Fee share firm gunnercooke launches in Scotland

Legal firm gunnercooke, with four offices across England, has announced its launch in Scotland, with offices opening in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Its first Scottish partner is Simon Etchells, a commercial property lawyer with 30 years' experience who joins from Dentons. A recruitment drive is underway for more fee earners. Co-founder Sarah Goulbourne said: "We plan on recruiting 60 partners this year and hope many of these will be based in Scotland." 

Founded in 2010 and now with offices in Manchester, London, Birmingham, Leeds, along with a Berlin base which opened this year, gunnercooke is a full-service commercial professional services firm. It claims to be the first fee share model to open offices in Scotland – though Inksters, for one, which has a presence in nine Scottish cities and towns, has been operating on that basis for the past seven years. gunnercooke has opened WeWork, 80 George Street, Edinburgh, and the Garment Factory, 2-10 Montrose Street, Glasgow.

Its lawyers work remotely, as well as having access to the office bases and support teams across the UK. They join as self employed consultants, arranging their own work and keeping the majority of the fees they earn, paying a proportion to the firm.

Mr Etchells said: "I’m hugely looking forward to advancing the gunnercooke brand in Scotland and welcoming talented Scottish lawyers to the team."

"This is a fantastic addition to the Scottish market, and I am confident that the firm’s modern business model will be attractive to great lawyers and clients alike. l am genuinely excited to see the firm grow and believe gunnercooke is uniquely equipped to thrive in the challenges set by the new normal."