Dickinson looks to top 20 as it prepares for office opening

DICKINSON Dees is on the brink of hiring a number of senior lawyers as it prepares to open an office in Leeds.

Jonathan Blair, the firm’s managing partner, said Dickinson Dees was involved in a “number of senior lateral hire conversations” as it aims to become one of the top 20 law firms in Britain.

Mr Blair said the new Leeds office at 1 Whitehall Riverside is due to open around the Easter weekend – April 7 and 8 – and is big enough to accommodate around 100 staff.

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In 2011, Dickinson Dees announced that it was moving its York office to Leeds because it was “the next logical step” in its development.

The York office’s 50 staff, including 35 lawyers, are gearing up to move over the next few weeks.

Mr Blair said that only one member of the legal staff had decided not to join the Leeds office.

Newcastle-based Dickinson Dees, which can trace its roots back to the 1780s, opened an office in York in 2007 when it acquired Philip Ashworth & Co.

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The York operation’s turnover has risen from £1m to £4.5m since then.

Mr Blair said: “Since opening an office in York, staff numbers in Yorkshire have quadrupled, while turnover has increased by more than 400 per cent in a recession.

“Leeds is one of the top five business and financial centres in the UK, and, if we are to meet our ambitious plans to grow our business, it is important for us to tackle the challenges and seize the opportunities presented by Leeds.

“We do not consider Dickinson Dees to be just a regional firm,’’ Mr Blair added.

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“Many of our practice areas are ranked highly on a national scale and we are currently increasing our presence in London as well as Leeds.

“For example, our charities team, which is based in Yorkshire, is ranked as one of the finest in the country, so a higher profile in Leeds makes perfect sense.

“Moving to Leeds will give us the tremendous opportunity of going head to head with the leading national law firms in the city.”

Dickinson Dees saw its revenues drop from £48.8m to £45.5m in 2010-11, according to an annual ranking of the top 100 law firms, which was compiled by The Lawyer magazine in August 2011.

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However, profit per equity partner (PEP) rose slightly to £223,000. The firm’s ranking dropped one place to 58.

Dickinson Dees’ clients include Gap, Croda International and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Mr Blair added: “Since the announcement of our move to Leeds, we have started a campaign to attract high-calibre lawyers to join our team, and we intend to increase the number of employees at a senior level across a number of teams in Yorkshire.”

He said the Yorkshire operation was on course to increase its year-on-year turnover, although he didn’t want to speculate what the final figure would be.

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Last year, Richard Flanagan, the president of York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, said Dickinson Dees’ decision to move from York to Leeds was a commercial one, and he understood the firm’s reasoning.

However, Mr Flanagan stressed that York would still be viewed as an excellent place to work, live and invest.