Thorntons reports strong post-merger figures

Legal firm Thorntons has reported healthy financial results for its first full year after acquiring two Fife practices.

The Tayside headquartered firm, which now has 45 partners and 376 staff in 10 offices from Edinburgh to Montrose, saw turnover rise by 14% to £22.8m in the year to 31 May 2016. This follows mergers with St Andrews, Cupar and Anstruther firms Murray Donald and Steel Eldridge Stewart in November and September 2014.

More recently Thorntons has also taken over Watts Law of Montrose and Clarkson Hamilton of Kirkcaldy. During the financial year it moved its Edinburgh office to larger premises.

Profits rose by 7.5% to £4.3m, a figure on which the firm said there had been a "slight impact" through continuing investment and merger integration costs. It was "confident that its commitment to continuously improving the efficiency of its operational processes and investment in service provision will ensure increased profitability in future years".

It added that there had been "notable increases" in business in areas including land and rural, immigration, personal injury, family law, private client, residential conveyancing and estate agency.

Craig Nicol, joint managing partner, commented: “These results represent our commitment to invest for the long term and our clear strategy for growth across the business. I believe that our commitment to providing clients with a full service offering has ensured that our business remains strong amid challenging trading conditions."

He said the firm was continuing to expand, particularly in Fife and Edinburgh, and was "confident we have a stable base from which to grow in the short and medium term”.

Among a number of recent awards, Thorntons was named Scotland’s Best Employer in September 2016 .