London and Birmingham-based law firm AxiomDWFM is to rescue the legal business of the collapsed Ince Group, saving close to 700 jobs.
The Ince Group — once London’s largest listed law firm — announced that it would enter administration earlier this month. The 150-year-old company formerly known as Gordon Dadds Group said a lengthy auditing process, after BDO LLP determined there were “matters outstanding” with its accounts in Hong Kong, put “increasing pressure” on its cash flows.
The Aldgate-headquartered business, which employed over 700 staff and had revenues of over £100 million in the year to March 2021, was at one point the largest listed law firm in the UK.
The deal will only cover the group’s legal arm, which will go by Ince & Co, and not its other business such as financial advisory services. However, a spokesperson said the amount of jobs saved in the acquisition would be close to 700, located around the world.
Donald Brown, CEO of the Ince & Co. legal business, said he was thankful his team had secured new ownership, but also hit out at previous management of the wider group, which he took over the day-to-day operations of after administration.
“This acquisition of the Ince businesses will give the firm, our team and our clients a simple and clear corporate and capital structure under professional, knowledgeable and robust ownership,” he said. “We are underpinned by a group of immensely talented lawyers with deep expertise in our key sectors.
“After taking over the management of the PLC group, it quickly became apparent that we needed to address a series of poorly structured and executed transactions and expansions.”
Existing pay and contracts for Ince employees will be transferred to the new business.
