Irwin Mitchell
No of Partners: 111
No of Assistant Solicitors: 238
www.imonline.co.uk
To view the list of current vacancies at Irwin Mitchell, please click here.
Irwin Mitchell is perhaps more famous for its personal injury, class action and clinical negligence prowess, but in Leeds it is developing a corporate and commercial practice that hopes to win the lion’s share of the market being left behind by the big six.
The firm, which originated in Sheffield, 40 miles south of Leeds, established its Leeds presence in 1995 through merger with Teeman Levine.
At the time, the then managing partner, Howard Culley, described the market as the “lion's den”. However, its plans received a bit of a setback in 2002 when Cobbetts took a team of one corporate partner and an associate from Irwin Mitchell to kickstart its merger with Reed Hind Stewart. Despite this, the office has grown to 290 staff and now has a comfortable position in the city’s mid-market, concentrating on high-end SMEs and smaller Plcs. It has also scored some notable recent successes in luring partners away from local rivals Pinsent Masons and McCormicks as it builds its corporate/commercial practice in Leeds.
Leeds managing partner, David Knaggs, points out that the firm is the largest full-service firm in the country, although as he adds, one with a regional focus. In Leeds, the firm now describes its strongest practice areas as corporate, commercial, IT and employment. It also emphasises that the practices Irwin Mitchell has a national reputation for – high profile personal injury, clinical negligence and insurance work – are also strong in the Leeds office and will continue to grow. “Because of the national reputation of these practices, we maybe have not flown that banner high enough in this city” he says.
As it approaches the tenth anniversary of its debut in the city, Irwin Mitchell has taken on more office space and has plans to expand its headcount, with corporate, employment and property lawyers top of its list.
“We are looking for people who are client-facing, with the legal skills to provide a good service and the entrepreneurial skills to grow the business” Knaggs says. “We have a good track record of promoting people to partnership from within, so we are looking for motivated, enthusiastic people who want to grow Irwin Mitchell’s business.”
To view the list of current vacancies at Irwin Mitchell, please click here.
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