Gateley, the City’s first listed law firm, is set to lose its chief executive and axe dozens of jobs as it grapples with a swelling cost base and fears of a slowdown in client spending.
The group, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM), informed shareholders on Tuesday that chief executive Rod Waldie will exit the business on 1 August due to “personal, health-related reasons”. The company also confirmed it would cut some 40 staff in a bid to bring down its cost base.
Waldie’s exit adds to a turbulent year for the listed legal firm in which its share price has cratered on concerns over spending and threats to the traditional business model of the professional services sector.
Gateley’s shares are currently trading around 60p, down more than half from 124p this time last year.
The group’s shares ticked up following its latest financial results on Tuesday morning, in which revenue rose by 8.2 per cent and profit before tax grew by over 20 per cent to £7.7m.
Layoffs and an executive exit: What’s going on at London’s first listed law firm?
