What Sills & Betteridge does

Sills & Betteridge LLP is a UK limited liability partnership and full-service regional law firm headquartered in Lincoln, founded in 1759 and operating 17 offices across Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, and the East Midlands with over 400 partners and staff. The firm serves both private individuals and SMEs/corporates, offering a comprehensive suite of practice areas including family law, wills/trusts/probate, residential and commercial property, personal injury and medical negligence, corporate and commercial law, employment, crime and motoring, immigration, and niche verticals such as agriculture/rural business, renewable energy, and employee ownership trusts.

The business runs on standard third-party legal practice management, document management, and CRM systems rather than proprietary technology, and generates revenue through a hybrid pricing model: fixed-fee initial consultations (e.g., £200–£250 + VAT for family law), No Win No Fee conditional fee arrangements capped at 25% of damages for personal injury, hourly billing for corporate and litigation work, and Legal Aid Agency contracts under Specialist Quality Mark accreditation. Distribution is anchored by the regional office network complemented by phone/email enquiry channels, professional referral networks, content marketing via a law blog, and a strong review-platform presence (over 5,000 reviews averaging 4.8/5).

Growth has been delivered through a sustained programmatic M&A strategy — Bridge Sanderson Munro (2019), Rawson Family Law (2021), Acclaimed Family Law (2023), and the September 2025 merger with Bell & Buxton Solicitors, which created a combined Sheffield operation with turnover exceeding £25 million. The firm is partner-owned with no external institutional or private equity backing, holds Top Tier status in The Legal 500, is ranked 157th in The Lawyer UK200 Independents Report, and was named Family Law Firm of the Year (Midlands & Wales) at the 2024 LexisNexis Family Law Awards.

Name

Sills & Betteridge

Legal name

Sills & Betteridge LLP

Website

https://sillslegal.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1759

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Sills & Betteridge LLP is a UK full-service regional law firm, founded 1759, operating 17 offices across Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire, and the East Midlands with 400+ staff. It serves private individuals and SMEs via family law, property, personal injury, corporate, crime, and Legal Aid practices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Family & Private Client (Trusts & Estates) Law (BPAHAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) & Securities Law (BPAHAAAI), Real Estate & Construction Law (BPAHAAAE)

Keywords

• Legal services
• Family law
• Personal injury claims
• Conveyancing
• Corporate commercial law

Headquarters

HQ city

Lincoln

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices17 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Legal Services - Private Individuals: Fee-for-service legal advice and representation for private clients across family law, personal injury, residential property, wills/trusts/probate, crime, motoring offences, employment law, immigration, and civil disputes. Revenue generated through hourly rates, fixed fees, and legal aid contracts.
2. Personal Injury - No Win No Fee: Conditional Fee Agreements (CFAs) for personal injury claims where fees are contingent on successful outcome. Solicitor receives success fee capped at 25% of compensation (excluding future care/losses). Disbursements may be covered by After the Event (ATE) insurance.
3. Legal Services - Business Clients: Corporate and commercial legal services including M&A advisory, commercial property, employment law, intellectual property, licensing, banking, debt recovery, and business succession planning. Revenue through hourly rates and fixed project fees.
4. Legal Aid: Government-funded legal services for qualifying clients including domestic abuse victims, children in care proceedings, and criminal defence. Revenue received from Legal Aid Agency under Specialist Quality Mark accreditation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Sills & Betteridge is a full-service UK law firm providing legal advice and representation to private individuals and businesses across family law, personal injury, medical negligence, residential and commercial property, wills/probate, crime, employment, and corporate/commercial matters, delivered through a regional office network on fee-for-service, No Win No Fee, and Legal Aid arrangements.

Product overview

Sills & Betteridge LLP is a regional UK law firm offering a comprehensive suite of legal services through a single integrated practice rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The firm provides services for individuals and businesses across multiple practice areas: Residential Property & Conveyancing, Family Law (including divorce, children, and domestic abuse), Wills Trusts & Probate, Personal Injury & Medical Negligence, Crime & Motoring Offences, Employment Law, Immigration, and Dispute Resolution. For business clients, the firm offers Corporate & Commercial Law, GDPR Services, Commercial Property, Debt Recovery, Agriculture & Rural Business, Renewable Energy, Commercial Contracts, Employee Ownership Trusts, Partnerships & LLPs, Intellectual Property & IT, Licensing, Banking & Finance, Professional Negligence, Regulatory Law, Insolvency & Business Recovery, and Business Succession Planning. The firm has expanded through strategic acquisitions including Bridge Sanderson Munro (2019), Acclaimed Family Law (2023), and Bell & Buxton Solicitors (2025), operating under the unified brand 'Sills & Betteridge incorporating Bell & Buxton' in Sheffield. Services are delivered across 17 offices in Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, and the East Midlands.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Residential Property & Conveyancing Legal services for buying, selling, and transferring residential property including conveyancing, park homes, and landlord and tenant matters, for individual homeowners and buyers/sellers.
• Family Law Comprehensive family law services including divorce and separation, financial remedies, civil partnerships, cohabitation agreements, collaborative law, mediation, adoption, children issues, care proceedings, domestic abuse, injunctions, international child abduction, and forced marriage matters.
• Wills, Trusts & Probate Estate planning services including will preparation, probate administration, trust management, tax planning, powers of attorney, care home fees advice, and will contestation.
• Personal Injury Personal injury claims handling including road traffic accidents, workplace accidents, public liability claims, slip and trip claims, abuse and assault claims, serious injuries, and fatal accidents. Available on a No Win No Fee basis.
• Medical Negligence Clinical negligence claims including birth injuries, joint replacement problems, misdiagnosis, sepsis cases, and children's audiology testing concerns.
• Dispute Resolution Civil and commercial dispute resolution services for individuals and businesses.
• Crime Criminal defence services including magistrates court, crown court, police station representation, military and armed forces law, conspiracy offences, and sexual offences.
• Motoring Offences Motoring defence services covering speeding, drink or drug driving, dangerous driving, mobile phone use, driving without insurance, and other driving offences.
• Employment Law (Individuals) Employment law advice for employees including settlement agreements, redundancy procedures, bullying and harassment, grievance procedures, and employment tribunal representation.
• Immigration Immigration services including EU Settlement Scheme applications and related immigration matters.
• Corporate & Commercial Law Corporate and commercial legal services including acquisitions, disposals, shareholder agreements, commercial contracts, and business restructuring for business clients.
• GDPR Services Data protection and GDPR compliance advisory services for businesses.
• Employment Law for Employers Employment law services for businesses including tribunal representation, policies and procedures, contracts, settlement agreements, restructuring, disciplinary matters, and TUPE transfers.
• Commercial Property Commercial property legal services for business clients.
• Debt Recovery Business debt recovery services.
• Agriculture & Rural Business Specialised legal services for agricultural and rural business clients in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.
• Renewable Energy Legal services for renewable energy sector clients.
• Employee Ownership Trusts EOT advisory services including sale structuring, funding, management incentives, and trustee appointments.
• Intellectual Property & IT IP and IT legal services including brand management, software licensing, data protection, franchising, and IP infringement proceedings.
• Licensing Business licensing services for alcohol, hot food, and entertainment licences under the Licensing Act 2003.
• Banking & Finance Banking and financial legal services for business clients.
• Insolvency & Business Recovery Insolvency and business recovery services for businesses.
• Family Mediation Services (Sills Mediation) Family mediation services under the Sills Mediation brand, with accredited mediators and government voucher scheme participation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5,000 client reviews averaging 4.8 out of 5 stars on independent platform reviewsolicitors.co.uk
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• STEPS RehabilitationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2026STEPS is an award-winning purpose-built rehabilitation facility providing residential support for people recovering from neurological injuries, amputations and complex trauma. Sills & Betteridge Medical Negligence team visits the facility to understand rehabilitation options available to clients and to build relationships for client referrals.
• IDAS (Independent Domestic Abuse Services)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSills & Betteridge has partnered with IDAS to provide enhanced support for domestic abuse survivors. IDAS is a specialist domestic abuse charity providing support services that complement the legal protection offered by Sills & Betteridge's Family Emergency Team.
• Family Law Webinar CollaboratorsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSills & Betteridge collaborates with other professionals including divorce coaches and financial advisers to deliver the Family Law Webinar Series, providing educational content on key issues arising from relationship breakdown.
• Reviewsolicitors.co.ukminorOthersIndependent online review platform where Sills & Betteridge maintains over 5,000 client reviews averaging 4.8/5. The firm markets its top ratings and rankings across practice areas through this platform.
• Bell & Buxton SolicitorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistoric Sheffield law firm (150 years) merged into Sills & Betteridge in September 2025. Combined operation creates one of largest law firms in Sheffield with £25m+ turnover. Bell & Buxton renowned for litigation and corporate law practices.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Knights plc: Largest UK-listed legal services consolidator with a similar strategy of acquiring regional law firms across the Midlands and North of England. Highly comparable as a regional full-service firm executing roll-up M&A and operating at similar scale.
• Shakespeare Martineau: Midlands-based full-service law firm with comparable practice mix including corporate, real estate, employment, and private client. Direct competitor for SME and private client work in overlapping East Midlands geographies.
• Freeths: East Midlands-based full-service law firm (Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, etc.) with similar practice areas and consumer/SME client mix. One of the closest geographic competitors in the firm's home region.
• Higgs & Sons: West Midlands full-service law firm (Brierley Hill, Kidderminster, etc.) with similar SME corporate, private client, and dispute resolution practices. Comparable in size, structure, and regional positioning.
• Weightmans: UK Top 50 law firm with strong insurance, public sector, and personal injury practices plus expansion across the Midlands and North. Competes directly with Sills & Betteridge on PI and commercial work.
• Lupton Fawcett: Yorkshire-headquartered (Leeds, Sheffield, York) full-service law firm with comparable private client, family law, and corporate practices. Direct regional competitor in the South Yorkshire/North Yorkshire overlap.
• Andrew Jackson Solicitors: Yorkshire and Lincolnshire full-service law firm (York, Grimsby, Hull, Scarborough) with similar private client, commercial property, and dispute resolution practices. Overlaps with Sills & Betteridge's northern Lincolnshire offices.
• Muckle LLP: North East England full-service law firm (Newcastle, Sunderland) of comparable size serving SMEs and private clients. Adjacent regional competitor with similar practice mix and client profile.

Broad incumbents

• Irwin Mitchell: Major UK regional full-service law firm with strong personal injury, family law, and corporate practices headquartered in Sheffield with national reach. Overlaps directly with Sills & Betteridge on consumer services, PI, and family law in the same geography.
• Gateley: Listed UK professional services group (legal plus consultancy) with similar corporate, commercial property, and employment practices. Comparable as a multi-discipline firm operating nationally with regional offices.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sillslegal
• Facebookfacebook.com/sillsandbetteridge

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles19 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A4 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sills & Betteridge