The Legal Cheek View
Howard Kennedy is a firm that has emerged from a period of turbulence in relatively strong shape. Founded in spirit by the bold 2013 merger between the corporate-focused Howard Kennedy and the quirkier, media law-leaning Finers Stephens Innocent, what once looked like an improbable mix of practice areas and personalities has been successfully consolidated into a thriving, cohesive outfit.
Financially, the firm has hit a bump. Operating profit has fallen by nearly 19% to £13.5 million, firmwide revenues have dropped 3% to £68.6 million, and profit per equity partner currently sits at £300,000, putting the firm off course to hit its £80 million target. In response, leadership has adopted a tightened strategy, moving away from a full-service offering to focus on a core number of specialisms.
Much of the firm’s success can be attributed to its financial services and real estate departments, while its tech and media practice, fronted by high-profile co-founder Mark Stephens, who has acted for figures such as James Hewitt, Vernon Unsworth and Julian Assange, adds a dash of celebrity sparkle. The real estate and arbitration teams have also been bolstered by the acquisition of construction boutique Corbett & Co, which brought across seven lawyers, including three partners.
Recent work reflects the breadth of the firm’s ambitions. Notable matters include acting for financial services company Lendhub on a £13 million refinancing deal, advising on the buy-back of Pandora Jewellery’s UK franchised business, representing Zelda Perkins (former assistant to Harvey Weinstein), and acting for the British Humanist Association and Witchcraft and Human Rights Information Network on a £500 million claim lodged against them by a preacher. The firm also successfully represented Catherine Waller-Edwards in a landmark Supreme Court undue influence case against One Savings Bank, and advised on the sale of the Westminster London, the largest single-asset hotel deal in the capital in four years.
The firm’s home at 1 London Bridge, overlooking the Thames, is symbolic of its ethos. “The view is the highlight,” says one trainee, with instructions increasingly flowing in from banks, companies and start-ups across the river.
For trainees, the firm offers a solid combination of quality work and a genuinely good work/life balance. “Back in time for Antiques Road Trip,” quips one junior. Another puts it more precisely: “I’m out the door by 7pm at the absolute latest, and a partner once apologised for a call running from 6.30 to 7.30pm, calling it a ‘late one’. Everyone respects commitments outside of work.” That said, insiders acknowledge that some seats, M&A being the obvious example, can bring longer hours when deals near completion.
The quality of work on offer is generally high. “No matter what seat I’ve been in, the team has been keen to get me involved where they can,” one trainee reports. “I’ve been given management of a transaction and my own caseload.” Admin inevitably falls to rookies on occasion, but the balance appears to be about right.
On the technology front, the firm has selected and begun rolling out Jylo, a generative AI-powered document review and marketplace tool first piloted a couple of years ago. WFH provisions are described as decent, and perks include free lunches in the office three times a week, though one junior notes it “would be nice if the menu changed each day.”
The training experience is consistently praised, with sources highlighting “hands-on experience” from being taken to client meetings, mediations and court, alongside “direct client contact” and “a broad variety of work.” Senior lawyers are said to “create an environment where it is easy to ask questions,” while partners remain engaged even when working remotely. “There is no feeling of hierarchy,” one trainee summarises. “All partners are interested and invested in your development, so I feel I can ask them anything.”