[UPDATE - this rumour has since been denied by Shine Lawyers through our friends at Lawyers Weekly. We would ask the same spokesperson from Shine Lawyers and and the journo from Lawyers Weekly to reconvene tomorrow for further comment on a much more scandalous issue which will be raised in an exclusive Firm Spy post.]
We reported last week the news that national personal injury firm Slater & Gordon – the former workplace of our Prime Minister Julia Gillard – will soon acquire dodgey national outfit Keddies Lawyers. Dodgey, in the sense that repeated allegations of overcharging have been directed at the firm, not to mention the forgettable episode in which one former male partner belted a female police officer.
Well, just as Slaters’ world-domination ambitions take hold, it turns out that the firm’s next logical acquisition is itself about to announce an acquisition. Yes, we received the following comments from an anonymous Shine Lawyers spy yesterday:
…Probably not massive news but Shine are about to annouce that they are buying out ALC Lawyers on the NSWQLD Border.
Not massive, no, but certainly a sign to Slater & Gordon that its efforts to consolidate the national personal injury legal market might draw a significant competitor in Shine Lawyers. At the time of its Keddies acquisition, Slater & Gordon Managing Partner Andrew Grech observed:
“We’ve said from when we listed that the consolidaiton of the Australian personal injuries market was a prime aim for us, with QLD and NSW as the main targets… After the Keddies acquisition we’ll be the clear market leaders and have strong, efficient based for further growth in each of the eastern states, which represent around 85 per cent of the national personal injuries litigation market”.
However, the claim that pursuant to the Keddies acquisition Slaters will be the “clear market leader” will soon suffer a significant setback, our anonymous source advises. Yes, if the rumoured acquisition by Shine Lawyers of ALC Lawyers proceeds, Shine will boast:
… a down to earth, approachable, young law firm based on the Gold Coast servicing Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory.
It is unclear, however, whether ALC Lawyers 24/7 personal compensation hotline (1300 851 168) will continue to operate.
Do you think Shine Lawyers has room in its budget for a 24/7 booty call compensation phone call operator?
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