Burness Paull has reported its results for the financial year ended 31 March 2025, during which there was a change of leadership at the firm that saw Mark Ellis assume the role of managing partner midway through the year.

Turnover for the year was £93.5m (2023/24: £60.1m*) and profit was £35.9m (2023/24: £24.3m*) as the firm made investments in support of a new three-year strategic growth plan and to ensure clients receive the highest quality advice amid ongoing economic uncertainty.

During the period, the firm made four lateral partner hires to extend and strengthen service lines – Emma Paton (planning), Claire Scott (employment), Douglas Blyth (dispute resolution) and Scott Duncan (construction and projects) – and established a dedicated US corporate immigration offering with the recruitment of Olivia McLaren, a specialist US immigration attorney, as head of US immigration.

These appointments come on top of a raft of promotions effective from the start of the new financial year, including five new partners, as the firm prepares for further expansion in key areas and continues to invest in developing homegrown talent.

Burness Paull also recently announced the appointment of Noel Jordan as the firm’s first chief operating officer. Noel, previously chief technology officer at Ashurst and IT director at GE Capital International, will sit on the operations board with responsibility for the firm’s business services and legal operations functions.

Notable client mandates for the year – which saw Burness Paull named UK corporate law firm of the year at the Insider Media UK Dealmakers Awards – included advising:

• AIM-listed i3 Energy on its takeover by Gran Tierra Energy in a deal valued at £174m;
• Dobbies Garden Centres on Scotland’s first contentious restructuring plan;
• the Spence family on the sale of Aberdeen’s Marcliffe Hotel to Balmoral Group;
• Springfield Properties in relation to its partnership with Barratt to deliver a new village settlement of 3,000 homes at Durieshill on the outskirts of Stirling;
• the Scottish Football Association on the sale of UK and international broadcasting rights; and
• On the financing of the 1.1-gigawatt Inch Cape offshore wind farm and the 81-megawatt Pencloe onshore wind project.

Peter Lawson, chair at Burness Paull, said: “A solid year of trading saw growth across all key practice areas, with our corporate M&A, energy, banking and funds, disputes, employment, cyber, and restructuring and insolvency teams performing particularly well.

“This is testament to the hard work of everyone right across the firm and we thank them for their commitment to ensuring our clients receive the highest quality advice.

“When Mark took over as managing partner, we initiated the most rigorous business planning exercise we have ever undertaken as a firm. The result was a refined three-year strategy beginning the 2025/26 financial year that, combined with the investments we have made in our people and infrastructure, offers us a clear roadmap for sustainable, profitable growth over the long term.

“We are already seeing the benefits of the new strategy through a strong start to the current financial year, which has seen us win instructions from across Scotland, the UK and internationally.

“It remains a dynamic business environment characterised by increased levels of investor confidence and transactional activity due to falling interest rates, paired with caution around cost pressures and volatility in global trade policy. We are grateful for the trust our clients place in us to help them make business-critical decisions and further their ambitions in this evolving commercial landscape.”

*2023/24 was a shortened eight-month reporting period for Burness Paull after the firm decided to change its year-end following HMRC’s basis period reforms and to align with market norms.