London-headquartered Stephenson Harwood has attributed falls in revenue and profits after a record 2025 to volatility in disputes work.
Revenue dipped by 2% to £303m in 2025/6 while profit fell back by 12% to £105m from last year’s record figure of £120m.
Last year, profit-per-equity partner (PEP) hit £1m. The firm declined to give a PEP figure for this year.
CEO Eifion Morris said: “Following three consecutive years of double‑digit growth, our revenue dipped this year and is slightly below last year’s record level.
“Four years ago, when we launched our strategy, our revenue was just over £200m. Since then, we’ve grown by an average of more than 10% a year. We are a larger, stronger and more international firm than we were in 2022.”
The firm’s disputes practice secured an important appellate win earlier this year, with partner Genevieve Hardy leading a team in the UK Supreme Court in the Saxon Wood litigation, while it has litigated various interchange fee claims in the Competition Appeal Tribunal to settlement or decision in previous years.
Morris explained: “A significant part of our business is disputes work, including major class actions. On these matters we use a range of fee arrangements, including success‑based fees. That is often the right approach for our clients, but it does mean our revenue and profit will fluctuate depending on when cases conclude.”
Morris, however, was upbeat about future performance, with the firm making 40 lateral hires since the beginning of 2025, and 23 partner promotions (12 last year and 11 this year), the majority made in London.
Some 32 of the firm’s lateral hires have been secured since May, including nine partners who joined in June when the firm launched its new Madrid office. However, the firm lost a five-strong private client team, including two partners, to rivals Charles Russell Speechley in Hong Kong in May.
Morris said the firm was focused on the longer term, with the hires acting as investments in key international markets, especially EMEA.
“We opened offices in Saudi Arabia, relocated in Greece and took the steps to launch in Madrid. We’ve also continued to grow our international partnerships. The decisions we are making now will leave the firm in a stronger position in the years ahead," he explained.
“Our ambition is to build the leading European, Middle Eastern and Asian law firm. Unlike many peer firms, we’ve ruled out a merger with a US law firm. Our commitment is to offer our clients and our people an alternative to the transatlantic law firm model. Alongside organic growth, we are also looking at opportunities that can deepen our capabilities and help us get there faster.”
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