Archibald Campbell & Harley in tie up with Shoosmiths

Edinburgh law firm Archibald Campbell & Harley is to merge with English law firm Shoosmiths providing it with its first office in Scotland.

Archibald Campbell & Harvey which was founded more than 100 years ago is the latest in a series of Scottish law firms to merge with firms south of the border.

Last month Scots firm McGrigors merged with Pinsent Masons and Biggart Baillie have recently announced a merger with DWF. Bristol based TLT is due to merge with Scottish firm Anderson Fiyfe next month.

Shoosmiths. which has eight offices in England, is a top 40 national law firm.

The new business will be known in Scotland as ACH Shoosmiths, and the merger will go through in the autumn subject to regulatory approval.

Shoosmiths chairman Andrew Tubbs said: “Clients have been telling us for some time that they wished we had a presence north of the border, and this is us responding to their wishes.

“In Archibald Campbell & Harley we’ve a perfect fit, in both business and cultural terms. We share clients and there’s crossover in practice areas, particularly real estate, retail, litigation and financial recoveries.

“Opportunities will be created north and south of the border through cross-referral of both firms’ existing clients, and as a result of Shoosmiths’ ability to offer a true UK-wide service to national clients and prospects.

Archibald Campbell & Harley chief executive Rod Macphail said: “We voted unanimously to merge with Shoosmiths, and Andrew Tubbs quite rightly describes this as an excellent fit, with us having both client connections and strong similarities in the way we go about business. This merger is a logical extension of an existing well established relationship across all areas of our practice and as such provides a ready made platform for our ambitious plans for growth.

“We are very excited here as we embark on the consolidation of a relationship that will see ACH Shoosmiths grow and develop in Scotland, in what will be a careful and considered manner.

“It’s all about long-term development and a desire for us both to meet client demand by servicing their multi-jurisdiction legal needs.” 

Archibald Campbell & Harley is a commercial law firm, founded more than 100 years ago and based in Edinburgh with 65 Partners and staff advising on a wide range of matters including banking and finance, commercial property, corporate, debt recovery, dispute resolution, employment, insolvency and restructuring, and private client work.

Shoosmiths has offices in Basingstoke, Birmingham, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Northampton, Nottingham, Reading, and Southampton. The newest – Manchester – opened in 2009 with a financial services focus and six employees, and which is now close to full service with more than 70 staff.