Annual business report financial year 2025

Financial Performance Highlights

• Ashurst achieved record revenue surpassing GBP 1 billion for the first time in FY25.
• After nine consecutive years of growth, revenue reached GBP 1.034 billion (versus GBP 961 million in FY24).
• This strong revenue growth represents an 8% growth in income over FY24 and 9% growth on a like-for-like exchange rate basis.
• PEP increased from the previous financial year to GBP 1.390 million (versus GBP 1.336 million in FY24), reflecting the firm's strong global profitability and productivity.
• The firm has achieved an average income growth rate of 8% each year over the last nine years and an average profit growth of 10% each year over the last nine years, demonstrating the success of its 2027 Strategy and focus on priority industries, practice areas and markets.

Regional Growth and Performance

• All the firm's regions saw revenue growth over the last year with the Middle East (14% revenue growth) and Australia (11% revenue growth) as standouts.
• Both the UK and Asia performed well with Hong Kong delivering an impressive 19% revenue growth.
• Continental Europe experienced strong performance in Luxembourg (up 14%) and Spain (up 12%).
• The firm's US presence also experienced steady growth with the Disputes, Investigations & Advisory (35%) and Projects & Energy Transition (18%) US divisions as particular standouts.

Industry, Divisional and Practice Performance

• The firm's strategic focus on six key industries continues to be a success, exceeding the ambitious target of 85% of revenue generated from these industries, noting the Real Estate industry had a standout year with 49% growth.
• Achieved good financial performance across all global divisions, with all showing year-on-year growth.
• Strong success for the Ashurst Advance & Consulting division, which experienced a 20% revenue increase, with continued strong growth in Ashurst Advance, with 29% revenue growth, and the Consulting practice up 9%.
• The Disputes, Investigations & Advisory division grew by 10%, with double digit growth in the global Dispute Resolution (10%) and Tax (21%) practices, reflecting the continued strategic focus on the firm's Disputes & Investigations capability.
• Finance, Funds & Restructuring grew by 8%, with strong demand for Global Loans & Global Markets globally which increased by 10%, and the global Finance Regulatory practice once again delivering impressive results.
• The firm saw strong demand for Competition and Corporate Transactions across the globe, and the Digital Economy practice experienced strong growth globally of 21%.
• Demand for energy transition advice continues to be strong across all of the firm's divisions, and the Projects & Energy Transition division continued to perform well, particularly in the US (18%) and the Planning, Access and Environment practice saw revenue growth of 8%.

Innovation

• In June 2024, the firm onboarded its first generative AI solution for client work through its partnership with Harvey and became the first global law firm to roll out the solution across all offices globally, to all of its 4,300+ people from day one. A majority of the firm's workforce globally are now regular users of generative AI in their daily work, helping to drive significant efficiencies and insights which benefit the firm's clients and its people. The firm is also helping clients with their own generative AI strategies, adoption and literacy on a daily basis.
• In addition, M365 Copilot, Relativity Contract, Reveal AI and Relativity aiR for advanced legal workstreams have also been deployed, and new generative AI applications and agents are being piloted continually.
• Ashurst has been recognised by FT Innovative Lawyers APAC and Europe, and Law.com across a broad range of innovations from client digital experience, digital assets and block chain to pro bono and responsible business. For the second year in a row, the firm has also been named the Most Innovative Law Firm Headquartered Outside Asia Pacific at the FT Asia Pacific Innovative Lawyer Awards 2025.

Legal-led consulting

• The firm has seen strong success with its consulting business, Risk Advisory, which operates seamlessly across Australia and in the UK delivering another year of solid results, with a 9% increase in revenue.
• In a market first, November 2024 saw the introduction of Ashurst Risk Advisory into the Middle East, further expanding Ashurst’s consulting and risk advisory capabilities.
• Since launching in Australia five years ago, the Risk Advisory practice has expanded considerably to become one of the largest risk consulting divisions of any law firm in Australia, with a team of over 95 consultants, including 20 partners. It has grown in the past 4 years at a CAGR of over 60%.

People and communities

The firm has continued to invest heavily in its people and the communities it operates in, with achievements including:

• Embarking on a series of strategic hires with the appointment of 32 lateral partners in the last financial year, and promoting 20 new partners during FY25.
• As part of the firm’s commitment to nurturing top talent, it has continued to invest in focused learning and development opportunities for its people. This included a dedicated leadership programme for practice heads, and ongoing learning programmes from graduates and trainees to partnership level.
• Today, the firm has 35% women partners and 29% women in senior legal leadership roles, compared to 19% and 18% respectively in 2016.
• In June 2024, the firm strengthened its India practice with the appointment of two prominent lawyers as Co-Heads, based in London, to lead the global India offering and support clients navigating the complexities of the Indian market.
• Recording over 76,000 hours of pro bono work, a 16% increase year on year. The firm’s dedicated First Nations pro bono team was also recognised at the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards Asia Pacific, taking the title for Innovation in Responsible Business.
• The firm continued to invest in new office configurations which better support the way people work and connect, which has seen improved efficiency in the use of office space by 39% globally since 2019.
• Refurbishments were completed to the firm's Frankfurt, Jakarta and Perth offices, and relocations to new premises in Munich and Sydney were finalised. These projects have upgraded the working environments for the firm's people and improved client experience, while improving efficiency, sustainability, and its ability to support future headcount growth.
• Provided clients and the firm's people with an annual Responsible Business Report on its actions as a responsible global business.

Climate and sustainability

• In 2023, Ashurst committed to setting evidence-based carbon reduction targets through the SBTi (Science Based Targets Initiative).
• The SBTi has verified Ashurst’s net-zero, science-based target by 2050.
• To achieve these targets, the firm continues to focus on four key areas:

1. Energy transition – increasing the use of renewable energy to power its global offices.
2. Supplier engagement – developing a mature supplier engagement strategy to increase the number of suppliers who are committed to the SBTi. In FY25, Ashurst launched its Supplier Engagement campaign, which sees the firm continue to partner with goods and services providers throughout its supply chain to support their own net-zero transition.
3. Conscious travel programme – reducing the carbon impact of travel arrangements.
4. Efficient spaces and systems – embedding intensity ratios into its offices and driving and building efficiencies in the firm's real estate portfolio.