Listed Oz firm Slater makes debut acquisition

Slater & Gordon - the world's first publicly-owned law firm - is to make its first acquisition since its recent flotation, with the firm announcing yesterday (28 May) it is to buy a niche military compensation practice for AU$2.8m (£1.15m).

Australian firm Slater hopes to complete the deal to acquire the Brisbane boutique, D'Arcys Solicitors, by 1 July. A cash-and-share offer has been tabled, with shares comprising AU$475,000 (£196,000) of the bid, based on their average trading price between 21-25 May.

Notably, the deal will see D'Arcys principal Vince Green locked in to the firm for a minimum of three years.

The move comes after Slater became the first law firm in the world to float on a public market after it made its debut on the Australian Stock Exchange last week (21 May).

The initial public offering, which is being watched closely by the UK's legal community, comes in the wake of recent changes to Australian law allowing non-lawyers to invest in law firms.

Slater, which specialises in personal injury litigation work, has a market capitalisation of around A$107m (£45m).