Law firm Ledingham Chalmers hails record revenue but pushes back on £25 million goal

Legal firm Ledingham Chalmers has hailed a new revenue record and unveiled a trio of senior hires but its profits have been squeezed by cost pressures and its 2025 turnover goal has been pushed back.

The firm has filled three senior roles in its home city of Aberdeen and Edinburgh as part of nationwide growth plans. Headcount has grown by just over a quarter since April 2022, and now exceeds 200.

Announcing its 2022/23 financial results, the firm revealed that turnover had risen to £13.4 million, its highest since becoming a limited liability partnership (LLP) in 2006, and up on the previous year’s record £12.8m. Group turnover, including subsidiary Ledingham Chalmers Financial, came in at £14.2m, compared with £13.6m in 2021/22. However, pre-tax profit was down on the year before, at £3.5m, compared with £4m.

Managing partner Jennifer Young said much of that was due to investment in the workforce, combined with factors affecting all businesses such as inflation and higher operating overheads. She added: “All that means we’re not wedded to the numbers we outlined in 2019 to double turnover to £25m by 2025. We’re operating in a competitive post-pandemic marketplace for attracting and retaining talent - and we’re investing in a fast-growing workforce. We continue to benchmark salaries as part of our long-term sustainable growth strategy.”

Managing partner Jennifer Young hailed a number of achievements at Ledingham Chalmers but said the firm was 'not wedded to the numbers we outlined in 2019 to double turnover to £25m by 2025'. Picture: Alastair Robb

Her comments came as it emerged that partner Mike Morrice had joined the commercial property team in Aberdeen in October from Burness Paull, while Gary Hunt had come on board as head of HR, also based in Aberdeen. Hunt has some 25 years of human resources experience in the energy sector.

Another senior hire, Edinburgh-based Coral Bain, came on board in the newly created pan-Scotland head of risk and compliance role in October, overseeing aspects such as Law Society of Scotland standards and regulations, anti-money laundering rules and data protection. Coming from Addleshaw Goddard, Bain is a qualified solicitor with specialist experience in construction and engineering disputes as well as in professional regulatory risk, ethics and governance.

Since January 2023, 31 people have joined the firm, which has offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Stirling. The headcount as of the end of October stood at 210, compared with 166 in April 2022, including 27 partners, with a further five people set to join before the end of November. Recruitment is also underway for five posts - four lawyers and a paralegal.

Other recent senior hires include within the firm’s pan-Scotland rural team, with senior associate Lynne McElroy joining in Stirling and associate Anna Moir coming on board in Aberdeen during the summer, while senior associate Laura Hay joined the Granite City’s commercial property team at the start of November.

Also in Stirling, and as part of the firm’s plans to broaden its legal offering there, senior associate Suzie Falconer joined in January in the private client team, advising clients on all aspects of succession planning, powers of attorney and estate administration. In Inverness, the headcount has grown by more than 30 since last November.

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