De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek has emerged from its first year of independence from Linklaters with the lowest turnover growth among its competitors in the Dutch elite.
De Brauw billed e126m (£88.5m) in 2002, up just 1.26 per cent on the previous year’s e124m (£87m). De Brauw voted almost unanimously against merging with Linklaters in April last year.
The Netherlands’ highest grossing independent, Nauta-Dutilh, grew turnover by 11 per cent to e143m (£100.4).
However, De Brauw’s fees per partner climbed from last year’s e1.4m (£1m) to e1.6m (£1.1m), coming second only to Loyens & Loeff partners, while its fees per fee-earner were the highest in the table. Loyens’ civil law notaries and attorneys billed e87m (£61.1m) last year, while its tax practice brought in a further e110m (£77.2m).
A De Brauw spokesperson said: “We have always had a high level of fees per fee-earner and it grew again in 2002, despite the economic conditions. We continue to focus on the type of work we
do. Size is not our aim, high-end legal advice and breaking new ground is.”
Another key development is the rapid progress of AKD Prinsen van Wijmen, the Dutch firm allied to Deloitte & Touche. The firm merged with Andersen Legal’s Dutch arm on 1 September 2002. By AKD’s financial year-end on 31 May, the combined firm had racked up a turnover of e63.5m ($44.6m), placing it sixth in the rankings.
Independent Dutch firms’ figures | |||||||||
Firm | Turnover €m (£m) | % increase on 2001 | No of partners | Fees per partner €m (£m) | No of fee-earners | Fees per fee-earner €k (£k) | |||
Nauta Dutilh | 143 (100.4) | 11 | 100 | 1.4 (1) | 469 | 304.9 (214) | |||
De Brauw | 126 (88.5) | 1.26 | 81 | 1.6 (1.1) | 361 | 349 (245) | |||
Loyens & Loeff | 87 (61.1) | 26 | 51 | 1.7 (1.2) | 321 | 271 (190.2) | |||
Houthoff Buruma | 75 (52.7) | 10 | 61 | 1.2 (0.8) | 315 | 238.1 (167.1) | |||
Stibbe | 70.7 (70.7) | 2.9 | 46 | 1.5 (1.1) | 205 | 344.9 (242.1) | |||
Source: The Lawyer | |||||||||
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