Expanding Lester Aldridge still happy for PJ to join

BIG BROTHER: partners maintain no bad reflection on firm

South-coast firm Lester Aldridge this week refuted tabloid newspaper suggestions that partners are unhappy with the conduct of Big Brother contestant PJ Ellis, who begins a training contract in September.

It came as the firm bucked some poor results from commercial practices by announcing a 22% rise in turnover and a new office at Bournemouth International Airport to complement its Bournemouth and Southampton offices.

Managing partner Roger Woolley said: 'PJ is a good candidate to have come through our selection process.

We didn't know anything about Big Brother until we saw him ontelevision.

It is too early to say whether this role will be a good career move for a trainee solicitor - this will be a first.'

A spokeswoman said 'the media was a lot more excited than we are'.

There was no suggestion that partners were unhappy with PJ's antics until he was evicted last week.

'A lot of partners probably don't watch Big Brother,' she said.

The firm's income jump takes it up to 11.1 million, with profits up 35%, although it did not release profit figures.

The firm's profit margin rose from 20% to 23%.

Staff numbers have grown 50% in the past 18 months to 285, and the new airport office houses LA Fast Track, the firm's corporate claims division, and its residential property and remortgage service for lenders.

The firm has also been boosted by news that the government is to extend funding on the Supporters Direct project.

The project helps groups of football fans establish trusts, and uses Lester Aldridge and Manchester firm Cobbetts for legal advice.

Sports minister Richard Caborn said that in principle the government has agreed to continue the annual 250,000 funding until March 2004.

Neil Rose