Another claims firm in the north west has gone under after ramping up its work in progress in the past year. Nicholson Jones Sutton Solicitors Limited appointed administrators earlier this month, according to Companies House records.
But the firm is understood to still be in operation as a different entity. NJS Law Limited was incorporated in 2023 and has a single active director, Justine Sutton. She is director and compliance officer with NJS Law, although she continues to be listed as a director with Nicholson Jones Sutton Solicitors Limited.
Neither Sutton nor the administrators from insolvency practice RSM UK have responded to requests for comment, but the business appears to be fully operational under its new owner.
A notice in London Gazette states that Cheshire firm Nicholson Jones Sutton Solicitors Limited, formerly known as Amanda Cunliffe Solicitors Limited, was subject to a winding up petition by HM Revenue & Customs in March.
Administrators were appointed two weeks later, but the body making the application is listed on Companies House as litigation funder Fenchurch Legal. At the same time, a fixed charge was registered by Fenchurch Legal against NJS Law.
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Nicholson Jones Sutton Solicitors Limited specialised in housing disrepair claims as well as personal injury, medical negligence and inheritance disputes.
According to its latest accounts, covering the year to 30 September 2024, the business had increased its amount owed within a year from £1.9m to £4.3m. The firm more than doubled its bank loans and overdrafts to more than £2.3m.
At the same time, the business reported assets of £5.2m – mainly ongoing work – which had risen by £2m during the previous 12 months. The average number of employees working for Nicholson Jones Sutton Solicitors was 64.
The claims sector, particularly firms working in housing disrepair and cavity wall, has gone through a period of turmoil in the past two years, with Sandstone Legal, McDermott Smith Law, High Street Solicitors, Quanta Law, Woodwards Law and Legal UK Services Ltd all going into administration. These firms have largely been located in the north west of England.
At the same time, there appears to be no shortage of money available to firms that want to expand in the claims sector. North American litigation funder Heirloom Fair Legal announced last month it had earmarked £250m in funding to firms by the end of 2026.
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