City media boutique Wiggin has become the latest law firm to confirm plans to take advantage of the Legal Services Act (LSA) with the addition of a non-lawyer CEO to its partnership.

The firm has appointed longstanding COO John Banister (pictured) as CEO and its first non-lawyer partner. The move, which has been approved by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), saw Wiggin convert to a legal disciplinary partnership (LDP) on 1 December last year.

The firm is currently reviewing opportunities available to alternative business structures (ABSs) is planning to branch out beyond providing legal advice. It intends to submit an ABS licence application before October this year, as is required by all LDPs with non-lawyer partners.

Wiggin already has plans to launch a strategic media consultancy arm, and is also considering other services that would be "complementary" to its legal services. The firm also recently launched a free contract drafting services on its website dubbed the 'Wiggin Widget'.

Banister has previous experience of running a multidisciplinary practice, having been COO of legacy K-Legal – the former legal network associated with accountancy giant KPMG – between 2000 and 2003. Before that he was also a business manager with Linklaters and Merrill Lynch.

Wiggin, which is based in London but also has an office in Cheltenham, specialises in the music, film, TV, digital media, sport, betting and gaming, technology and publishing industries, with high-profile clients including Manchester United, 20th Century Fox, Paramount, ITV and Virgin Media.

Commenting on the conversion plans, Banister said: "We already run ourselves as a fairly corporate practice anyway. We need to convert before October but are not in a particular rush. We are not currently looking at taking external capital but rather at widening our services beyond the traditional law firm scope."

"We are in the process of creating other businesses which are complementary to the legal practice. This includes strategic consultancy advice as we have become experts on the sector and are not just lawyers."

In separate news, Wiggin last week announced the hire of BBC Worldwide's former head of business and legal affairs for digital and media technology David Deakin, with the lawyer joining to expand the firm's practice in broadcast and digital and develop Wiggin's digital client base.

The LSA went live 6 October 2011, enabling non-lawyers to wholly own legal practices for the first time. LDPs may have 25% non-lawyer ownership until a deadline of October this year, when they are required to convert to ABS status.

News emerged yesterday (24 January) that Liverpool law firm Silverbeck Rymer is set to be acquired by software and outsourcing firm Quindell Portfolio in a £19.3m deal, creating a combined insurance claims outsourcing operation.

The acquisition will be one of the first instances in the UK of a legal practice being acquired by a quoted plc and will require approval from the SRA.