Commercial litigation and insurance firm Kennedys has stormed into the top 50 after significant UK expansion saw it achieve a 30% hike in turnover during 2008-09.

The firm's revenue hit £67.3m over the last financial year, up from £51.5m the previous year – giving it the biggest revenue growth in the top 50. It was also among the fastest growing by profit per equity partner after a 16% increase from £300,000 to £350,000.

Kennedys attributes much of its performance to two UK acquisitions – the first, its July 2008 takeover of Reynolds Porter Chamberlain's Tiverton office, the second its merger with insurance boutique Davies Lavery in September that year. In 2007-08, Davies Lavery had a turnover of £9m.

2008-09 marked the culmination of years of investment by Kennedys, which decided some 15 years ago to focus its business around dispute resolution, a strategy which last year paid dividends, with disputes work bringing in £58.3m of the firm's turnover.

When senior partner Nick Thomas (pictured) joined Kennedys in 1977 the firm housed just seven lawyers. Today the firm has 121 partners and 360 lawyers, excluding paralegals and trainees, working across eight offices in the UK and six international bases.

Thomas told Legal Week: "Last year was the first full year that we have had much of our recent investment in place. Since around 15 years ago when we decided to concentrate on our core business we have regularly seen growth of 20%-30% a year."

And Kennedys is not planning to stop now. Earlier this month it appointed Burges Salmon's former managing partner, Guy Stobart, as its new chief executive and Thomas anticipates further expansion.

He added: "The consolidation in the insurance industry and the move to panels has meant the small insurance firm is increasingly less viable which will give us opportunities to expand further as good people look to join us."