Shakespeare Martineau expands CoSec expertise as part of growth strategy

Company secretarial (CoSec) business Bruce Wallace Associates is joining East Midlands full-service law firm Shakespeare Martineau as part of a shared growth strategy.

The union will see Bruce Wallace Associates’ team of five, including its two directors Susan Wallace and Martha Bruce, take on the Shakespeare Martineau brand – bringing the team to more than 13.

The CoSec team at Shakespeare Martineau provides specialist corporate governance advice and company secretarial services to public companies listed on AIM, AQSE and the main market as well as several large private groups. In financial year 21/22, the team achieved 25% organic growth, with a similar trajectory for this financial year and ambitious targets for 23/24.

Bruce Wallace Associates co-founders Martha Bruce and Susan Wallace are both Fellows of the Chartered Governance Institute and are regarded as experts in their field. Martha and Susan provide complex advice and support to AIM and main market-listed companies, as well as FCA-regulated and groups of companies. They also regularly contribute to a number of company secretarial and governance technical publications.

Also moving to Shakespeare Martineau – which has hubs in Nottingham, Leicester and Lincoln – are Chloe Higgins and Susan Tudor-Coulson, both associates of the CGI, and Hollie Watkins, who is responsible for the compliance and statutory filing obligations for clients.

Susan Wallace said: “Martha and I believe this is an excellent move for us and our clients, who will benefit from continuity of service and the 1,200-strong team of experts available across Shakespeare Martineau and the Ampa group. We are keen to grow our team and client base, and the infrastructure Shakespeare Martineau offers will enable us to do just that.

“We were also attracted to Shakespeare Martineau’s empowered working principles – focussed on delivery and service instead of strict working hours, which is hugely important to our team. Martha and I set up Bruce Wallace Associates in 2012 from our homes and we have continued to work remotely and build a team of professional staff to support us.”

Ben Harber, head of CoSec at Shakespeare Martineau, said: “We are thrilled to have Bruce Wallace Associates joining our team; not only do they have an impeccable reputation, excellent networks and share multiple service synergies with us, but they also share our values and ethos to provide the highest standard of company secretarial and corporate governance advisory services to their clients.”

Shakespeare Martineau is proactively looking to recruit lateral hires and teams.