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Hill Dickinson advises Warrington accountancy firm on MBO

Hill Dickinson advises Warrington accountancy firm on MBO

Law firm Hill Dickinson has advised Warrington-based accountancy and advisory firm JS on a management buyout (MBO) from its previous owners. The deal sees the firm, formerly known as Jackson Stephen, transition from its current partnership model to a new corporate structure to support future growth. 

JS, which has ambitious plans for the next 10 years, aims to grow while remaining independent and owner-managed and continuing to focus on its core market of owner-managed SMEs. The senior individuals in the business will still be known as partners.

Hill Dickinson’s Corporate team advised JS on the deal, led by partner and national head of Corporate Ian Riggs, together with associates Matt Boyer, Philip Congdon and Daniel McDonagh.

Ian Riggs said: “The team at JS understand their market and know their clients, and the transaction has given the firm the opportunity to move away from its former partnership model and reposition the business for future growth while maintaining everything their clients value about them. It’s an exciting time for the team and I’d like to wish the new venture every success.”

JS managing partner Lucy Williams said the vendors preferred to sell to management than accept an offer from a sector consolidator, adding: “This move marks a bold and exciting next step in JS’s history. At our core we have always been focused on delivering best-in-class service to owner-managed businesses. This MBO will allow us to continue on that journey, while unlocking significant growth for the business.”

With over 100 years of experience, JS currently has 90 employees and works with owner-managed businesses across the service lines of audit, accounts, tax advisory, compliance, management consultancy and digital finance transformation.
 

Corporate

Delivering a high-quality combination of technical expertise, commercial acumen and excellent client service, our clients value the quality of our people, our market knowledge and our commitment to achieving success for them. We always aim to exceed their expectations.

Our highly experienced and recognised corporate team operates from our offices in Liverpool, Manchester, London, Leeds, Hong Kong and Singapore. We offer our clients accessible corporate support from our experienced national and international network and specialise in advising a range of clients, from large listed companies and private equity funds to smaller start-up and owner-managed businesses and management teams on the full range of transactions – both domestic and cross-border. Our advice is distinctly commercial and focused on our clients’ commercial goals.

We work in small partner-led teams, providing our clients with easy access to our partners on transactions. We offer an innovative approach to managing client relationships and fee arrangements, which sets us apart from many of our competitors. We are able to offer our clients a timely, relevant and cost-effective service, that adds real value to the transaction process.