Norton Rose saw the most significant growth, with the firm posting a 27% increase in revenues, taking turnover at the top 10 City firm to a new high of £297m.
The increase is significantly up on last year, when the firm posted an 11% rise, taking revenues to £233m while profits per partner rose by 15% to £512,000.
It follows roles on deals including January’s Ä13bn (£10.2bn) takeover of brewer Scottish & Newcastle by Heineken and Carlsberg, when the firm advised Carlsberg.
Commenting on the results, chief executive Peter Martyr said: “We have had a good year and there have been no weak areas.”
Shoosmiths, meanwhile, has broken the £100m mark for turnover after increasing revenues by 8% to £103m. The corporate and commercial and employment teams saw the biggest revenue growth, with 32% and 30% increases in income respectively.
Shoosmiths chief executive Paul Stothard said: “These results reflect strong growth in our business-to-business legal services. Our profits are expected to be ahead of budget, despite the challenging market conditions which are impacting especially on our residential conveyancing and legal expense claims practice.”
Last week Ashurst announced that it had seen a 17% increase in turnover, pushing the firm through the £300m barrier, while Pinsents recorded a double-digit turnover hike for the third year in a row, with revenues growing by 11% to hit £213m.
Cobbetts saw its turnover increase by 2% to £59.3m, with average profits per equity partner (PEP) expected to increase by £35,000-£40,000 on last year’s £240,000. Early indications at Nabarro suggest the firm’s turnover is set to hit £140m — an increase of just under 16%. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is thought to be predicting at least a 13% rise in revenues.
As Legal Week went to press, Herbert Smith unveiled a record-breaking year, with revenue up 25% to £417.5m and PEP improving at a similar rate to reach a new high of £1.025m.
