Law firm Burness Paull is aiming for high visibility at the SPE Offshore Europe (OE) oil and gas show in Aberdeen next week, one of its top team told The Press and Journal.
Bob Ruddiman, its Granite City-based head of energy, highlighted growing confidence among clients and new opportunities emerging as firms transition towards net-zero.
He also pointed to an extra spring in the step of Burness Paul’s lawyers in Aberdeen after their recent move into plush new offices in Marischal Square.
Burness Paull aims to hit the ground running at OE
Looking ahead to OE, taking place at P&J Live from Tuesday to Friday, Mr Ruddiman said the firm aimed to be high profile. It will put up keynote speakers and play a significant role in busness breakfast and other events, with its team on the ground meeting as many people as possible, he added.
The mission next week is to get the message across that decorbonisation requirements and their impact on businesses is “very much part of our story”, Mr Ruddiman said.
He and his team are “match fit” and “turbo charged” after a smooth move into Marischal Square – from Union Plaza, on Union Wynd – last month, he added.
“There’s a sense of purpose,” the lawyer said, adding this was an outward sign of growing confidence around the north-east economy “and all the tentacles that come out of it”.
Burness Paull has nearly 100 people working in or from its Aberdeen office. It now has 14 partners based in the Granite City.
The firm employs more than 670 people, with 89 partners, across its three offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Results announced by Burness Paull yesterday included a 6% jump in turnover, to £83.2 million, during the year to the end of last month. There was a small drop in pre-tax profits, to £35.5m, due to the cost of office relocations in Aberdeen and Glasgow.
The firm said revenue continued to be underpinned by its strengths in corporate finance, real estate, banking and funds, dispute resolution and employment.
It also pointed to benefits flowing from a diversification strategy. Newer and recently strengthened teams in areas including technology, restructuring and insolvency, public law, financial services regulation, cyber and data security, family, private client, and immigration achieved double-digit percentage increases in fee income, the firm said.
‘A good outcome’
“This is a positive set of results,” chairman Peter Lawson said, adding: “To increase turnover and largely maintain profitability in the context of a quieter property and M&A (m,ergers and acquisitions) market is a good outcome. Our divisions have performed well in the face of challenging market dynamics.”
Burness Paull said its new offices in Aberdeen and Glasgow were “significantly more sustainable” and would support the firm’s commitment to achieve net zero by 2030.
Mr Ruddiman said its lawyers played a key role in the recent acquusition of Aberdeen-based energy logistics firm Asco by private equity firm Asco. This and other deals in the pipeline highlight an appetite for investment in the north-east energy sector, he added.
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