Macfarlanes’ net profit and profit per equity partner (PEP) plummeted in the last financial year, with PEP down 17 per cent to £1.29m.
Profit was down 8.8 per cent to £74.5m, while revenue just inched up to £161m, a rise of 0.8 per cent.
The disappointing results follow a strong year previously when PEP jumped nearly 30 per cent to £1.55m, marking a record year for the firm and the UK legal market at the time.
Net profit was up 26.4 per cent to £81.7m that year while revenue climbed 14.2 per cent to £159.7m.
Despite the numbers dropping in 2015/15, the figures represent an overall growth for Macfarlanes over the last two years. Compared to the 2013/14 financial year, revenue is up 15.2 per cent; profits are up 15.3 per cent; and PEP has grown by 7.6 per cent.
Senior partner Charles Martin told The Lawyer: “Our results for the last financial year represent a good team performance and a busy year across the practice.
“The previous year was a record high that we predicted would be a spike for our results but the overall trend is positive and that is what counts.
“Last year saw us invest in our people and do great work across the firm including leading roles in the largest public deal (SAB Miller) and the largest private deal (Visa) in Europe.”
Macfarlanes promoted six lawyers to its partnership in 2016 across its litigation, corporate and tax practices. It also upped associate pay to £71,000 earlier this year, also increasing NQ pay to between £77,000 and £79,000.