Berwin Leighton Paisner

UK 200 RESULTS 2010

Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) bounced back from its disappointing performance during the 2008-09 financial year in 2009-10, breaking through the £190m revenue barrier and reporting a 10 per cent increase in average profit per equity partner (PEP).

One of BLP’s biggest successes has been its ability to respond to changes in client demand, particularly the disaggregation of legal services. The firm launched a ‘managed legal services’ department designed to take over the in-house legal functions of major corporates. The first client to sign up was Thames Water in a deal worth £5m per year over five years, which sees BLP refer lower-value work to Ashfords and Pannone. Other programmes, such as Lawyers on Demand, also continue to be successful, with the scheme working with Cisco, Dell, Gucci, Orange, Sky and UBS.

Overseas the jury is still out on BLP’s ambitious Russian adventure, but the Abu Dhabi office has experienced a steady growth in headcount. The client base has also grown with Aldar, the major Abu Dhabi-based developer of projects such as the Ferrari World Abu Dhabi theme park, being one of the latest additions.

BLP’s turnover was boosted by several high-profile matters last year, not least through it picking up Clifford Chance client Blackstone on its joint venture with British Land and the National Pension Service of Korea. The firm also acted for stalwart clients such as Tesco on a major sale-and-leaseback deal and Oxford Properties and UBS in relation to the letting of Watermark Place to Nomura, one of the largest pre-lets ever in the City.

The restructuring practice continued to be busy, with insolvency ace Ben Larkin acting for accountancy firm Moore Stephens on the administration of Reader’s Digest.

Although PEP rose, the increase was slightly more muted than at some of BLP’s competitors as a result of a number of opportunistic senior hires, such as sports litigator Graham Shear from Teacher Stern and tax partner Linda Adelson from Lloyds

TSB, plus leaders in support services, such as business development, HR and marketing. The firm also made 85 redundancies.

BLP operates a modified lockstep, with 20 per cent of partners’ remuneration based on performance. On the lockstep element partners enter the equity on 50 points, typically taking 10 years to reach plateau. However, like many firms, this process can be accelerated. Remuneration is allocated on the basis of a number of criteria, including how many hours partners bill, what role they take on a deal and the contribution to business development. The bottom of equity increased slightly over the past financial year, from £185,000 to £208,000, while the highest-paid partners continued to receive £1.2m.

UK 200 RESULTS 2009

Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) saw its revenue drop slightly from £186m to £180m over the past financial year. It is what might be expected in a firm where corporate and property account for more than 60 per cent of the business.

In line with the market average, average profit per equity partner dropped by a third from £620,000 to £414,000. However, unlike some managing partners, Neville Eisenberg, who was re-elected in the spring, has a lot to show for his firm’s money and BLP could be in a good position when the market picks up.

The firm made a number of lateral hires, including former Barclays banker Peter Harvey, former Kirkland & Ellis private equity star Raymond McKeeve and Allen & Overy financial services partner Sidney Myers. And it has increasingly emphasised tax as one of its key groups.

It also upped its international game, spending around £10m on its international expansion. BLP opened its first Eastern European and Gulf offices last year when Abu Dhabi and Moscow launched in January. The latter was a largely opportunistic move, which saw it tie up with around 70 lawyers from Russian practice Pepeliaev Goltsblat & Partners.

Forty-six per cent of partners are part of the equity. The firm operates a modified lockstep, with 20 per cent based on performance. Partners enter at 50 points and typically take 10 years to reach top of the equity, which is 100 points. However, like many firms, this process can be accelerated. Remuneration is allocated on the basis of a number of criteria, including how many hours partners bill, what role they take on a deal and the contribution to business development.

BLP has so far avoided any major redundancy programme, making a number of internal redeployments into contentious areas and insolvency work. However, at the start of the current financial year it made 85 positions redundant.