Sparke Helmore Lawyers
Sparke Helmore Lawyers[1] is an independent Australian law firm with more than 600 people[2] working from nine offices across the country.[3] The firm, which was established in Newcastle, traces its origins back to 1882.[4]
History
In 1882, William Sparke started a law firm in Newcastle.[5] In 1922, the firm changed its name to Sparke and Helmore when Basil Helmore became a partner.[5] In 1949 another partner, Peter Withycombe, joined the firm which became known as Sparke, Helmore & Withycombe in 1950.[5]
The firm opened the Sydney office in 1962 to meet client demand.[5] In the 1980s, it used its reputation in workers' compensation insurance as a platform to expand into insurance litigation areas, including public liability and some professional indemnity work, and from there into some specialised commercial and government work.[4]
In the 1990s, the firm expanded at a significant annual rate in terms of office locations, revenue and staff numbers.[4][5] The Melbourne office opened in 1992, followed by Canberra in 1996, Brisbane in 1999, Muswellbrook in 2000, Adelaide in 2001, Perth in 2002 and Port Macquarie in 2014.[4]
Between 1992 and 2001, the firm more than quadrupled in size,[4] growing from a staff of 99 and revenue of $9.75m in 1992[6] to a staff of 610 and revenue of $65m in 2002/3.[6]
In 2011/12 Sparke Helmore had a revenue of $105m.[7] In 2012, the firm expanded its corporate offering and restructured[8] to support its five practice areas: Commercial & Projects, Corporate, Government, Insurance and Workplace.[9]
Firm's rankings: Australasian Law Awards, Insurance Specialist Firm of the Year 2015, Australasian Law Awards, Australian Law Firm of the Year (250-500 lawyers) 2015,[10] WTR 1000 2015,[11] ALPMA NSW Firm of the Year 2014,[12] Chambers Asia Pacific 2015,[13] Corporate INTL Magazine,Venture Capital and Mining & Resources Law Firm of the Year 2014,[14] Doyles Guide 2015,[15] Legal Innovation Index 2015,[16] Australian Law Awards 2015.[17]
Rated one of the top 10 law firms in terms of employer growth, partner numbers and proportion of female equity partners in 2013.[18]
References
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore Lawyers".
- ↑ "People". Sparke Helmore Lawyers.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore". Australasian Law Awards.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "History". Sparke Helmore Lawyers.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "The making of a national firm: Sparke Helmore". Lawyers Weekly. 2 June 2011.
- 1 2 "BRW Top 100 Law Firms 1992". BRW.
- ↑ "Top Law Firms". BRW.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore further boosts corporate and finance capability with two new partners". Asia Chronicles. 7 August 2012.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore Lawyers". Getting the deal through.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore named as dual finalist in Australasian Law Awards". Sparke Helmore Lawyers. 17 April 2015.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore ranked again in the 2015 World Trademark Review 1000". Sparke Helmore Lawyers. 22 January 2015.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore Lawyers wins ALPMA "Firm of the Year Award"". Sparke Helmore Lawyers. 28 November 2014.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore". Chambers & Partners.
- ↑ "Sparke Helmore wins Corporate INTL Global Awards". Sparke Helmore Lawyers. 15 January 2014.
- ↑ "Doyles Guide". Doyles.
- ↑ "2015 Index Winners". 2015 Legal Innovation Index.
- ↑ "2015 Finalists". Australian Law Awards.
- ↑ "The Partnership Survey". The Australian. 5 July 2013.