Woolham: Selective acquisitions
Leading personal injury (PI) firm Minster Law aims to more than double its turnover to £100m in five years, with a new office in London and acquisitions on the horizon.
The Wakefield-based practice – part of insurance giant BHL, which also owns comparethemarket.com – today announced turnover up 16% to £43m for the year to 30 June 2025, with profit after tax of £2.6m, compared £354,000 in the prior year.
Headcount rose 14% to 549 full-time equivalents, driven largely by growth in the serious injury team, which grew by over 25% to around 250 people.
Serious injury case volumes increased by over 27% and secured damages for the year exceeded £86m.
Chief executive Shirley Woolham said the firm’s return to profit was a sign that the road traffic PI sector “is not dead”, despite the huge changes forced on the sector in recent years.
Minster Law’s success was driven by “long-term business partner contracts” – predominantly with insurers and brokers – “and an engine that enables us to do any kind of claim”. That also allowed it to handle volume.
The plan was to hit a turnover of £100m by 2030, through both organic growth and “selective” acquisitions.
“We want to speak to vendors looking for a good home for serious injury books and talent,” she said.
With the experience of acquiring Irwin Mitchell’s fast-track practice in 2021, Ms Woolham told Legal Futures that cultural fit was important and the integration challenge meant she was not looking for lots of small deals.
The firm has its own funding lines to support these growth ambitions in near term, she said – it also has net assets of £49m – while BGL has “investment capability” too.
Minster has historically focused on motor-related claims, from whiplash cases in the Official Injury Claim portal to catastrophic injuries. But with volumes declining to new lows, Ms Woolham said it was now applying its model to employer’s and public liability claims too.
At the same time, the fact that the number of claims had fallen so much was also indicative of unmet need, she added, calling on the sector to start talking more positively about its strength and attractiveness.
Further, a London office would be opened shortly. This would tap into the jobs market around the capital and bring the firm closer to its insurer clients.
It would also ensure that its lawyers were never more than two hours away from serious injury clients in the south. More offices would open to cover other areas, she said, as face-to-face availability was important for such clients.
Ian Leech, chief executive of BHL (UK) Holdings, said: “The business is well positioned, with a clear direction and a management team that has consistently delivered against its objectives.
“As shareholders, our role is to take a long-term view give the business the backing it needs, both in terms of working capital and investment, to continue developing a market-leading proposition for customers and partners. We are confident in the strategy being pursued and excited about the next phase of growth.”
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