Consultant or platform law firms continue to grow with 4000 lawyers reported to be operating under the fee sharing model in England and Wales according to the latest insight. Despite it remaining a small fraction of the overall legal market; the sector is growing and developing into new areas of law according to a new report from Codex Edge.
The Platform Firms Mid Year Report 2024 is the latest update following reports in 2022 and 2023 which looks into the growth, headcount, expertise and retention rates across platform or consultant legal service providers with fee sharing models.
Previous reports have identified Setfords and Taylor Rose have led the way in the sector. In this half year insight, covering January 2024-June 2024, across firms with 50 lawyers or more Setfords, Taylor Rose, Keystone Law and Gunnercooke dominate with over 2000 lawyers between them; followed by Spencer West (262), Excello Law (180) and Nexa Law (136) in the next ‘tier’. Competition is building between consultant firms with McCarthy Denning and Bexley Beaumont both increasing their headcount in the first half of 2024; indeed Bexley Beaumont (13.1%) are second only to Mezzle (13.6%) in their growth over the past six months.
Setfords lead the way in absolute numbers, increasing their headcount by twice as many lawyers (53) as Keystone Law (21). In total the top 10 consultant platform firms recruited 246 lawyers between them. By contrast the top 10 “traditional” firms recruited 355 lawyers over the same period.
While recruitment to consultancy model employment is drawn from across legal services – with a concentration of recruits from sub-Legal 500 firms- as competition between platform firms increases there is movement between the providers. The report shows a combined over 500 lawyers joined from or left for other platform providers. And some of the providers are getting it right with 97%+ retention rates at firms McCarthy Denning, Excello Law and Gunnercooke.
On the popularity of fee sharing models, Chief Operating Office of consultancy-style firm Nexa Law John McAuley said:
“It’s unsurprising to see the growth of this new model law firm given the flexibility and earning benefits provided to lawyers. The market is becoming very competitive for talent, and every firm is has a slightly different approach, which is really beneficial for those looking to make the move. Having a choice of structure – from fees, compliance, support, and tech systems – means it’s an even more attractive option for those considering a change to consultancy. It’s extremely rare to see consultants jumping back into the traditional model once they’ve taken the leap and gained confidence in building their own customer base.”
The expertise held in Consultant firms continues to expand with Business Litigation, Consumer Law and Torts among the fastest growing skills in the sector. Commenting on the progress of the sector, Chris Hume, CEO of Codex Edge, the report’s authors, said
“The sector continues to grow and evolve at pace, and as it matures we are seeing an increasing segmentation and differentiation in offering. The findings in this report clearly demonstrate that the platform model continues to thrive and is an increasingly significant part of the UK legal landscape.”
Commenting on the success of the model to date, Michael Burne of Carbon Law Partners added
“The profession, I think, is searching for alternative models in which lawyers can deliver that professional input as a human being to another human being”
Karen Bexley of Bexley Beaumont said
“People want to feel empowered, they want control of their careers and a fee share environment gives them that control”
Platform Firms Mid Year Report 2024 can be read in full here.
