Merger and takeover give massive lift to law firm DWF’s revenues

November 22, 2013
By

Law firm DWF, which has an office in Bristol, has posted a 57.5% increase in half-year revenues to £93.6m.

Nearly 90% of the increase came from its merger with Fishburns and its acquisition of Cobbetts.

The deals, which both took place in February, created a top-25 firm with 984 lawyers. The Bristol office was previously part of Fishburns.

The firm said profitability was also up, with early figures indicating a significant increase on last year, although it did not give a figure.

Major growth was achieved in real estate where revenues from its 230-strong national practice increased by 92% to £13.5m and now account for 15% of turnover.

Revenues attributable to the transport sector were up 81% and in retail, food and hospitality by 87%. DWF’s focus on financial services now accounts for approximately 8% of the business and the firm said it is planning further major investment in the sector to support its growing financial services client base.

Last month DWF recruited a 47-strong team from specialist insurance law firm Greenwoods, including partner Stephen Byass, who left Greenwood's Bristol office to join DWF in the city.

Managing partner and CEO Andrew Leaitherland said: “We’ve worked exceptionally hard to deliver what are, by all accounts, very robust half year results. We have experienced significant benefit already from our acquisitive phase over the last 12-18 to months and we’re now really beginning to gain traction in our chosen markets as our clients build increasing confidence in our ability to deliver exceptional client service at an affordable pricing point.”

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