Law firm Addleshaw Goddard hails doubling of turnover since key Scots merger

International law firm Addleshaw Goddard has revealed that it has doubled turnover in Scotland in the five years since the merger that established its presence here.

The firm said it is on course to record a fifth consecutive year of double-digit percentage income growth north of the Border since it merged with HBJ Gateley in 2017, and since then, it has 70 per cent more solicitors across offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, with 69 trainees also having joined.

It opened its new Aberdeen office in 2019, and is recruiting there and across Scotland, while it states that it plays an active role in the Scottish business and legal communities, for example partnering with economic think tank The Fraser of Allander Institute on the Scottish Business Monitor that gauges the sentiment of more than 500 Scottish businesses every quarter.

It also pointed out that in addition to various Scottish lawyers taking up positions at its global offices over the past five years, several partners in Scotland have key roles in the wider group's sector teams.

David Kirchin, head of Scotland, said: "When HBJ joined [us], the driving force was to deliver stronger UK-wide client and sector offerings in response to increasing client demand for advisers based in the Scottish market with a capability across the UK and beyond. We targeted growth in a number of key sectors, particularly transport, energy, real estate, financial services and tech – and we have delivered that.

"The growth and development of our business in Scotland has exceeded all expectations over the past five years, and we are using this milestone to set new targets as we look to build on that success,” he added, adding that the past financial year has been "strong”, while it has set "ambitious” goals to continue its growth over the next three years.

"Being part of an international firm has allowed the teams in Scotland to get involved in international work, both inward and outward, that they simply wouldn't have had the opportunity to do before," Mr Kirchin also pointed out.

David Kirchin, head of Scotland at Addleshaw Goddard, says progress north of the Border 'has exceeded all expectations over the past five years'. Picture: Renzo Mazzolini Photography.

The firm added that growth in Scotland is supported by developments within the group, while its expansion earlier this year into Ireland was “strongly influenced by the Irish partners' experience of speaking to those who had been involved in the merger in Scotland”.