A decade ago the Leeds commercial bar was practically non-existent. Work was routinely shipped to London or Manchester, which has a longer-established commercial tradition. The Leeds Bar however, was traditionally common law in nature, with counsel taking on a mixed bag of cases.
While Leeds developed a stronger roster of commercial solicitors, Manchester possessed the stronger commercial bar tradition.
But times are changing. The city's commercial bar continues to develop in the hope of exploiting opportunities presented by the introduction of financial and other service industries. A mercantile court was established in the city three years ago and a small band of sets, based mainly around Park Square, boast of specialist teams that are keen to take on the work that is so clearly out there.
But Leeds' commercial practitioners do not think of themselves as great rivals to the London barristers, who still gain a lot of work from the city's top six commercial solicitors: Addleshaw Booth & Co, Dibb Lupton Alsop, Eversheds, Hammond Suddards, Pinsent Curtis and Walker Morris.
Unlike their longer-established colleagues in Manchester, there is not the same sense of being in direct competition with London for work.
Practice manager at Sovereign Chambers, Paul Slater, said: "London, Newcastle and any other area is of interest, but getting more work from Leeds' big six, to show them that the expertise is available locally, is more interesting. There is no need to go anywhere else if we are getting work here."
Six Park Square, known as No. 6, is one of the city's larger sets. Its practice director, Tim Collins, sets out the prevailing mood: "We may not grab the headline work, but the work we get – although largely unseen and unsung – is still in profitable areas."
Those areas are highlighted by Hugo Groves, insolvency barrister at Enterprise Chambers, a commercial/chancery set which has its main chambers in London, with another branch in Newcastle.
Groves says: "There is a perception that Leeds is booming, which means a lot more people are moving into property, which leads to more property disputes. Many more businesses are setting-up locally, so this leads to a greater number of them going bust and the consequent insolvency work. More businesses also mean more corporate work as a whole."
He is also unfazed by having to face the large numbers of London counsel instructed in Leeds. "I do not resent coming up against London counsel. It is a chance to show solicitors on the other side that we can do a good job as well. It also means things are not dull because you are not up against the same people all the time."
Commercial sets might agree there is work out there, but there are two schools of thought about how to organise in chambers to take advantage of these opportunities.
Some believe commercial/chancery services are best offered by practice groups within larger full-service sets. Others argue the commercial client is best served by a small specialist set practising solely in that area.
This is the view of 11-member Chancery House Chambers, a set dedicated to chancery/
commercial work. It was formed as a breakaway chambers from the larger common law set, 39 Park Square, four years ago.
"A commercial/chancery lawyer cannot really work well in a mixed environment," says tenant David Partington. "You do not get the specialist clerking you need if you are trying to cater for both common law and commercial work. Our specialist set works because it is manageable and everyone here is an expert in their field, so there is no need to sub-divide into practice groups."
Chancery House believes its strategy works, a fact it believes is underlined by the regular receipt of work from the big guns of London litigation: Herbert Smith. However, the chambers has seen many comings and goings in recent months, including the loss of former head James Allen QC and Bruce Walker, who has moved to Hammond Suddards.
Elsewhere, the prevailing view is that bigger is better – a view naturally shared by the larger mixed sets at No. 6, 10 Park Square and Sovereign Chambers.
"It works like a hospital," Collins says. "You will have heart surgery running alongside the A&E department, and there are links between the two. Similarly, within the set there are benefits of having different departments working alongside each other.
"By having a large number of tenants, we can manage ourselves more cost-effectively."
All sets talk about growing if the right candidates presented themselves, but not becoming bigger for the sake of it.
Paul Slater adds: "One of the advantages of having strong practice groups in different subjects is the opportunity for cross-fertilisation."
The prospect of merging has been discussed for some time in Leeds. Nearly all the sets interviewed claim to have been approached, but 10 Park Square is the only one negotiating with a neighbouring set.
The chambers has been in talks with family set 30 Park Square since the beginning of the year, and a decision is expected before Easter. If the merger goes ahead it will form the city's largest set with 55 members.
10 Park Square's practice manager, Robin Butchard, is an old hand at mergers. Before moving to Leeds last year, he was senior clerk at Priory Chambers in Birmingham and one half of the union that created Midlands superset St Phillip's Chambers.
He says: "Our experience in Birmingham was like here: not merging because we were struggling, but bringing together two successful sets. There was expansion in all areas of work.
"If you can demonstrate to solicitors that you have strength in depth and ability, the work will come. If they ask for A, but A is not available, you can tell them that you have B and C working in the same group. Smaller sets do not have any other options, so solicitors will go elsewhere."
The proposed union has provoked discussion among Leeds' other sets. Sovereign's Slater says it is hard to see how the commercial credentials of the set will be complemented by merging with a family and matrimonial chambers: "I would have thought that if 10 Park Square is looking for merger, it would pick a partner that complements all its existing areas. This proposal could give a very mixed message to the city's big six commercial solicitors."
His colleague, commercial barrister Darren Finlay, adds: "Of all the merger partners they could have picked, this appears to least fit its strategy."
But 10 Park Square disputes this, claiming 30 Park Square's area of practice does complement its own and that a merger will allow it to expand all its specialist teams, including chancery/ commercial.
While 10 Park Square is seeking to grow through a merger other commercial sets are the result of a different type of growth: offshoots of chambers from other cities.
Enterprise Chambers is developed from the commercial/chancery set in London of the same name. And 5 Park Place, an annexe to Manchester's 40 King Street, was set up in Leeds two years ago with three full-time barristers.
Commercial clerk at 40 King Street, Colin Griffin says: "We were doing increasing amounts of work in Leeds, especially in the Mercantile Court and it is a way of opening an eastern corridor towards Newcastle." Enterprise Chambers already has a set in Newcastle. It has five tenants and believes it has a distinct Leeds identity.
Insolvency barrister, Hugo Groves explains: "There are some sets from London with a post-box operation up here, but no separate identity.
"Our London members work mainly in London. Leeds members work mainly in Leeds and Newcastle, but we do offer cross-fertilisation.
"It is our intention to offer the best of both worlds."