DWF LLP

Last updated • 9 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
DWF Group Plc
DWF LLP Logo.svg
Headquarters Manchester, United Kingdom
No. of offices33
No. of attorneys1,100
No. of employees4,300
Major practice areasGeneral Practice (see below)
Key peopleSir Nigel Knowles (Chairman) [1] Andrew Leaitherland (Managing Partner) [2]
RevenueIncrease2.svg $350 million (2018/19) [3]
Date founded1977 (Liverpool)
FounderJim Davies, Guy Wallis [4]
Company type plc
Website dwf.law

DWF is a multinational law firm headquartered in Manchester with 31 offices across the world. [5] After announcing its record £95m IPO on Monday 11 March 2019, DWF was admitted to the main board of the London Stock Exchange. With a £366m valuation and offer size of £95m, DWF has officially become the UK’s largest listed law firm. [6] The 2019 Financial Times Most Innovative Lawyers Report ranked DWF as the 8th overall most innovative legal business in Europe. [7] DWF scored highest of all firms in Europe for innovation in the business of law. [8] In a 2018 report by Experian DWF ranked 7th among the most active legal and financial advisers in the UK and 15th in Europe by deal volume and value. [9]

Contents

DWF's London offices at 20 Fenchurch Street also known as London's "Walkie Talkie" Walkie-Talkie - Sept 2015.jpg
DWF's London offices at 20 Fenchurch Street also known as London's "Walkie Talkie"

The firm started life as a four office practice in the North West of England and has grown globally through a series of international mergers. It currently has around 3,100 staff and is the 19th-largest law firm in the UK measured by revenues and advises national and multinational corporations, financial institutions and governments.

View of the Sky Garden rooftop garden and restaurant at the top of the 20 Fenchurch Street tower where the firm's London office is based The Sky Garden.jpg
View of the Sky Garden rooftop garden and restaurant at the top of the 20 Fenchurch Street tower where the firm's London office is based

Clients of the firm include major household names and FTSE 100-listed companies such as adidas, Aviva, Barclays, Expedia, Haribo, Leeds City Council, Lidl, Marks & Spencer, Pepsi, Poundland, the Royal Bank of Scotland, RSA Insurance Group, Uber, Virgin Trains, Whitbread and Zurich Insurance Group. [10] [11] [12]

In March 2019, DWF floated on the London Stock Exchange, valued at just under £370m, well short of the £1 billion that it was hoping for a year earlier. [13]

DWF posted group revenue growth of 15% from £236.5m to £272.4m for 2018-19. [14]

DWF's Dubai offices are situated in the Al Fattan Marine Towers complex Dubai Marina from Beach on 12 March 2007 Pict 1.jpg
DWF's Dubai offices are situated in the Al Fattan Marine Towers complex

History

Davies Wallis was founded in 1977 in Liverpool, [4] and merged with Dodds Ashcroft in 1989. [4]

A merger with Foysters in 1990 [4] brought a Manchester office and a change of name to Davies Wallis Foyster, which was abbreviated to DWF in 2007, [4] shortly after the acquisition of Ricksons. [15] The Ricksons acquisition added offices in Preston and Leeds. DWF opened a London office in 2008. [16]

A series of acquisitions in 2012 and 2013 added offices in Birmingham (Buller Jeffries), [17] Newcastle (Crutes), [18] Glasgow and Edinburgh (both Biggart Baillie), [19] Bristol, Dublin and a second London office (Fishburns), [20] before acquiring Cobbetts through a pre-pack administration. [21]

In 2014 DWF reported a 23% increase in net profit from £20.8 million in 2012/13 to £25.5 million in its first full year financial results following four mergers. [22]

DWF opened an office in Dubai in March 2015, the firm's first office outside of the British Isles. [23]

DWF opened six offices in 2017, including two new operations in Continental Europe. The firm opened in Berlin after hiring two lawyers from DLA Piper. It also launched its first office in France through a merger with four-partner Paris firm Heenan Blaikie. In the Asia Pacific region, DWF also launched two offices in Melbourne and Brisbane through a combination with independent firm MVM Legal.

DWF further opened in Singapore after hiring from Eversheds Sutherland’s practice. It gained bases in Sydney, Chicago and Toronto after the acquisition of claims company Triton in January. [24]

DWF posted strong results for H1 2017/18, with revenue up 23% and net profit increasing by circa 33%. Turnover for H1 2017/18 was £113.5m in a period marked by a spate of office openings in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. [25]

In June 2018, DWF announced its intention to seek a stock exchange listing. [13]

The firm strengthened the IPO business case with a double-digit growth in September 2018. DWF posted revenue growth of 18% from £201.3m to £236m ($309m) for 2017-18 ahead of the firm's initial public offering. The firm also said profit per equity partner (PEP) increased by 9%. [26]

In September 2018 DWF agreed to an exclusive association with US law firm Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman LLP (WSHB), a Los Angeles headquartered full-service law firm with 22 offices across the US, 56 partners and 250 lawyers, and generated gross revenue of $81m in its last financial year. [27]

In January 2020, DWF acquired Mindcrest, a legal and managed services business, for $18.50 million. [28]

DWF is occupying the 58th floor of Republic Plaza, the second tallest skyscraper in Singapore. Republic Plaza.jpg
DWF is occupying the 58th floor of Republic Plaza, the second tallest skyscraper in Singapore.

Recognition

The firm is dedicated to creating a diverse business and was the first UK law firm to achieve the ‘ClearAssured’ accreditation, which highlights the firm as an inclusive recruiter of disabled talent. DWF has also launched a women's and LGBT network and was ranked in the 2016 Stonewall Top 100 Employers Index for its inclusive workplace policies. [10]

DWF occupies Bridgewater Place in Leeds. Bridgewater tower.jpg
DWF occupies Bridgewater Place in Leeds.

Notable cases

Notable people and alumni

Practice areas

DWF is structured into two legal service areas, covering Commercial Services and Insurance Services respectively. The Insurance Services area includes a practice dealing with "Claimant Services", delivered as Resolution Law. DWF also offer a wide range of additional products and services under their Connected Services division that allow clients to consolidate their supply chain. These products and services include a digital claims platform and software solutions, as well as specialist lawyers and barristers, forensic accountants and investigators.

Offices

DWF's recent history has been dominated by a process of internationalisation. Over the past decade it has developed a presence in key major cities around the world. The firm is headquartered in the Spinningfields district of Manchester and has 30 offices in 15 jurisdictions across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North America. [51]

United Kingdom

International

Related Research Articles

Baker McKenzie company

Baker McKenzie was founded in 1949, is an international law firm. With 77 offices in 46 countries and over 6,000 lawyers worldwide, Baker McKenzie is one of the largest law firms in the world by headcount and revenue.

Goodwin Procter American law firm

Goodwin Procter LLP is a Global 50 law firm consisting of more than 1,200 lawyers with offices in Boston, Cambridge, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Luxembourg, New York City, Paris, Santa Monica, Silicon Valley, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. Goodwin focuses on complex transactional work, high-stakes litigation and advisory services in matters involving financial institutions, intellectual property, private equity, real estate capital markets, securities litigation, white collar defense, technology and life sciences.

Clifford Chance LLP is a multinational law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom, and a member of the "Magic Circle". It is one of the ten largest law firms in the world measured both by number of lawyers and revenue. In 2017/18, Clifford Chance had total revenues of £1.62 billion, the highest of any firm in the Magic Circle, and profits per equity partner of £1.6 million. According to Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (SWFI), Clifford Chance tied for 1st place for calendar year 2015 regarding legal advising for public institutional investor deals.

DLA Piper multinational law firm

DLA Piper is a multinational law firm with offices in more than 40 countries throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. In 2014, it had total revenues of US$2.48 billion and average profit per equity partner of US$1.490 million, and was the third largest law firm in the United States as measured by revenue.

MinterEllison is a multinational professional services firm based in Australia. The firm has offices in five countries and 15 cities, including in every Australian capital city, London, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Ulaanbaatar. By number of Australian lawyers it is the largest provider of legal services in Australia.

Irwin Mitchell is a full service law firm in the United Kingdom, established in Sheffield in 1912. The firm offers legal and wealth management services from its 15 offices, and employs more than 2,500 people.

Edwards Wildman was an AmLaw 100 law firm. It was formed from the 2011 merger of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge and Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon. Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge had been formed by the 2005 merger of Edwards & Angell LLP and Palmer & Dodge LLP. In 2008, Boston-based Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge also merged with London-based Kendall Freeman, a 40-attorney firm with specialties in dispute resolution, litigation, and both contentious and regulatory insurance and reinsurance.

Reed Smith LLP is a global law firm headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with more than 1,500 lawyers in 28 offices throughout the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Crowell & Moring is an international law firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in New York City, Irvine, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Brussels, Shanghai, and Singapore. With approximately 550 lawyers, the firm advises multinational corporations on regulatory, litigation, corporate, and investigations matters. As of 2020, Crowell & Moring is ranked among the top 100 law firms in the United States in The American Lawyer's "AmLaw 100" list, based on gross revenue.

TLT LLP

TLT LLP is a UK law firm headquartered in Bristol. TLT is among the top 50 law firms in the UK, according to Legal Week. In its latest accounts, covering the 12 months to 30 April 2018, it recorded turnover of £82m, up from £74.6m in 2017. The firm employs approximately 1,000 staff. The firm has additional offices in London and Manchester, Scottish operations are administered from Edinburgh with another office in Glasgow, and a Northern Ireland subsidiary in Belfast. Overseas, the firm operates an office in Piraeus, Greece.

Clyde & Co is a global law firm with a focus on five core sectors: insurance, energy, trade & commodities, infrastructure and transport. The firm employs 2,500 legal professionals in 52 offices in every global region, including Latin America, Africa, Europe, the U.S., Canada, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and the UK. In 2018-19, Clyde & Co's revenue was £611 million, marking the firm’s 21st successive year of growth.

Cobbetts

Cobbetts LLP was a British corporate law firm, with offices in Birmingham, Leeds, London and Manchester. Its main areas of work were dispute resolution, real estate, corporate and employment law.

Hogan Lovells

Hogan Lovells is an American-British law firm co-headquartered in London and Washington, D.C.. It was formed on May 1, 2010 by the merger of the American law firm of Hogan & Hartson and the British law firm Lovells. Hogan Lovells has around 2,800 lawyers working in more than 40 offices in the United States, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

BLM (law firm)

BLM LLP is an insurance and dispute resolution law firm based in the United Kingdom and Ireland, rebranded from Berrymans Lace Mawer following the merger with HBM Sayers in May 2014.

King & Wood Mallesons is a multinational law firm headquartered in Hong Kong. Its predecessor firms included King & Wood, a member of the Red Circle of leading Chinese law firms, Mallesons Stephen Jaques, one of the Big Six leading Australian law firms, and British-headquartered, "Silver Circle" law firm SJ Berwin.

Osborne Clarke

Osborne Clarke is an international legal practice headquartered in London, England with offices in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, France, the Netherlands, China, Hong Kong, India, Singapore and the United States. The firm has over 270 partners and 1,600 employees and is the 21st largest law firm in the UK and the 41st largest law firms in Germany by revenues.

The legal services sector of the United Kingdom is a significant part of the national economy; it had a total output of £22.6 billion in 2013, up from 10.6 billion in 2001, and is equivalent to 1.6% of the country's gross domestic product for that year. The sector has a trade surplus is £3.1 billion in 2013 and directly employees 316,000 people, two-thirds of whom are located outside London. The UK is the world’s most international market for legal services. It allows virtually unrestricted access for foreign firms, resulting in over 200 foreign law firms with offices in London and other cities in the UK. Around half of these are US firms, with the remainder mainly from Europe, Australia and Canada. The UK legal market has a strong global position due to the popularity of English law. Some 27% of the world's 320 legal jurisdictions use English Common law.

Kennedys Law LLP is an international commercial law firm specialising in insurance, dispute resolution and advisory services. In 2018/19 it increased total global revenue by 11% to £218 million. UK turnover increased by 8%, and revenue growth was supported by a 7% increase in the number of fee-earners worldwide, with total headcount exceeding 2,000 for the first time in their history.. It has offices in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, France, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Thomson Geer

Thomson Geer is an independent Australian commercial law firm founded in 1885. Its predecessor firms included Thomsons Lawyers and Herbert Geer. The firm operates a full commercial law service as a fully integrated national firm with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. It is one of the top ten firms in the country by revenue, and the seventh largest firm in Australia by headcount.

References

  1. ↑ "DWF secures trophy hire of former DLA Piper head Sir Nigel Knowles as chairman". LegalWeek.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  2. ↑ "DWF reappoints Leaitherland for fourth term as managing partner and CEO – The Lawyer - Legal insight, benchmarking data and jobs". Thelawyer.com. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  3. ↑ "International expansion and Brexit boost revenues at law firm DWF". 2019-11-08. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "DWF enters 'abbreviation age'". Manchester Evening News . 2007-02-17. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  5. ↑ "About Us". DWF LLP. Retrieved 2015-12-11.
  6. ↑ "DWF becomes UK's largest listed law firm as it completes £95m IPO". Legal Business. 2019-03-15. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  7. ↑ "DWF wins at FT Innovative Lawyers Awards – Company Announcement - FT.com". markets.ft.com. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  8. 1 2 "Innovative Lawyers - Financial Times". Rankings.ft.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  9. 1 2 "International M&A Review : Experian Business Research: H1 2017" (PDF). Experian.co.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  10. 1 2 "The Legal 500 > DWF > London, ENGLAND > What the firm says". Legal500.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  11. ↑ "The Legal 500 > DWF > London, ENGLAND > What we say". Legal500.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  12. ↑ https://www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news/2033484-record-half-year-for-dwfs-corporate-team
  13. 1 2 https://www.thelawyer.com/because-theyre-worth-it-dwfs-valuation-and-the-knowles-effect/
  14. ↑ "Investegate |DWF Group PLC Announcements | DWF Group PLC: Full year results for the year ended 30 April 2019". www.investegate.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  15. ↑ "DWF and Ricksons confirm merger". The Lawyer. 2007-01-03. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  16. ↑ "Davies Lavery team defects for DWF City launch". Legal Week. 2008-06-20. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  17. ↑ "DWF and Buller Jeffries to merge". Business Desk. 2012-04-02. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  18. ↑ "Crutes completes merger with DWF". The Journal. 2012-01-09. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  19. ↑ "Biggart Baillie reveals merger with DWF". The Herald. 2012-07-06. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  20. ↑ "DWF to merger with professional indemnity firm Fishburns". Legal Week. 2013-01-18. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  21. ↑ "DWF plans to buy troubled Cobbetts". Manchester Evening News . 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
  22. ↑ "DWF posts net profit growth to £25.5m, revenues at £191m". The Lawyer. 2014-07-24. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  23. ↑ "DWF tears up UK-only strategy with Dubai office launch". The Lawyer. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  24. ↑ "DWF pushes further into Middle East with Qatar launch". The Lawyer. 15 February 2018. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  25. ↑ https://www.legalbusiness.co.uk/blogs/financials-201718-cms-claims-25-profit-hike-post-merger-as-dwfs-top-line-grows-23/
  26. ↑ https://www.legalweek.com/2018/09/13/dwf-revenue-surges-18-ahead-of-anticipated-ipo/
  27. ↑ http://www.globallegalpost.com/big-stories/firms-enter-into-exclusive-association-for-us-expansion-93491450/
  28. ↑ January 29, Meganne Tillay |; International, 2020 at 05:05 AM | The original version of this story was published on Law com. "UK Law Firm DWF Acquires Chicago-based Mindcrest for $18.5M". Law.com. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  29. ↑ https://www.ft.com/reports/innovative-lawyers-europe
  30. ↑ https://www.dwf.law/en/MediaCentre/Press-Releases/2018/July/Nine-DWF-lawyers-recognised-in-Legal-500-Hall-of-Fame
  31. ↑ http://www.postevents.co.uk/claimsawards/winners
  32. ↑ https://www.g2legal.co.uk/news/item/39
  33. ↑ https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/2018-enei-awards-equality-and-inclusion-winners-celebrate/
  34. ↑ "LawCareers.Net". Lawcareers.net. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  35. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-10-11. Retrieved 2017-10-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  36. ↑ "Tech & Innovation Awards 2016 shortlist announced". Insurancetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  37. ↑ "DWF LLP - London - Law Firm Profile - UK Guide, 2018 - Chambers and Partners". Chambersandpartners.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  38. ↑ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-29/the-20-hour-flight-is-coming-and-it-may-have-a-gym-and-bunks
  39. ↑ https://www.dwf.law/en/MediaCentre/Press-Releases/2018/August/DWF-advises-on-landmark-City-real-estate-deal
  40. ↑ "DWF in line for over £1.3m from Kensington and Chelsea Council for advice on Grenfell fire disaster". LegalWeek.com. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  41. ↑ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/26/sir-cliff-richard-settles-row-south-yorkshire-police-raid-home/
  42. ↑ https://www.dwf.law/MediaCentre/Press-Releases/2018/July/DWF-LLP-secures-favourable-judgment-for-South-Yorkshire-Police
  43. ↑ "Eversheds Sutherland nears first anniversary with trio of corporate deals". Legalbusiness.co.uk. 4 January 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  44. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-04-22. Retrieved 2018-05-29.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  45. ↑ "DWF advises leading science and tech park on £160million biomass renewable energy plant - DWF". Dwf.law. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  46. ↑ https://www.legalbusiness.co.uk/blogs/dwf-hires-the-brains-behind-freshfields-manchester-hub-for-new-managed-services-role/
  47. ↑ https://www.legaltechnology.com/latest-news/exclusive-daniel-pollick-to-join-dwf-as-cio-as-tech-takes-a-front-seat/
  48. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-09-02. Retrieved 2018-09-02.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  49. ↑ "DWF announces Sir Nigel Knowles as new Chairman". Dwf.law. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  50. ↑ "About - British Expertise International". Britishexpertise.org. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  51. ↑ "Locations - DWF". Dwf.law. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.