Deloitte Legal acquires London tech and digital media law firm
Deloitte Legal will acquire technology and digital media law firm Kemp Little, adding 29 partners and up to 57 lawyers in the process.
Following completion Deloitte Legal’s lawyer headcount in the UK will increase to more than 170, up from approximately 85 currently.
All Kemp Little staff can transfer to Deloitte Legal upon completion. Deloitte is not disclosing the financials of the transaction.
Kemp Little was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in London.
It offers legal services in commercial technology, corporate, employment, data protection, disputes, intellectual property and financial regulation across a range of sectors including financial services, telecoms, and media and digital solutions.
Deloitte Legal said the move will enable it to offer clients a broader and deeper range of legal expertise.
Deloitte launched a UK legal practice in 2018, becoming the last of the Big Four firms to do so.
Tech ‘critical to business recovery’
Richard Houston, senior partner and chief executive of Deloitte North and South Europe, said: “This demonstrates our confidence and willingness to invest where there is clear market demand.”
He said the coronavirus pandemic demonstrated investing in technology will be “a critical catalyst for the recovery of UK businesses”.
He said business leaders were looking for more digital way of working, which would promote “longer term cultural change”.
Houston continued: “On completion, this transaction, with technology at its core, will ensure Deloitte Legal is well positioned to help businesses thrive as they transition to new ways of working.”
Kemp Little managing partner Andrew Joint added: “Having already collaborated on a number of projects in the past, Deloitte Legal and Kemp Little have a track record of working together successfully.
“We are all excited about joining forces with Deloitte Legal at completion to provide a very compelling offering in a market that has long been demanding greater innovation in the delivery of legal services.”