Around 30 high-flying City lawyers recently gathered at a Bristol Law Society marketing push in
A few years ago, City lawyers of pedigree pondering a move to the vibrant and historical city of
It is a mark of how the legal landscape in
TLT, under the stewardship of managing partner David Pester, has advised on a string of increasingly substantial deals, while Veale Wasbrough, whose managing partner Simon Pizzey was re-elected for a third term last summer, has seen impressive growth.
Not that Burges Salmon and OC have shown any signs of waning.
OC, now well into recovery mode after the firm’s well-documented technology crash hangover, last year announced double-digit profits growth, posting average equity partner profits of £425,000 during 2005-06, up 18% on the previous year, with total profits climbing 28% to £31m. Deal highlights included advising longstanding client FUN on a £174m deal with Liberty Media Corporation and acting for private equity giant 3i on its £555m buy-out of NCP.
OC continued the year with further impressive mandates, including advising Carphone Warehouse on competition and commercial issues on its £370m acquisition of Time Warner’s AOL
Meanwhile, Burges Salmon also cropped up on a series of high-profile deals, including acting for the Ministry of Defence on a £947m contract with BAE Systems and Nationwide on the sale of its life assurance business
and unit trust management arm to Legal & General.
The firm also slightly undermined its own quality-of-life marketing — but upped its ‘deal junkie’ cred — after its corporate finance practice spent the week before Christmas closing seven deals with a combined value of more than £195m.
However, even with the southwest market’s traditional leaders in confident mood, the rapid growth of TLT over the past four years has confounded widespread predictions that the former also-rans were going nowhere.
Since the election of Pester as managing partner in 2002, TLT has trebled in size. When Pester joined, it employed 220 people and was generating turnover of £11m. Last year, turnover stood at £28.75m and the firm is on course to see the figure rise to £35m this year, with employee numbers tipping over the 600 mark.
But Pester insists this is growth with a purpose. “Simply growing for the sake of it does not get you anywhere,” he says. “It is important to understand where you fit in the market.”
He adds: “We have had to grow to achieve progress. Critical mass allows you to invest significantly and take more risks. You can explore and make speculative hires and take a longer view on your investment — you do not need an immediate ‘quick win’.”
Pester’s strategy has been to largely target the firm’s growth on two areas important to the southwest economy — the financial services and leisure sectors — a stance that is acknowledged to have moved the firm up the value chain.
Pester cites the firm’s instruction by Avon Rubber on a £63m cross-border disposal as an example of the firm receiving work it might not have had the capability for in years gone by. “Five years ago I do not think we would have had all the specialisms we needed to do that transaction,” he says.
Developing the firm from regional generalist to a practice with some punch-above-weight specialists has been achieved by an aggressive recruitment campaign. For example, the hire of real estate partner Tim Rowe and a team of lawyers from Wright Hassall last year brought with it as a client the British Waterways Board, one of the country’s largest landowners.
Last year also saw the hires of Philip Alfandary from Charles Russell to head its corporate tax department as well as associate-level hires from OC and City giant Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.
Pester says: “We are doing more for existing clients and being exposed to more interesting work. We are getting a reputation in areas where we are being asked to tender for work rather than applying.”
He adds: “We talk to our clients about who they rate as part of our strategy for targeting recruitment. Clients will say: ‘Have you considered expanding in this area?’ Listening to your clients is absolutely key.”
TLT’s method has focused on bringing in lawyers with client connections rather than aggressively targeting large panels. Bond Pearce, for example, drew note for a string of high-profile panel appointments, snapping up places on the rosters of, among others, Virgin Group, English Heritage and the BBC.
Pester questions whether expending time and energy in pitching for places reaps dividends in the long run. The initial appointment might give the impression of success, but the amount and complexity of work a firm is
subsequently handed is another matter. “The challenge of being on panels is how can you expand into more complex work,” he says.
A partner at another
Veale Wasbrough is another
Like TLT, Veale Wasbrough is also reaping the benefits of an industry-focused approach: the firm is a national leader in education and boasts a well-established public sector offering.
One of the planks in Pizzey’s strategy has been to focus on retaining staff, a sensible move given the war for talent currently being waged in the southwest. Consistent promotions to the partnership have helped keep ambitious associates with the firm, says Pizzey.
And while Pizzey insists that organic growth has been the main driver behind the firm’s success in recent years, it has not shied away from poaching partners from rival firms in the south. In November the firm secured a significant boost for its 25-lawyer real estate practice with the hire of respected property partner Derek Ching from
However, unlike many
Some would question how viable it will be to continue the firm’s recent run of success without looking further outside the region, but Pizzey insists that the firm’s focus on the southwest is part of its appeal. “It is something that makes us stand out for corporate and real estate — that we do concentrate on work within the region,” he says.
One
As if to emphasise the seriousness with which it is taking the move into the
“
Sedgwick says the firm is principally focused on sectors — in particular, real estate, construction and retail — rather than a specific region. To fully serve its sector clients, it requires a strong
Sedgwick adds that while the firm’s
Bristol rivals see Clarke Willmott’s move as an attempt to fill the void in the Midlands as Birmingham’s top firms focus on London and the national market, even though the Midlands is regarded as having a very competitive mid tier. Though it remains in many ways one of the region’s most dynamic firms, Clarke Willmott has critics who argue that it could do with a steadier hand.
One Bristol-based partner comments: “I assume it is client-led. It seems to make sense for them.”
However, Sedgwick is at pains to emphasise that Clarke Willmott’s
Sedgwick is keen to replicate some of the eye-catching recruitment it has managed in recent years, such as the appointments of Laytons managing partner and head of property Louise Brown and a team of property lawyers from Pinsent Masons.
“If there are teams out there who are unhappy and fit in with our strategy, we would be interested in talking to them,” he says.
Indeed, with
Arguably, only the
And with a resurgent second tier of firms increasingly aggressive in their recruitment strategies, the options are much less limited than they once were.
As Burges Salmon’s Stobart says: “We want to send the message that
The south: postcards from the market
Russell Bell, senior partner, ASB
“Having just signed off a new three-year strategy, which will call for significant growth around the firm, our biggest challenge over the next 12 months will be the recruitment of a number of key individuals with suitable skills to take us forward. We have been successful in the past in attracting high-grade individuals from City and regional firms, however, and we are confident that we can continue to do so.
“The legal market in the southeast is buoyant with a number of particular sectors — corporate finance, employment and property — at the fore. There is increased competition but this, in my view, is the sign of a sustainable business sector often working together to make sure that work on the patch is retained here and does not disappear into
Christopher Avery, managing partner, Pitmans
“We have taken on 12,000 sq ft of offices previously occupied by Nabarro, and we are currently building another 4,000 sq ft, so my challenge over the next 12 months is to retain and improve upon profitability, while growing the firm at a phenomenal rate. We have space for approximately another 80 people.
“I have always stated that my vision is to grow the firm into the most powerful, respected law firm in the
“The legal market in the
Paul Stothard, chief executive, Shoosmiths
“If you take where we were in Solent and
“The biggest challenge we will face over the next 12 months will be the retention of talent. The competition for talent is fierce, particularly in corporate and commercial. One has to be alive to the fact that people do not necessarily want a job for life, to work all the hours sent, and many are not patient enough to wait for partnership.
“It was a great joy to have to move our
Guy Stobart, managing partner, Burges Salmon
“There is a whole range of opportunities facing us over the next 12 months. Working on building our brand yet further among our clients, potential clients and future staff is a key objective. Completing the lease agreement for our new premises will be another key issue in the short term.
“Firms like ours should be flourishing in the buoyant economic climate that we find ourselves in. The biggest hurdle facing law firms today is the same issue that it has been for many years — recruiting the very best staff. They are at the heart of the virtuous circle of quality work and profitability.”
Simon Hodson, senior partner, Beachcroft
“The main challenge over the next 12 months will be maintaining the growth we have experienced. I am proud of the firm’s very smooth transition to limited liability partnership status and introducing a more corporate approach to running the firm, backed by good growth. Moving to a more corporate approach is something different firms are taking at different speeds.
“I would define my management philosophy as: think, listen, explain, involve. It is crucial that people feel involved.
“Part of our strategy is to concentrate on existing clients rather than trying to win new ones. You have to think long and hard about going for panels where you have no relationship because the incumbents tend to win. Winning new client business is hugely expensive. You do not just chase new business for the sake of it.”
Victor Tettmar, managing partner, Bond Pearce
“Our biggest challenge is broadening the expertise we are providing to our clients and deepening the relationships. We have an interesting mix of regional clients and national clients but they all appreciate the same things: excellent service delivery, being able to offer the expertise and the team size they want. To do that really well — and far better than the competition — is the challenge for us.
“The achievement I am most proud of so far as managing partner is the client wins that we have had. It has been an extremely successful run that includes the BBC, Virgin, English Heritage, Carlsberg and QBE. That is a string of client wins that any firm would be proud of.
“We are attracting work from high-performing corporates in our region but there is also good quality work coming from our sector interests across the country, such as retail and renewable energy, so this provides excellent growth prospects.”
David Pester, managing partner, TLT
“One of the biggest hurdles facing firms in the southwest today is competition for candidates and talent. The achievement I am most proud of as managing partner has been leading a fast-growing business through a period of phenomenal change — turnover has tripled since 2002, headcount has risen three-fold to 600 and partner profits are up 270% in five years.
“I would define my management philosophy as consultative and collaborative — being clear about the firm’s business goals and aligning the business to achieving those goals. Provide leadership, but listen.
“The legal market in the region at the moment is buoyant — but firms in
Jason Rowley, managing partner, Vizards Wyeth
“The fact that this is the biggest inward investment area in
“The achievement I am most proud of as managing partner has been creating a commercial and private client offering from scratch in just over three years. The firm was created in 2001 and one of the aims was to create a commercial practice. It has gone a lot faster than anyone was expecting.
“Insurance is a difficult market with litigation reducing thanks to Government and court initiatives and insurers trying to minimise the amount going to court. We were pleased that two of our biggest insurance clients tendered and reviewed and we remained on panel.”