The UK legal industry generated revenues of £37.1bn in 2019, up 4.8% on 2018 – an all-time record, according to data released today by the Office for National Statistics. Legal services growth was ahead of the service industry as a whole, which grew by 3.5% to a turnover of £2.3tn.  

The Office for National Statistics Index of Services shows that in the final quarter of 2019 turnover of the legal industry (solicitors, barristers and patent agents), was the highest on record at £10.1bn, up 11% from the same period in 2018. This is the first time that the quarter’s turnover has exceeded £10bn. 

Legal Services now accounts for 1.6% of UK services output for the full year 2019. A recent study conducted for the Law Society by KPMG found that legal services contributed £60bn to the economy in 2018.

Commenting on the ONS data, Louis Young, managing director at litigation funder Augusta said: 'The legal industry in the UK has shrugged off the uncertainty of Brexit. The strength of our law firms and courts has grown in international recognition, leading to an influx of business from overseas. The provision of finance from external sources has been a significant contributor to this growth and will become more relevant as time progresses.'