M&A expert at Gordons to quit as partners arrive

Mr Pilling, who has particular expertise in merger and acquisition activity and private equity transactions, joined Gordons in 2013.

He had previously been chief executive of private investment fund John Laithwaite Partners. Prior to this, Mr Pilling had been a partner at Addleshaw Goddard for 12 years. Having spent seven years building a corporate and private equity practice in London, he returned to Leeds in 2009 to focus on the local market for Addleshaws.

Gordons’ managing partner, Paul Ayre, also confirmed yesterday that two new partners are joining Gordons – they are Taylor & Emmet’s Diana Smart, who will head the private client team, and Patrick Kemp who is joining the construction team from Watson Burton.

Mr Ayre added: “Diana and Patrick are excellent hires and we’re delighted that they will start at the firm in September and mid-August respectively. It’s part of corporate life for people to join and other people to leave a business. On that note, Simon Pilling and Andy Todd (the head of the property litigation team) have decided that their futures lie elsewhere and will be leaving Gordons later this year.”

Gordons was founded in Bradford in 1844. Currently, 34 partners work across its two offices.

The firm competes against mid-market rivals such as DWF, Irwin Mitchell and Lupton Fawcett Denison Till as well as the established ‘Big Six’ firms of Addleshaw Goddard, DLA Piper, Eversheds, Pinsent Masons, Squire Patton Boggs and Walker Morris.

In January, the firm revealed turnover and profits were down for the year to March 31, 2014, following a “challenging year”. Turnover fell 11 per cent to £22.93m, while pre-tax profits were £10.16m, down 8.4 per cent.

Gordons has offices in Leeds and Bradford and employs 235 people. Its clients include Wm Morrison Supermarkets, construction and high performance materials manufacturer Saint Gobain, brewers Molson Coors and the world’s largest electrical heating business Glen Dimplex.

Earlier this month, Gordons advised social landlord Yorkshire Housing on its acquisition of an 11-apartment development at Skipton’s Belle Vue Mills site.