
Law firm Kennedys is moving into Leeds after acquiring the insurance division of Langleys Solicitors.
The Leeds office, located on 6 Queen Street, is the firm’s second in Yorkshire, 12th in the UK and 42nd globally. It will be led by David Thompson, who was a partner and head of insurance at Langleys.
Joining Thompson at Kennedys are partners Huw Edwards, Laura Collins and Carol Dalton, along with 32 team heads, lawyers and staff from Langleys’s insurance team.
Richard West, partner and head of liability at Kennedys, says the new Leeds office increases the size of the personal injury division at the firm, “expanding our practice further with an experienced and well-regarded team whose culture fits closely with our own”.
West continues: “I am delighted that David, Huw, Laura and Carol will join the Kennedys liability Division at a time of exciting growth and continued success.”
“It has been a pleasure to get to know them, to regard them so quickly as our friends—and to receive such wonderful feedback from clients and the market about their move to Kennedys. I am very much looking forward to working alongside them.”
West says Leeds “is recognised as a hub for insurance work” and Kennedys sees opportunities to expand its legal and claims handling team as a result of the arrival of Thompson and his team.
Thompson says: “Kennedys has a first-class reputation in insurance, as well as an incredible global reach. The depth of the firm’s expertise, its culture and its market leading innovation through Kennedys IQ will be very attractive to our clients.”
“It puts us in an excellent position to further grow our practice from our new base in Leeds. Many of our clients already work with Kennedys so I know that it is a move that our clients will very much support.”
Commenting on the acquisition, Tim Cross, managing partner of Langleys, says: “While there is naturally some sadness in seeing our friends and colleagues leave the firm, this is a move that benefits everyone.”
“It allows Langleys to focus on growing its core specialisms and explore new opportunities in the regions we serve, while also enabling the insurance team to benefit from being part of a larger, market-leading, international insurance firm.”
Des Mannion, chief executive officer at Langleys, says the firm plans to focus on growth plans for its commercial and private client divisions, as well as its residential conveyancing business Home Property Lawyers, following the sale of its insurance division to Kennedys.
Mannion continues: “It is a move that benefits all parties, allowing Langleys to focus on growing its core specialisms and explore new opportunities within the Yorkshire and Lincolnshire regions it serves. It also enables the insurance team to benefit from being part of a larger, international insurance division within Kennedys.”