Australian firm Slater & Gordon has promised to expand operations in the UK after posting a £2.4m profit on UK revenues of £23m for its first full six months in this country.

The firm, which acquired national personal injury firm Russell Jones & Walker in January last year, said the UK business was on track to achieve its full-year earnings forecast.

In its annual financial report announced to the Australian stock exchange, the firm posted UK revenue of £23.2m for the final six months of 2012 – roughly one-sixth of its total turnover.

Russell Jones Walker was valued at £53.8m when it was bought through a mixture of cash and shares. Earlier this month the firm completed the rebranding process to remove any trace of the former practice.

In the report, Slater & Gordon confirmed it was ‘well placed to expand its operations in the UK in a market that is four to five times that of Australia’.

The firm said the new regime of alternative business structures was driving consolidation of the consumer legal services market, at the same time as the Jackson reforms look set to transform the personal injury market.

This gave it the opportunity to build a recognised law firm brand in a environment where there was no dominant market leader.

Slater & Gordon managing director Andrew Grech said: ‘Our business is in good shape, we have strong prospects for further profitable growth and the people to be able to deliver it.’