Private equity backed Parabis Group recently entered the Scottish legal insurance market with a bold statement of intent, hiring local rival HBJ Claim Solutions’ litigation head Tony O’Malley in the process.
Parabis, an alternative business structure in England and Wales, has opened a single-partner-regulated law office known as Parabis Scotland. It will offer claimant and defendant insurance law services with the defendant branch carrying its Plexus Law brand.
The arrival of Parabis has already ruffled feathers, with one Scottish partner at a Legal 500-recommended firm claiming that Plexus was targeting insurer clients from his firm by offering cut-price rates.
‘The insurance market is under a lot of cost pressure and for us to be competitive we have to make sure that we keep our costs at a reasonable level,’ said O’Malley. ‘We’ll grow the business as and when the opportunity arises.’
The recent arrival of larger UK insurance firms such as DWF and Shoosmiths into the Scottish market is expected to put increasing pressure on traditional firms.
‘The market in Scotland is a small market and the firms there are commercial firms that do insurance,’ said Parabis senior partner Tim Roberts. ‘So I think what’s going to be interesting is whether the full-service law firm remains the strategy or will there be some unpacking of their insurance arms. I think there’s going to be a number of insurance-based firms merging up there.’
With £50m backing from private equity house Duke Street, Parabis has an eye on further expansion.
‘We have a fund for acquisitions, although not just restricted to Scotland,’ said Roberts. ‘We have got a few targets there.’