Partner Article

Australian law firm acquire Russell Jones & Walker

UK law firm Russell Jones & Walker have joined forces with Australian practice Slater & Gordon Lawyers, the world’s first publicly listed law firm.

The move is hoped to bring security and growth through shared pool of talent and knowledge, as the recent Legal Services Act opens the market to outside investment.

Neil Kinsella, chief executive of RJW, said: “We will continue to deliver first class legal services, but as a result of today’s announcement we will have the resources and backing to develop and grow.

“We want to become the largest and most trusted provider of personal legal services in the UK.”

“Our commitment to making justice and legal services accessible and affordable to all remains, but our ability to do this increases as a result; this development will bring real benefits to our clients and affiliated organisations.”

Mr Kinsella went on to say that Slater & Gordon have a similar history and ethos to RJW, and also shared a focus on innovation.

He added: “We have jointly identified the opportunities that will come as a result of the changes in the UK market and have already benefited from sharing our knowledge.

“The potential to share technology and have greater resources to retain and attract additional talented people will underpin our future success.”

Slater & Gordon managing director Andrew Grech noted that while the UK had a similar legal jurisdiction to Australia, it had spent three years searching for the right opportunity in the UK.

He said: “In RJW we have found a great firm built on values which are very aligned with our own.

“The team at RJW gives us confidence that we have the right people on the ground with local knowledge to achieve our joint aspiration of being the first choice for personal legal services in the UK”

RJW have 10 offices nationwide, and employ 400 people, while Slater & Gordon employs over 800 people in Australia.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .