Pinsent Masons has posted a 7.2% drop in profit per equity partner (PEP) for the 2026 financial year, against a 3.3% rise in revenue to £703m.
PEP fell to £740k, having hovered at just below £800k for the previous two financial years after gains of 8% and 16% respectively in FY23 and FY22.
The results come amid a mixed picture emerging this financial reporting season that has seen a number of firms post modest gains in revenue and flat or reduced PEP even as others, including Pinsents' rivals Simmons & Simmons and Ashurst, have recorded double-digit gains across both metrics.
Pinsents' managing partner, Laura Cameron, said the firm had focused on "investing in our people, premises and technology" in FY26.
Over the course of the year, the firm opened an office in Warsaw with a six-partner team hired from rivals including CMS and Dentons, launched an international delivery centre in Cape Town and formed a joint venture with China Commercial Law firm, one of China's top corporate law firms.
It also moved to new premises in Manchester, Glasgow and Sydney and "invested heavily in our technology platforms through the development of proprietary technologies in-house and in collaboration with vendors", Cameron said.
That included rolling out Legora across the firm and the launch of real estate transactions tool REcapture and Portana, an M&A due diligence product.
Pinsents promoted 23 to partner and made 27 lateral hires over the course of the year, among them Ashurst's equity capital markets practice chief, Nicholas Holmes, who joined from legacy Ashurst in the City in October last year, alongside Dinesh Banani, who joined from HSF Kramer as head of its US securities team. It also added veteran Travers Smith restructuring partner Edward Smith in London last September.
Key mandates included advising long-time client Huel on its €1bn sale to food and beverage giant Danone and Poundland's restructuring. It also acted for Royal London Asset Management Property on its £197m acquisition of industrial estate Fradley Park and AIM-listed Idox on its £340m takeover by US investment firm Long Path Partners.
Andrew Masraf, senior partner, commented: “Our investments this year demonstrate our commitment to the core components of our strategy – sharpening our market focus, scaling our delivery models and deepening our presence in the areas where our clients need us most."
Masraf will stand down as senior partner later this year at the end of his first term, following a contested election that saw John Maciver, head of Pinsents' financial services sector, named as his successor. GLP understands Masraf had sought to extend his term for a further four years.
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