The out-of-towners are your best bet. Browne Jacobson has been ramping up aggressively in Birmingham. It has made up 19 partners in three years; 10 of them have been in Birmingham and eight of those have been laterals. Non-contentious disciplines have been recruiting more heavily.

Freeth Cartwright has relied heavily on laterals, with nine in three years compared with four internals. Mills & Reeve has appointed 11 laterals in Birmingham over three years.
Bevan Brittan made two lateral hires in Birmingham in 2005-06 and three the previous year, while Shoosmiths has taken on four laterals in three years.