‘Match fit’ DWF rebounds after torrid finish to 2019/20

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‘Match fit’ DWF rebounds after torrid finish to 2019/20

DWF has started 2020/21 strongly after a series of efficiency measures were put in place following a tumultuous end to the last financial year that saw debts rise and underlying profits plunge, the firm’s delayed financial results show.

For 2019/20, revenue at DWF rose 11% to £297.2m, up from £268.2m last year. Despite the double-digit hike, the performance is still below the firm’s revised expectations announced in March, when DWF suggested total revenue growth would land between 15% and 20% as the Covid-19 lockdown impacted the firm’s year-end. Underlying organic revenue growth was also below the revised expectations, with the figure growing 2% due to the difficulties encountered in Q4. The firm suggested in March the figure would undergo a ‘high single-digit’ increase.  Continue reading “‘Match fit’ DWF rebounds after torrid finish to 2019/20”

‘Difficult circumstances’: Irwin Mitchell reports tenth consecutive year of growth albeit Covid-subdued

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‘Difficult circumstances’: Irwin Mitchell reports tenth consecutive year of growth albeit Covid-subdued

After last year’s show-stealing performance when Irwin Mitchell’s profit soared 76% and revenue grew 9%, the firm has reported a more sedate 2019/20 financial year as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll.

The firm on Thursday (20 August) said turnover increased 2.4% to £269.3m from £263m the previous year, with profit before tax growing 11% to £23.7m from £21.4m. Continue reading “‘Difficult circumstances’: Irwin Mitchell reports tenth consecutive year of growth albeit Covid-subdued”

Comment: City law shows remarkable crisis immunity (but managing partners aren’t ready to spread that message)

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Comment: City law shows remarkable crisis immunity (but managing partners aren’t ready to spread that message)

Everybody likes to go along with the crowd, in business as much as life. So as the global economy is battered by the coronavirus fallout and many business sectors are on their knees, it’s inevitable that the legal industry has adopted a subdued tone focusing on the existential challenge it too faces. After all, official figures this week showed that the UK, home to probably still the world’s second largest legal market, saw its sharpest economic contraction since records began in the second quarter of 2020, falling 20.4%, one of the worst downturns in Europe.

The only issue with the profession’s stance is that the emerging facts are establishing this position as entirely unrepresentative of the outlook for major commercial law firms. Legal Business recently highlighted the robust showing in the face of Covid-19 judged from a dozen early results from top-50 UK law firms. The second-wave set of numbers from another group of firms in the same peer group doesn’t just support that picture of remarkable resilience, it materially strengthens it. These results are extraordinary! Continue reading “Comment: City law shows remarkable crisis immunity (but managing partners aren’t ready to spread that message)”

‘Continue to be bold’: resilient Mishcon ups revenue again as PEP rediscovers momentum

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‘Continue to be bold’: resilient Mishcon ups revenue again as PEP rediscovers momentum

Mishcon de Reya has become the latest firm in the LB100 to resist the economic onslaught of Covid-19 in its financial year end, the firm’s figures show, with revenues up for another year while profits regained momentum.

Turnover increased a healthy 6% from £177.8m to £188.3m over 2019/20, while profit per equity partner was up 5% to £1,050,000. Though the revenue growth is a comparative slowdown on last year’s pacier 10% rise, the rise in profits will be welcome after falling flat in 2018/19, and dropping 9% the year prior to that. Continue reading “‘Continue to be bold’: resilient Mishcon ups revenue again as PEP rediscovers momentum”

DLA shakes off coronavirus jitters to crack £2bn global revenue amid 7% profit hike 

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DLA shakes off coronavirus jitters to crack £2bn global revenue amid 7% profit hike 

DLA Piper has pulled off a fifth consecutive year of profit growth for its International LLP while breaking the £2bn barrier for global turnover and exceeding £1m in profit per equity partner (PEP).

The eye-catching set of results will be a shot in the arm for the firm, even as the coronavirus pandemic continues to threaten international businesses, and builds on a similarly robust showing last year in spite of sustained investment in DLA’s infrastructure. Continue reading “DLA shakes off coronavirus jitters to crack £2bn global revenue amid 7% profit hike “

Revenue growth stalls at Stephenson Harwood as firm remains quiet on profits

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Revenue growth stalls at Stephenson Harwood as firm remains quiet on profits

Stephenson Harwood saw revenue growth grind to a halt over the last financial year, the firm’s latest financial results show, while key profit figures are undisclosed.

Revenues remained at £213m over 2019/20, the figure hit last year after a pacey 12% growth. Meanwhile, the firm did not disclose its profit per equity partner figure, which rose 9% to £727,000 last year after two consecutive years of decline. The firm’s net profit figure – which last year stood at £68.2m – was also witheld.   Continue reading “Revenue growth stalls at Stephenson Harwood as firm remains quiet on profits”

‘Year of two halves’: Coronavirus takes gloss off financials for OC as revenue lifts 5% and profit drops

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‘Year of two halves’: Coronavirus takes gloss off financials for OC as revenue lifts 5% and profit drops

Osborne Clarke’s latest financial results have proven to be a mixed bag as it recorded a 5% uptick in international revenue to €318m even as profit fell amid a year of investment.

Nevertheless, the revenue uplift from last year’s €304m is a positive showing and stands out as a 63% increase over five years.  Continue reading “‘Year of two halves’: Coronavirus takes gloss off financials for OC as revenue lifts 5% and profit drops”

‘Only certainty is even more uncertainty’: Addleshaws shows endurance as firm steels itself for year ahead 

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‘Only certainty is even more uncertainty’: Addleshaws shows endurance as firm steels itself for year ahead 

Addleshaw Goddard adhered to an increasingly familiar trend over the last financial year, the firm’s latest figures show, with revenues proving resilient in the last months of 2019/20 while partner profits took a minor dent.

Turnover was up 4% to £288m from £275m the previous financial year, when the firm exceeded all expectations as revenue soared 14%. However, profit per equity partner (PEP) endured a modest decline, falling 5% to £690,000 from £727,000 in 2018/19, when the figure jumped by 12%. Over 80% of revenue was generated through energy and utilities, financial services, health, real estate, retail and consumer, and transport.   Continue reading “‘Only certainty is even more uncertainty’: Addleshaws shows endurance as firm steels itself for year ahead “

‘Future-proofing’: DAC lifts profit and revenue for sixth consecutive year as Pollitt secures second leadership term

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‘Future-proofing’: DAC lifts profit and revenue for sixth consecutive year as Pollitt secures second leadership term

DAC Beachcroft (DACB) has notched its sixth consecutive year of turnover and profit growth, the firm’s latest financial results show, while also announcing that managing partner David Pollitt has secured a second term at the helm following an uncontested leadership election.

Revenue at the firm grew 6% to £258m, up from £243m last year, while profit before tax increased 7% to £56m. Profit per equity partner also grew, up a modest 3% to £590,000. Meanwhile, the firm improved its net cash position to £8m, having put in place ‘significant liquidity retention measures in response to the Covid-19 crisis’. Continue reading “‘Future-proofing’: DAC lifts profit and revenue for sixth consecutive year as Pollitt secures second leadership term”

‘A fair bit of progress’ – Brodies withstands year-end turbulence to increase revenue and operating profit

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‘A fair bit of progress’ – Brodies withstands year-end turbulence to increase revenue and operating profit

Scottish leader Brodies is the latest firm in the LB100 to display its fiscal resilience, growing revenue and operating profit despite a significant Covid-19-induced slowdown during the closing months of 2019/20. 

Revenue at the Scottish independent was up 7% to £82m from £76.9m last year, making it 10 years of consecutive growth at Brodies and a 20% increase over the last two years. Operating profits, meanwhile, underwent a more muted 3% rise to £38.5m while profit per equity partner (PEP) suffered a 4% drop to £680,000 amid headcount increases.  Continue reading “‘A fair bit of progress’ – Brodies withstands year-end turbulence to increase revenue and operating profit”