Shoosmiths has reported record financial results for the 2024/25 financial year, growing profit per equity partner by 30% to exceed £1m for the first time against a 5% rise in revenue. 

The firm’s PEP hit £1.01m as turnover rose to £217.2m, marking a decade of continuous growth. Meanwhile the firm’s net profit growth accelerated from 5% in 2023/24 to 16% last year, reaching £76.6m. 

Shoosmiths said the results were grounded in its strategy to be a leading upper mid-market law firm, serving clients nationally and internationally, by 2030. It added that it has awarded around £3.5m through its firmwide collegiate bonus pool this year, with all 1,300 eligible colleagues to receive a 5% salary bonus next month in recognition of their contribution to the firm’s success.

“We’ve been clear about where we think we can add most value to our clients, and as a result they’ve trusted us with more of their business-critical work in those areas,” said Shoosmiths’ CEO, David Jackson.

“The results speak to the power of staying focused on what matters, not chasing growth for growth’s sake, and backing ourselves to deliver outstanding results. Our challenge now is to build on this momentum, to stay ambitious, stay curious and keep finding better ways to support the people and businesses we serve,” Jackson added.

The firm reported a standout year across its core practice areas of corporate, real estate and litigation. The corporate team closed more than £10.4bn in deals – the busiest year in its history. Highlights included advising FOSROC on its $1.25bn sale to Saint-Gobain and Hipgnosis Songs Fund on its $1.6bn takeover from private equity investor Blackstone. 

Meanwhile the firm’s 400-strong real estate team advised on a record £1.5bn in investment transactions, including acting for real estate investor Feldberg Capital on the formation of Origin – an ESG-led £1bn industrial and logistics platform launched in partnership with developer HBD. Highlights for the litigation team included acting for Tulip Trading in relation to the ownership of digital assets used by Bitcoin, and for Liberty, Lancashire and other insurers following the loss of aircraft as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Over the course of the year the firm added 17 partners through lateral hires and internal promotions to support its 2030 strategy, among them Dominic Farnsworth and Leigh Smith who joined at the helm of a six-strong IP team from Locke Lord. It also hired a trio of partners across M&A, employment and data privacy regulation from BCLP – Kurt Ma, Adam Lambert and Kate Brimsted.

The firm also rolled out a new talent framework to offer transparent career pathways and specialised training to its staff and said it was increasingly organising itself around its priority sectors of technology, mobility, living, financial services and energy and infrastructure. 

Looking to innovation, Shoosmiths launched a £1m bonus pool tied to the collective generation of one million Microsoft Copilot prompts in what it claimed was a first for the legal industry. Shoosmiths EIGHT, the firm’s innovation hub, also launched AI Comply, a tool for managing compliance with emerging AI regulations.