Wilkinson Woodward notches up 130 years in business

Wilkinson Woodward is celebrating after notching up one hundred and thirty years in business.

Wilkinson Woodward has been trading from premises in Halifax since 1886, when the town was still a formidable force in the world textile industry. Since then, the firm has evolved into one of West Yorkshire’s most established legal practices.

The practice was founded in 1886 by local solicitor Robert Wilkinson. He was succeeded in May 1936 by Gordon Woodward who was joined two months later by Harry Ludlam, when the name Wilkinson Woodward & Ludlam was adopted. Ludlam went on to become Mayor of Halifax and was a highly respected and well-known figure in the town.

Throughout the middle of the twentieth century the firm continued to expand, although the intervening war years saw legal careers put on hold as several members of staff were drafted up to support the war effort.
Ludlam’s son, David, remained at the firm until the mid-1980s, when the name reverted to Wilkinson Woodward.

In 2000, Wilkinson Woodward opened an office on Market Street in Hudderfield. The Huddersfield office merged with Norcliffe and Co in 2012 and now operates from premises in Queen Street. The following year, Wilkinson Woodward merged with Boococks solicitors and estate agents. The firm still incorporates this independent lettings and estate agency. In 2013, the practice merged with Bearders solicitors, taking over Bearders’ offices in King Street, Brighouse.

Today, with a team of over thirty lawyers and fifty support staff spanning their three offices in Halifax, Huddersfield and Brighouse, Wilkinson Woodward’s main focus remains on serving the communities of Calderdale and Kirklees

Managing director Maureen Cawthorn said: “Wilkinson Woodward has been serving the people and businesses of Halifax since Queen Victoria’s reign. During the past 130 years, the practice has grown and developed whilst still remaining true to our ethos of serving the local community.”