Nearly a six-pack of ABS…

Taking the total of authorised ABSs to five, this week has seen a number of ABS announcements from the SRA, including the first ABS in Wales and an application for a licence from an Italian firm.

Cardiff-based NewLaw Legal Limited is the fourth ABS firm to be authorised by the SRA, joining three others that were announced at the end of March. It is a personal injury firm, with 250 staff and offices in Cardiff and Glasgow.

Helen Molyneux, chief executive of NewLaw Legal, said: "This is an extremely proud moment for our business. NewLaw was founded in anticipation of the legal services market being opened up to non-lawyer ownership. Since then we have shaped the business to take on a corporate structure in anticipation of this moment." Law Society President John Wotton added: "This is a historic day for Wales as it enters the new era of legal services."

The fifth firm, announced today (27 April), is Russell Jones & Walker, which will be the first foreign-owned ABS, as it has recently been bought by Australian law firm Slater & Gordon. It will also be the first to be part of a stock exchange listed company.

Finally, as reported in Legal Week, Italian firm Pirola Pennuto Zei & Associati is set to become one of the first non-UK law firms to convert to an ABS. It has applied for a licence, which will allow the accountants and lawyers in its London partnership to share revenues and profits.