PwC plans to expand legal services

Leading consultancy PwC is planning to become a major legal services firm within the next five years.

Leon Flavell, the head of PwC Legal, told The Lawyer, the company is set to become one of the top 20 global legal services players before 2020.

He added the division is planning to increase its revenue to around $1 billion – double its 2013 income – as it expands into new markets in Asia and Africa.

“There’s a strong appetite among PricewaterhouseCoopers’ global network for significant investment in legal services,” said Mr Flavell.

“Our ambition is to become a leading global legal services business in terms of quality and quantity and both in each of the local markets and globally.”

PwC Legal has already made a number of moves in recent months to expand its operations. At the start of the year it gained an ABS licence from the Law Society and two weeks ago acquired Canada-based immigration law form Bomza Law Group.

It is expected PwC Legal will further expand in to Asia and Africa markets, where there appears to be strong potential for new business as demand for legal services grows.

Mr Flavell explained: “This largely to do with businesses coming out from countries such as China and Japan requiring legal services support in Europe as well as global companies looking to have help from us on the ground in many emerging markets, such as China and Indonesia.”

However, he stressed acquisitions would be strategic and form the basis of long-term growth.

At present the largest fee earning regions for PwC are in Spain, Germany and the UK and it is understood these would remain a key focus, although it is likely new job opportunities could be created for in-house legal professionals and tax ligation experts.

Overall, PwC offers legal services in 83 different countries and employs nearly 2,500 lawyers.

Corporate legal jobs at Barclay Simpson.