Shepherd and Wedderburn was this morning named Regional/Offshore Firm of the Year in the Legal Business Awards.

Now in their 23rd year, the Legal Business Awards, run by Legal Business magazine, recognise the achievements of lawyers working in the UK and overseas.

The Regional/Offshore award recognises the achievements of the UK-based regional or offshore firm (with headquarters outside London) that has made the most significant progress over the past year in advancing its strategy. The key factors taken into account are evidence of effective leadership, impressive financial performance and increased market share.

The judges’ decision was informed by research carried out by Legal Business, Legal 500 and independent legal experts into the quality of legal services, sustained growth and new business wins.

Commenting on Shepherd and Wedderburn’s performance, the judging panel, comprising more than 20 leading individuals from the legal sector, commented: “[Shepherd and Wedderburn’s] five-year revenue and profit growth of 51% and 61% respectively is striking…

“The firm is much more than an efficient client-service machine: it is also a thought leader and a ground-breaker in its own community. It published Scotland in 2050: Realising Our Global Potential, a report commissioned to coincide with the firm’s 250th anniversary to help best position the Scottish economy for the future, and a series of follow-up political engagement events attended by more than 400 leading figures from the private, public and third sectors, and representatives of the UK and Scottish governments. It also became the only Scottish-headquartered law firm in the inaugural list of the UK’s top 25 legal employers for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender staff, published by Stonewall and the InterLaw Diversity Forum as part of Stonewall’s annual Workplace Equality Index.”

Andrew Blain, Shepherd and Wedderburn’s Managing Partner, said: “We are honoured to have received this award, which recognises our achievements as an independent law firm delivering high quality services to our clients.

“I would like to congratulate the other firms shortlisted in this category, thank our clients for continuing to put their trust in us, and say how proud I am of my colleagues across the business for the remarkable resilience, commitment and adaptability they have shown, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The quality of our lawyers and the depth of our expertise across all our practice areas and sector groups positions us well to grow our business as we emerge from the pandemic. We will continue to look to invest in talent and technology and to seize the opportunities that present themselves this year, with a particular focus on our market-leading clean energy practice, which is working with clients to help accelerate a green recovery.”