It is a bright time for London’s private client firms. Such is the health of the sector that the magic circle firms, which jettisoned their private client departments nearly a decade ago, are building up teams once again.
Linklaters hired Forsters partner Peter Golden in March 2016 to head up a trusts practice, while the likes of Clifford Chance are also active in the area, despite not shouting about their capabilities.
But away from the magic circle, the private client teams that never went away are reaping the rewards of long-term investment. The outlook is sunny for private client associates aiming for partnership.
We looked at 12 leading London firms for private client work – Bircham Dyson Bell, Boodle Hatfield, Charles Russell Speechlys, Collyer Bristow, Farrer & Co, Forsters, Macfarlanes, Maurice Turnor Gardner, Payne Hicks Beach, Russell-Cooke, Taylor Wessing and Withers. Across those firms, there have been 28 private client promotions since 2012 – an average of more than two per firm.
“This is a really exciting time to be working with individuals on their tax and wealth planning,” says Withers partner Ceri Vokes. “World events and new legislation have caused a significant rethinking of traditional approaches to private client issues – the Brexit referendum, a tightening of the terms Private client 2.0 London’s top fi rms are reviving their private client practices, opening up fresh opportunities for the best lawyers. What are the skills talented associates need to make it this time round?
What’s the new idea? Today’s PC lawyers need an international perspective and rainmaking skills as well as knowing the technical aspects of UK non-dom status and the Trump administration’s proposed tax reforms, to name just three. This means that insightful, far-reaching advice is in high demand by clients and we’re extremely busy, which creates opportunities for talented associates.”
“The private client market is growing and we believe that it provides excellent prospects for private client associates,” adds Boodle Hatfield senior partner Sara Maccallum. “The growing trend for international high-net-worth individuals to use the English legal system to structure their affairs and English advisers to coordinate the advice from different legal systems looks set to continue. This, coupled with recent and ongoing changes in legislation, mean that private client lawyers are being kept busy and it’s an exciting area in which to work.”
Technical excellence, combined with client skills and rainmaking ability makes a complete private client partner” Patrick Harney
Are there skills that private client associates need now that were not needed in the past?
“It’s increasingly important for associates to have an international perspective,” says Vokes. “It’s not a necessity in all instances, but globalisation has resulted in more of our projects involving multiple jurisdictions and that trend is unlikely to go into reverse.
“It’s also critical for associates to have a proven ability to generate new business. This often starts right at the beginning of their careers with the relationships they forge with clients, because the biggest compliment a client can pay us is to refer a contact to us. Ambitious associates who are growing in seniority should be looking to demonstrate what they could add to the firm’s business as a future partner.”
But equally, “if an associate is serious about becoming a partner they have to be a technician as well as whatever rainmaking skills they have”, argues Forsters’ head of private client Patrick Harney. “The whole area has become more technical – you can’t dabble, the need for technical excellence is a prerequisite. That, combined with the client skills and rainmaking ability makes a complete private client partner.”
Who trained the new stars of the private client world?
Allen & Overy (A&O) offl oaded its private client department in 2009 but its loss is the market’s gain, as its former trainees have started to make partner at midsized firms across the City.
Former A&O trainees have been promoted at Farrer & Co, Charles Russell Speechlys and Payne Hicks Beach, as well as at Maurice Turnor Gardner – the firm created by the 2009 demerger of the magic circle giant’s private client wing. After A&O, Macfarlanes is the largest single source of private client talent.
Four private client lawyers who trained at the firm have been made up in the past five years – three at Macfarlanes itself and one at Forsters.
A&O offloaded its private client department in 2009 but its loss has been the market’s gain as former trainees are now making partner at firms across the City
You do not have to train at one of the City’s elite to make it to partnership in the City’s top private client teams. Russell-Cooke partner Rita Bhargava (made up 2012) started her career at Staines’ Dale & Newbury, Taylor Wessing’s Kirstie McGuigan (made up 2013) began at Tunbridge Wells stalwart Thomson Snell & Passmore, and Charles Russell Speechlys’ Nicola Thorpe (made up 2016) was originally at Ottaways of St Albans.
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Withers
Withers has promoted three private client lawyers to partner since 2012, out of 10 in total: wealth planning lawyers Tim George, Charlie Tee and contentious trusts and succession specialist Stephen Richards. The firm’s family department is the only other one to have made up as many partners in that period.
“The private client team remains the engine room of our fi rm and we are looking at how we can build our strengths in this – and other areas – in our newer offices,” says partner Ceri Vokes. “Our private client team in London is well-established so the focus is on the development of our lawyers and organic growth.”
Forsters
Forsters has significantly boosted its private client off ering, taking four partners, 10 associates and five other members of staff from GowlingWLG as of 1 May 2017. It has also made up two partners from the practice since 2012 out of 11 promotions firmwide – Xavier Nicholas in 2013 and Guy Abrahams this year.
The mass hire from Gowlings, which brings the number of private client partners to 15, will have little effect on internal promotion prospects, says department head Patrick Harney. “We have a tradition of promoting associates to partner, and because we’re targeting 10 per cent annual growth we’ll have the ability to promote senior associates who are performing well.
Boodle Hatfield
Mayfair’s Boodle Hatfield, adviser to the Dukes of Westminster over many generations, has made two private client promotions since 2012: Hayden Bailey and Mark Lindley, both of whom trained at Penningtons.
Senior partner Sara Maccallum says: “Private client is core to Boodle Hatfield and our objective is to continue growing the practice through a combination of internal promotions and lateral hires. Our international work is showing substantial growth, with a particular emphasis on the Middle East, Russia, the US and Europe. We maintain a focus on the domestic market also, where we advise a large number of the top landed estates and an increasing number of entrepreneurial clients.”
Macfarlanes
Three out of Macfarlanes’ 32 partner promotions since 2012 have come in the private client team – just over 9 per cent. Corporate leads the way with eight promotions but there is a fairly even spread of promotions across practice groups, proving that private client is at least as important to the firm as real estate or banking.
However, no private client lawyer has been made up in the past three promotions rounds, the most recent being Jennifer Smithson in 2014. She trained at the firm, as did both the other private client associates made up since 2012, Oliver Court and Michael Ranson.
“We tend to promote from within,” says Smithson. “It’s an unique skill-set that’s required to be a private client lawyer at Macfarlanes – the way we approach the work is quite different from a more pure private client firm, so we find that associates from those firms don’t always have the training we’re looking for. We tend to have people who have applied to a corporate City firm, been curious about us and discovered that they love private client work, so the training they’ve had with us has had a commercial flavor.”
