Market monitor

The slow recovery of Co-operative Legal Services remains on track after it announced a “small underlying profit” of £200,000 for the first six months of 2015. In the same period last year, the poster-child of alternative business structures recorded a £5.1m loss.

Two listed companies that own significant alternative business structures – Redde and Fairpoint – both announced strong results to the stock exchange today. Turnover at accident management group Redde, which owns NewLaw Solicitors, was up 26% to £249m, while gross profit nearly doubled to £23m.

National chambers Clerksroom has announced a partnership with a not-for-profit business that describes itself as the biggest multi-sector ombudsman in the UK, to provide commercial dispute resolution services for up to 10,000 businesses. It could be the biggest mediation opportunity to arise in the UK to date.

Slater & Gordon has “a commanding market share lead” in the UK, its managing director claimed today as the Australian-listed law firm announced a 27% in annual revenues to £243m. Its ever-expanding UK operation contributed £121m of this.

A firm of accountants based in rural East Anglia has become an alternative business structure regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Churchgate Accountants said the move was in response to demand from clients, including farmers.

The listed company that owns NewLaw Solicitors is to acquire a fleet accident management group that itself has a joint venture alternative business structure with NewLaw. Redde has agreed to acquire the FMG group of companies for approximately £43.2m.

Fairpoint plc’s acquisition of Colemans-ctts has formally completed, meaning legal services now accounts for 62% of the company’s revenue. The deal, first announced at the start of the month, is structured as an acquisition by Simpson Millar, the law firm Fairpoint bought last year to enter the legal market.

A global legal outsourcing brand has launched an alternative business structure to add legal services to its motor claims business. WNS, based in Mumbai, has delivery centres across the world.

The agreement between Slater & Gordon’s professional services division (PSD) and the country’s biggest high street insurance broker has come to an end just months after it signed a multi-year renewal.

A former high-flying banker, who worked at Lehman Brothers before the crash, has told Legal Futures how he developed a plan to set up a pioneering alternative business structure while travelling in Vietnam. Zahid Hussein said he wants Z Group to be an integrated one-stop shop for SMEs.

In its first trading statement since listing on AIM last month, national law firm Gateley said that it expects its 2014/15 revenue to rise 10% on the previous 12 months. Meanwhile, the listing “shows a new way forward in opening up the market through flexible regulatory practice”, the SRA said yesterday.

A mutual marine liability insurer covering the smaller vessel sector has launched an alternative business structure to service member and non-member clients, with the object of reducing claims and not generating profit.

An ambitious Merseyside practice has obtained an alternative business structure licence as part of plans to start a round-the-clock “concierge service for SMEs”, and to kick-start its overseas expansion into southern Spain, targeting the British ex-pat community.

North-west personal injury firm Thorneycroft Solicitors has been granted an alternative business structure licence by the Solicitors Regulation Authority as part of a major restructuring of its operations.

A major international consultancy specialising in research and development grants and tax credits has launched an alternative business structure to offer a wider range of employment law services to its SME clients.