PI sector continues to shrink as firm buys up rival

Manchester personal injury firm Express Solicitors has swallowed up another rival as it continues to consolidate the claims market. The firm announced yesterday that it has acquired Cheshire firm Aegis Legal Ltd and brought its total headcount up to 980.

Aidan Wilcox and Janet Keating, managing directors of Aegis Legal, a firm which also specialises in personal injury and medical negligence claims, are retiring and the other members of staff will join Express as part of the deal. All existing Aegis Legal clients will have their cases transferred to Express’ systems and the integration process is already underway, the firm said. 

James Maxey, chief executive of Express Solicitors, said: ‘This acquisition reflects our commitment to investing in high‑quality legal services and expanding our ability to support injured people across the country. Aegis Legal has built a strong reputation for client care and specialist expertise, and we are delighted to welcome the team into the Express Solicitors family.’

The firm has appointed RTA partner Adele Greenough as integration partner to work with firms that have been acquired to join Express. This is the first merger this year and follows last year’s purchases of HNK Solicitors and Graham Coffey & Co.

Maxey added: ‘We’ll soon be announcing our next deal and we’re working on others, our strategy is very firmly focused on acquisition-based expansion, supported by the investment we secured from Ufenau Capital Partners at the end of last year.’

According to its most recently-published accounts, Aegis Legal had net assets of £1.2m and cash reserves of £959,000 as of October 2024. The business employed 34 and had work in progress valued at £1.2m.