As part of its strategy to take a larger share of the UK legal market, Shoosmiths is to open an office in Leeds.
Two new partners have been announced as the first appointments to the new office, which will be Shoosmiths’ eleventh. They are employment specialists Simon Robinson and Phil Crowe, who join the firm from Gordons.
Shoosmiths chief executive Claire Rowe said: “Although we already advise clients based in Yorkshire, this new office will enable us to develop more work from some of the largest national and international corporates in that region. We plan to create a Northern hub of legal expertise for Shoosmiths’ clients with our Leeds and Manchester offices working closely together and anticipate recruiting specialists in key fields including corporate, real estate and commercial disciplines to help us fulfil that goal.”
In recent years Shoosmiths has opened new offices in Manchester and Edinburgh as a result of client demand. Its Manchester office was opened in 2008 with the recruitment of a team of six and now has over 150 people, and the Edinburgh office was established as a result of a merger with Archibald Campbell & Harley in 2012. The firm has not yet set a confirmed date for the office opening, but said it would be late 2016.