The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Who said it
“We’re very confident in all the vaccines that we’re using. And I think it’s important for people to bear in mind that all of them, we think, are effective in delivering a high degree of protection against serious illness and death, which is the most important thing” Prime Minister Boris Johnson. “For bands like us, we’re fortunate, we have accounting, legal services to cover the new red tape. But what about bands that are coming up, to be future Radioheads... over the next decade? That’s the big worry” - Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood on postBrexit red tape.
“I just want the prime minister to tell the police to do their job, catch the perpetrators, get the evidence beyond any doubt and convict them” - Jasna Badzak whose 22-year-old son Sven, an aspiring lawyer, died after he and a friend were chased and attacked by
a group in Kilburn, north-west London, on Saturday.
“I like to think I’ve got a pretty high tolerance. I wear a lot of glitter and I wear a lot of armour and I also wear my heart on my sleeve, but it gets broken a lot” - Miley Cyrus during her star-studded pre-Super Bowl performance. “Now I am 60 and I understand what a privilege it was to get to this age” - Rebecca Marshall-Potter, who lost her mother and two sisters to cancer before the age of 60, is celebrating reaching the milestone by running the London Marathon for charity. “Thankfully a friend dug him out and he is now having a muchneeded cup of tea” - Victoria Lawrence whose husband Steve got trapped in a Norfolk snowdrift while driving to pick up his father for a hospital appointment.
Law firm Thorntons managed to grow its sales last year despite Covid-19 disruption. Hundreds of workers went on furlough as courts closed and the property market was shut down during the first lockdown. Despite this, the firm still managed to increase its sales by 2.6% for the year ending May 31.
Newly filed accounts show that Dundee head quartered T horn tons’ turnover increased to £30.5 million from £29.8m in 2019.
Profit before members’ remuneration and profit shares rose to £8m against £7.1m the previous year.
Managing partner Craig Nicol said the results represent the first full year since it acquired the Edinburgh operation of Morisons LLP.
He said: “The business continued to grow and turnover and profitability increased.
“Our increased commercial offering in Edinburgh and in Glasgow played a significant role and our new colleagues who arrived following the Morisons acquisition settled in well.
“Like many businesses, our trading for the last months of the financial year were hit by the onset of Covid-19.
“Many of our markets were significantly impaired and, in the case of the residential property market, closed completely. Court closures meant significant challenges in our dispute resolution teams.
“These financial results represent our continued commitment to invest for the long term and our clear strategy for growth across our business.”
Thorntons is now one of the largest full service firms in Scotland, employing more than 500 people in 11 locations across the country. It has 58 partners. It has legal offices and estate agents across Fife, Angus and Perth. As well as the Morisons acquisition, it acquired Fife firm Pagan Osborne in 2017.
Mr Nicol said at its peak, the company had around 250 members of staff on furlough. This figure is now 17 on full furlough and 25 on flexi-furlough.
While the company is lagging behind last year’s performance, it is optimistic about 2021.
“Our investment in technology over the years meant that we were able to implement a rapid transition to home and agile working,” he added.
“Our people showed remarkable resilience, ensuring that our clients continue to be served well.
“Whilst currently we are still lagging behind last year’s performance, we have recovered well and we are now looking forward to planning for our next five year strategic period.
“We remain committed to providing our clients with a full service offering and our business levels remain strong amid continued uncertainty in the economy as we look towards 2021 and beyond.”
Mr Nicol will stand down on May 31 after 10 years as managing partner, seven of those as joint managing partner with Scott Milne.
He will be succeeded by partner Lesley Larg, an IP specialist who has sat on the firm’s board for several years. Mr Nicol will remain as one of the firm’s partners.
“It was always my intention to step aside as managing partner in the next couple of years and there is no doubt the time is right,” he added.
“We are now considering our next five-year strategic plan and how best to deliver for the changing requirements of our clients and colleagues in the postCovid environment.
“I am delighted to be handing over the reins to Lesley who has the skill, drive and expertise to lead the firm through this next period.”