| Turnover | £89m | | Profit per equity partner | £460,000 | | Equity spread | £210,000-£1,000,000 | | Net profit | £25.8m | | Profit margin | 29 per cent | | Revenue per lawyer | £229,000 | | Revenue per partner | £856,000 | | Revenue per equity partner | £1,589,000 | | Total no of fee-earners | 389 | | Total no of assistants | 285 | | No of partners | 104 | | No of equity partners | 56 | | Total no of female partners | 20 | | Total no of female equity partners | 7 | | Total no of staff | 735 | | Leverage ratio (equity partners/fee-earners) | 5.1 | | Representative clients | BBC
Land Securities
Trillium
Sea Containers
Royal Bank of Scotland
Microsoft
PricewaterhouseCoopers | |
On the surface, Richards Butler had a decent year.
Average PEP was up 10.8 per cent, from £415,000
to £460,000, but if you dig a little deeper, things
do not look quite so rosy.
The rise in profit came on the back of a number
of de-equitisations as the firm tried to boost its figures
in readiness for a US merger. But gross fees
inched up only 2.3 per cent to £89m, while that
longed-for merger fell through, with New York's
Proskauer Rose pulling the plug after almost a year
of negotiations.
The firm also suffered a series of partner departures,
including two of its highest billers from its
flagship disputes practice, which accounts for 50
per cent of revenues. Lista Cannon left for Fulbright
& Jaworski and John Hull departed for Latham &
Watkins. They will be sorely missed, but the firm
did at least land an immediate windfall when it
recruited Richard Spafford from Barlow Lyde &
Gilbert. Spafford continues to advise Winterthur
Group, the insurer claiming millions of pounds
from law firms involved in collapsed claims management
firm The Accident Group.
Hong Kong, which is run as a separate partnership
for tax reasons, is still vastly more profitable
than London. Hong Kong accounts for 32 per cent
of the firm's revenues and is responsible for its PEP
being dragged up to £460,000. Average PEP in London
stands at just £375,000.
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