Addleshaw Goddard
A guide to the law firm Addleshaw Goddard: what it’s best known for, recent work highlights, what it pays, and its revenue and profitability.
Last updated:
December 10, 2024
A guide to the law firm Addleshaw Goddard: what it’s best known for, recent work highlights, what it pays, and its revenue and profitability.
Addleshaw Goddard is an international law firm based in the UK.
Along with the likes of Pinsent Masons and Eversheds Sutherland (pre-merger at least), the firm is known as one the UK’s most prominent national players with a large network of offices in cities across the UK. From that national base, the firm has expanded internationally over the last 15 years.
Addleshaw Goddard originated from a series of mergers tracing back to the 18th century, ultimately culminating in its namesake merger between Manchester-based Addleshaw Booth & Co and London-based Theodore Goddard in 2003.
The combination was seen as an important strategic move to help Addleshaw Booth win more high-profile City-based clients and to build out its corporate and finance practices. At the time, it was still very much a national firm with key offices in Manchester and Leeds and only a small office in London.
Since the merger, Addleshaw Goddard focused on expanding its international reach like many of its rivals. In 2012, the firm opened offices in Singapore, Dubai, Hong Kong, Oman and Qatar, and in 2019 the firm opened its first offices in continental Europe in Hamburg and Paris.
Today, Addleshaw Goddard has more than 1,700 lawyers, including 390 partners, operating in 18 offices across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
Addleshaw Goddard is seen as a national firm with international reach. While truly a full service firm across a broad range of practice areas, it is probably best known for its strong real estate practice, and its corporate and finance work on mid-market deals.
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Recent deal and industry highlights for Addleshaw Goddard include:
Applied Nutrition's £400 million IPO: In October 2024, Addleshaw Goddard advised UK sports supplement maker Applied Nutrition on its £400 million IPO on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. The float was one of the biggest IPOs of the year in the UK.
Sale of BT Tower: In February 2024, Addleshaw Goddard advised BT Group on the sale of the iconic BT Tower in London to US group MCR Hotels for £275m.
Diageo Rum Takeover: Addleshaw Goddard advised Diageo on the purchase of premium rum brand Don Papa from Bleeding Heart Rum Company in a €400 million deal in January 2023.
On-Demand Legal Services: Addleshaw Goddard has a contract lawyer service known as ‘AG Integrate’. The flexible lawyer service enables clients to access additional legal support on demand to help solve resourcing challenges. The firm says the service has over 40 FTSE-listed companies as clients.
Most Digital Law Firm In Europe: In 2023, Addleshaw Goddard was named as the ‘Most Digital Law Firm In Europe’ at the FT Innovative Lawyer Awards.
Addleshaw Goddard is a full service corporate law firm. Its clients include companies, financial institutions, and public bodies.
It is one of the UK’s leading law firms at a national level and its UK offices are highly-rated across a broad range of practice areas for their work in their respective regions (e.g North West, North East, Scotland).
When it comes to ‘City work’, it is best known for its expertise in the following areas:
Corporate/M&A: Addleshaw Goddard is known for having a leading mid-market M&A practice. The firm has a long list of FTSE-listed clients, including 51 FTSE 100 companies. It is particularly strong in the energy, real estate and financial services sectors. The firm is ranked in Band 2 by Chambers for mid-market M&A deals.
Banking and Finance: Addleshaw Goddard has a well-regarded finance practice, noted for its lender-side advice on a range of mid-market deals. It is particularly noted for its real estate finance work and project finance work. It has a Band 3 ranking by Chambers on mid-market deals.
Real Estate and Construction: Addleshaw Goddard has a highly-regarded full service real estate practice, advising across matters including investment transactions, portfolio management, construction, planning and disputes. The firm is ranked in Band 3 by Chambers for £150 million+ real estate deals, and it has a Band 2 ranking for both contentious and non-contentious construction work.
We use Chambers rankings to demonstrate a firm's strengths. Chambers is the most highly-regarded provider of law firm rankings in the legal industry. Law firms are ranked in bands from 1 (highest) to 6 (lowest) across a range of practice areas.
It's important to note that being ranked in any band at all is still considered a significant achievement.
Addleshaw Goddard is a 'mid-market' firm with a large International presence and strong roots in the domestic UK market. It competes with the likes of Eversheds Sutherland, Pinsent Masons and Stephenson Harwood.
Here’s what Addleshaw Goddard pays its London trainees and newly qualified (NQ) lawyers:
Trainee First Year: £52,000
Trainee Second Year: £56,000
Newly Qualified (NQ): £100,000
We have a list of salaries paid by all of the UK’s top law firms here.
Addleshaw Goddard is the 19th biggest law firm in the UK by revenue. In 2023, its revenue was £443 million.
The firm does not disclose its profit per equity partner (PEP) but it is estimated to be £909,000.
In 2023, Addleshaw Goddard’s average profit per equity partner (PEP) was estimated to be £909,000.
This is the total amount of profit available for distribution among equity partners, divided by the number of equity partners at the firm.
This represents the average amount that equity partners are entitled to. Some will receive significantly more, some less. It depends on the firm’s profit-sharing formula and each partner’s seniority.
Addleshaw Goddard takes on around 70 trainees each year in the UK and Ireland.
Trainees complete four seats in different departments, each lasting six months.
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