Theodores chief steps down over high workload

Theodore Goddard's managing partner Peter Kavanagh has relinquished his position half way through his term because of the overwhelming workload.

Kavanagh, who officially took over the post in May 1997, will return to his fee-earning role in the firm's corporate group.

Kavanagh says: "The basis on which I had agreed to take on the role was that I still took on a significant amount of client work. It became apparent pretty quickly that it was a position I wasn't happy with."

According to Kavanagh, the proposed merger between Theodore Goddard, Richards Butler and Denton Hall stayed his desire to leave the post.

He explains: "Because I had been involved with the possible merger since the beginning it made sense to carry on."

Theodore Goddard subsequently pulled out of discussions in January.

But Kavanagh says that, at that time, "I became involved in a number of transactions, but I was unable to strike a balance between my responsibilities".

He says nominations for his replacement are being handled at the moment. He adds that a partner within the firm will most probably take over the role.

However, Kavanagh says that there have been discussions about appointing a chief executive who will take on management responsibilities, although there is nothing in the pipeline at the moment.