Russell-Cooke

Russell-Cooke was founded in 1880 and works for a mix of commercial, not-for-profit and private clients from offices in Holborn, Putney and Kingston upon Thames. Its practice runs from real estate, corporate work and regulation to crime, family and children law, and private client work. Many of its clients are lawyers themselves: the firm says it acts for judges, around 40 barristers’ chambers and most of the regulatory bodies for the legal profession.

James Carroll is managing partner. A family lawyer, he works on the financial and other consequences of relationships forming or ending, and is an accredited family mediator and collaborative family lawyer. Matthew Garrod, a real estate partner, became senior partner on 1 July 2025, according to the LLP’s accounts.

Growth across fee earners and support

Group turnover rose 11% from £50.6m to £56.3m in the year to June 2025, according to the LLP’s group accounts at Companies House. Legal fees from clients outside the UK made up £4.7m of that total. The average number of staff, excluding members, rose from 317 to 338: non-member solicitors and other fee earners grew from 185 to 198, and secretarial and support staff from 132 to 140.

The accounts state that no member controls the firm. The firm describes itself as a top 100 firm with around 250 lawyers.

Rankings in the Legal 500

In the Legal 500 UK 2026, the firm says it has 30 ranked teams across London, the South East and Hampshire and 39 ranked individuals, four of them in the Hall of Fame. Two teams were promoted to Tier 1: London family (children) and South East personal tax, trusts and probate. Its divorce and financial remedy team entered the London table at Tier 2, and its corporate restructuring and insolvency team was named a Firm to Watch for the first time. Agriculture and estates moved up to Tier 3 and white-collar crime to Tier 4.

Alongside its three offices, the firm keeps meeting rooms in Canary Wharf, the City, Richmond, Cobham and Southampton.