Weightmans

UK 200 RESULTS 2010

It was another steady year at Weightmans on the back of the Liverpool-headquartered firm’s continuing reputation in the insurance and litigation markets and among its public sector client base.

Weightmans’ turnover increased by 8 per cent to £56.2m, while average profit

per equity partner increased by 30 per cent over the same period to £354,000.

Weightmans averaged three fewer equity partners compared with the previous year as a result of two departures for DWF and two retirements, although on 1 May 2010 it promoted a further three into the equity.

But managing partner Patrick Gaul’s management style tends to be conservative and, despite indications in previous financial years that he would like to widen the equity, this is still a tight club. Weightmans’ equity encompasses less than a third of all partners.

Those who enter the equity join on the first rung of a nine-year lockstep. Partners in the first band typically earn 50 per cent of plateau partner remuneration. But most of Weightmans’ equity partners are currently clustered around the top, which last year was equivalent to £414,000, a slight increase on 2008-09’s £393,000.

Changes at the firm during the year included the appointment of professional indemnity partner Stuart Whittle to the newly created role of operations director, with responsibility for marketing, HR, risk and knowledge.

Elsewhere Weightmans has invested in the expansion of its now 15-strong London-based professional indemnity team. It has also invested around £100,000 refurbishing its City premises, taken on an additional 12,000sq ft in Birmingham and established new case management systems.

Gaul’s record was recently endorsed by partners, who re-elected him in May for a third term at the top following an uncontested vote.

UK 200 RESULTS 2009

Although turnover at Liverpool-headquartered Weightmans inched up by 4 per cent, from £49.8m to £52m during the 2008-09 financial year, it was slightly short of the firm’s target of 6 per cent or above.

Weightmans’ net profit was down by 6.55 per cent, from £8.5m to £7.85m. The firm’s average profit per equity partner (PEP) also took a blow, with a drop of more than 14 per cent, from £317,000 to £272,000. The equity spread was £178,000-£393,000.

PEP mainly suffered because of major losses from its new London office earlier this year in favour of DWF. The firm’s managing partner Patrick Gaul said the fall was also down to the opening of two major offices in London and Manchester as well as a drop-off in corporate and property work.

Unlike many firms, Weightmans has not announced any major redundancy programmes. Indeed, it saw the number of its staff increase from 797 to 866, the cost of which Gaul has said will also affect the firm’s profit.

Weightmans has also had the advantage of little debt for much of the year, with borrowings of around £3m.

It has been a good year for the firm’s catastrophic injury team, as well as its disease litigation team and its employment department.

The equity is held tightly – only 26 of the 101 partners are full-equity.

Weightmans continues to operate a nine-step modified lockstep. Partners must meet annual objectives set by Gaul and can be moved up or down the lockstep depending on whether they achieve these objectives.