Two co-founders of a niche firm in the east Midlands say they want to ‘break the mould’ with a different approach to offering legal services.
Friends and former colleagues Shruti Trivedi and Iain Hibbert have launched Devello Group, a specialist planning and property development practice based initially in Nottingham and Lincoln.
Between them, they have more than 40 years’ experience working in private practice and previously led large teams in one of the region’s biggest firms, where they were equity partners.
They want to build partnership with clients and move away from the traditional hourly billing model to a more ‘holistic’ approach to business.
‘Our costs structure is very flexible to suit the needs of the client and the project, rather than simply billing time on an hourly rate basis,’ said managing director Trivedi, a planning specialist. ‘Every case will be priced according to the specialist knowledge and value we can deliver following a discussion with the client about their and the case’s needs. Of course, time recording cannot be avoided in situations such as court hearings, but our ethos is to always work efficiently and effectively, focusing on the quality of our work and creating long-term relationships.’
The aim is that clients see the firm as part of their internal team offering bespoke advice. There will also be an advisory service to developers, landowners, promoters, investors and others in the planning development sectors. This means the team can be involved from the outset and manage the entire project, not just offer legal assistance.
Hibbert, a property specialist and Devello's chief executive, added: ‘We know there are long-held traditional practices that people adhere to but it was important to us to free our team from the pressure of timesheets. We want to look after our people and create a genuinely close-knit team that works together to achieve the best results with our bespoke offering.’
