his third term set to start on 1 May 2019.
The faith of Simmons partnership in its managing partner comes after the firm in June posted one of its strongest results since the financial crisis. It hiked revenue 12% to hit £354m after a year of sustained recruitment and foreign expansion as net profit surged 19% to £110m and profit per equity partner (PEP) increased 8% to £686,000.
At the time, Hoyland (pictured) told Legal Business that the revenue growth was ‘all organic’ and ‘significantly greater than expected’, attributing the standout performance to high demand in the firm’s core sectors of funds, financial institutions, healthcare and life sciences and TMT. Together these areas contributed to over three quarters (76%) of the top 20 UK firm’s income.
The firm has seen revenue grow by nearly 50% over the past eight years and PEP rise by 53% in that time, while the firm also cites a 100% uptick in female partners during Hoyland’s previous terms. Other recent highlights include Simmons’ flexible resourcing model, Adaptive, recording turnover of £10m in the last financial year.
Innovation will be a main focus going forward, with new products Translator and Disputes Aviator cited as major wins with growing subscriber bases. Hoyland said: ‘Over the past four years, we have seen developments in innovation, the use of new game-changing tools and technology and the rise of resourcing models that have had a real impact on the firm and our offering to clients. My focus now will be on driving creativity and adaptability and further embedding our sector approach that we know is so important to our clients. The firm I know is bold and agile and these are going to be key attributes in dealing with the uncertainty in the months and years ahead.’
Hoyland started his Simmons career as a trainee in 1989 and has worked in its Hong Kong and London offices, holding several management roles. In his tenure as managing partner, Hoyland has overseen a number of major developments, not least the opening of six new offices: Beijing in 2011, Bristol in 2012, Singapore and Munich in 2013, Luxembourg in 2015 and Dublin most recently this year.
Nathalie.tidman@legalease.co.uk
