Mayo Wynne Baxter completes merger with Ampa to support expansion in South East

Leading Sussex law firm Mayo Wynne Baxter has today completed its merger with national legal and professional services group, Ampa, to enhance its ambitious plans for growth.

The firm is now the group’s South East legal anchor brand and is proactively looking to recruit talented people and teams across the region, including in Sussex.

Mayo Wynne Baxter, founded more than 150 years ago in Lewes, will continue to operate as a separate LLP retaining its brand and growing its market position as it continues to deliver legal services for businesses, people and their families throughout the South East.

There have been no redundancies and Mayo Wynne Baxter is looking to bring in an additional 35 – 40 lawyers in the immediate future. No money has been exchanged as part of the merger. The firm’s equity partners have now merged into Ampa’s membership.

Mayo Wynne Baxter’s move to join Ampa is part of a wider strategy shared by the businesses for growth, collaboration and combined infrastructure, as well as shared values supporting clients and the community.

Dean Orgill, chief executive partner at Mayo Wynne Baxter, said: “As Mayo Wynne Baxter looks forward to the future, we are excited to be joining a group which shares our ambitions and values.

“Clients will continue to enjoy our commitment to exceptional service, but that will now be available across the hugely enhanced breadth and depth of skills and expertise that Ampa can offer.”

Dean will sit on the Ampa group board while also working with the firm’s partners to steer the growth of Mayo Wynne Baxter as a regional anchor brand for the group.

Joining Ampa will enable Mayo Wynne Baxter to increase its service offering for clients, tapping into more than 900 experts across the group of brands and Ampa’s group London hub.

The firm’s personal injury and clinical negligence teams will join Ampa’s existing national consumer-focussed law brand Lime Solicitors, with full continuity of service for clients, adding around £1.2m additional turnover to Lime Solicitors.

The merger was agreed in December 2021 and has now completed.

CEO of Ampa Sarah Walker-Smith said: “We’re delighted that Mayo Wynne Baxter will officially join the group from today.

“Transition for clients will be seamless as Mayo Wynne Baxter remains a standalone LLP in the group, however, clients will benefit from access to experts from our other brands including legal and non-legal teams.”

The merger brings Ampa to a turnover above £100m in the next financial year and a group of more than 1,200 people.

Ampa, which has pending B Corporation status, also includes cyber security company CSS Assure and uninsured loss recovery experts Corclaim as well as Shakespeare Martineau LLP, Marrons Planning and its consumer brand Lime Solicitors. All Ampa brands are recruiting lateral hires and teams, and the group is proactively looking for like-minded businesses to join the group.