SNR Denton revenue falls as PEP rises by 51 per cent

Turnover at the firm’s UK LLP, which comprises SNR Denton’s offices in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Asia but excludes the US side of the business, was £145m, down almost 5 per cent on 2010-11’s £152.5m.

But profit was £28m, up from 19.8m in 2010-1. Average profit per equity partner (PEP) rose from £232,000 to £350,000.

The firm adjusted its accounting policies in 2011-12 so that allowances paid to international senior partners are no longer excluded. Under the same policy average PEP for 2010-11 would have been £237,000.

The 2010-11 financial year was a particularly bad one for SNR Denton, with PEP dropping 35.6 per cent and net profit falling 37 per cent (7 February 2012).

According to EMEA chief executive Matthew Jones, SNR Denton shed a lot of costs in the 2011-12, while the firm’s energy and infrastructure, and litigation and arbitration teams put in particularly strong performances.

The firm has now said that, for 2012-13, its priority is to improve its revenue, through new initiatives concerning selling business to clients, continuing to exploit synergies with the US and by making more lateral partner hires.

In a statement, EMEA chief executive Matthew Jones said: “Our primary goal for the past year was to achieve a material improvement in our performance, while continuing to deliver excellent client service – and we accomplished that in the midst of a particularly challenging economic environment.

“In the year ahead, we will continue to focus on growing our business and enhancing our profitability by serving our clients better, attracting more talented lawyers and increasing our revenue. We believe these results are a substantial step forward and lay the groundwork for future growth and success.”