Oxford: Law firm Knights acquires Darbys Solicitors

Knights Professional Services has acquired Darbys Solicitors underpinning its position as the fastest-growing commercial law firm in the UK and one of the top-70 law firms, with a projected turnover of £40 million.

Knights now employs more than 300 professionals across seven offices in Stoke on Trent, Chester, Cheltenham, Derby, Hale, Oxford and Colchester, and on February 8 it announces its commitment to recruit 100 new professionals in 2016, 50 of whom will be based in Oxford.

The acquisition was principally funded with the backing of Allied Irish Bank (AIB) (GB) which, in the past 18 months, has become Knights’ established banking partner. It further builds on AIB’s support of key transactions, including consolidations, in the legal sector.

The acquisition is seen as one of the biggest transactions within the regional legal scene in the past 12 months, and it creates one of the largest independent professional services firms in the UK.

David Beech, CEO at Knights, said: “This is our largest acquisition to date. Regional accountancy groups, tax specialists and real estate advisory organisations located outside of the major cities of Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, are our main focus.”