Shepherd and Wedderburn

Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP
Limited liability partnership
Industry Commercial law
Founded Edinburgh, 1922 (1922)
Founder Joseph Wedderburn and Alfred Shepherd
Headquarters Edinburgh (HQ), Glasgow, Aberdeen and London
Area served
 Scotland and UK
Services Legal advice
Revenue £48m (2015)
Website www.shepwedd.co.uk

Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP is a leading commercial law firm, headquartered in Edinburgh, with offices in Glasgow, Aberdeen and London.[1]

The firm delivers multi-jurisdictional legal advice across every business sector, as well as private client and wealth management services. Among its clients are FTSE 100 blue-chips, AIM companies, large SMEs and public service organisations.

In 2014, Shepherd and Wedderburn was listed in The Lawyer UK 200 as the fifty-ninth largest firm in the UK[2] and is classed as one of the regional heavyweights for Scotland by independent legal directory Legal 500.[3]

History

The firm came into being in 1922 when Joseph Wedderburn of Carment Wedderburn & Watson WS entered a partnership with Alfred Shepherd of Guild & Shepherd WS.[4]

The acquisition of Scottish IFA firm Muirfield in October 2012 saw the launch of Shepherd and Wedderburn’s independent financial adviser practice, known today as Shepherd and Wedderburn Financial.

In October 2014, Shepherd and Wedderburn acquired 158-year-old Scottish law firm Tods Murray out of administration. The firm now has a total headcount of 500, including 79 partners.

Shepherd and Wedderburn's Chief Executive Stephen Gibb was appointed in May 2012.

Services

The practice is focused on three key sectors: Energy and Natural Resources, Real Estate and Infrastructure and Financial Services. The firm's specialist lawyers also advise on commercial issues in Food and Drink, Hospitality and Leisure, Pharma and Life Sciences and Public Sector.[5]

It is rated by legal directory Chambers and Partners as a Band 1 firm for Energy & Natural Resources: Renewables & Alternative Energy, Real Estate, Employee Share Schemes & Incentives, Competition Law, Corporate/M&A, Planning, and Restructuring and Insolvency.[6]

The Legal 500 ranks Shepherd and Wedderburn as a first tier firm for Energy (excluding oil and gas), Property Litigation, Corporate and Commercial: EU and Competition, Insolvency and Corporate Recovery, Pensions, Edinburgh and Glasgow Commercial Property, Environment, Planning, Leisure and Hospitality, and Intellectual Property, and as one of the Scotland region's first tier firms.[7]

Financial Performance

In June 2015, Shepherd and Wedderburn reported its best ever financial results, with turnover growing by 26 per cent to £48m, whilst profits increased to £18m for the financial year ending 30 April 2015.

Organic growth alone delivered results which surpassed those achieved in any of the firm’s successful pre-recession years. Turnover increased by 26 per cent in real estate and infrastructure, 21 per cent in financial services and 18 per cent in energy and natural resources. Strong performances were not only achieved by its core divisions but the firm experienced growth across all practice areas.

Throughout the financial year (2014/15), Shepherd and Wedderburn’s corporate team advised on 92 deals with a cumulative value of £5.2bn, which translated into a 24 per cent increase in revenue on the prior year.[8]

International Work

Shepherd and Wedderburn serves clients in 92 jurisdictions and expanding international revenues account for circa ten per cent of total turnover.

The firm’s international activity is supported by an extensive conference participation programme and global membership networks, such as the Energy Law Group and the Anglo American Real Property Institute (AARPI). Shepherd and Wedderburn is a founding member of the World Services Group, which enables the firm to respond to clients’ needs swiftly and effectively anywhere in the world.

Community

Shepherd and Wedderburn is a founder member of LawWorks Scotland, which has been established to co-ordinate, develop and encourage the provision of pro bono legal services by solicitors in private practice and in-house and university law schools in Scotland. Since August 2011, Shepherd and Wedderburn volunteers have contributed over 1,100 hours and assisted more than 179 Citizens Advice Bureau clients.

The firm is also a member of PRIME, an initiative founded to ensure fair access to quality work experience for school-age students from diverse backgrounds across the UK. Shepherd and Wedderburn provides work experience placements across the legal profession - not solely focused on the role of lawyers, but also functions like Finance, IT, Human Resources, Marketing and Business Development - showing the different career paths available.[9]

Awards

Numerous awards have recognised the achievements of Shepherd and Wedderburn and its lawyers. Recent accolades include:

External links

References

  1. ↑ "Contact". Shepherd and Wedderburn.
  2. ↑ "UK 200 Rankings". The Lawyer. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  3. ↑ "Regional Heavyweights". The Legal 500. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  4. ↑ MacQueen, Hector Lewis, Lawyers' Edinburgh 1908-2008 (March 14, 2010). Book of the Old Edinburgh Club (new series), Vol. 8, pp. 27-53, 2010; University of Edinburgh School of Law Working Paper No. 2010/07. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1570626
  5. ↑ "What we do". Shepherd and Wedderburn. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  6. ↑ "Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP Chambers & Partners Rankings". Chambers & Partners. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  7. ↑ "Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP Legal 500 Rankings". The Legal 500. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  8. ↑ "Shepherd and Wedderburn Chief Executive "delighted" at results". Shepherd and Wedderburn. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  9. ↑ "About PRIME". Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  10. ↑ "Young Professionals Green Energy Award Winners 2015". Scottish Renewables. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  11. ↑ "Shepherd and Wedderburn wins Competition Team of the Year award". The Lawyer. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  12. ↑ "Scottish Legal Award Winners". KDMedia Public Relations & Events. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  13. ↑ "Shepherd and Wedderburn – SBC’s Employee Volunteering Team of the Year 2013". Scottish Business in the Community. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
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