Axiom has become the latest legal sector player to launch in Belfast after securing local government funding of £1.6m to open a new base.

The new office, which is set to employ 15 lawyers from launch, will be the fourth base for Axiom's managed services business, which provides legal advice on drafting, negotiating and the execution of all types of contracts.

Invest Northern Ireland (NI) will provide up to £1.1m in financing for the launch, while Northern Ireland's Department of Employment and Learning will supply an additional £500,000 for skills development under its Assured Skills programme.

The firm secured the funding after agreeing to create 102 jobs in the local economy by the end of 2014. The centre's staff will acting as primary, client-facing, fee-earning teams for Axiom clients.

According to the company, Axiom's clients include nearly half the Fortune 100 and a substantial portion of the FTSE 100, serviced from 10 existing offices and three delivery centres. Axiom launched the managed services business around two years ago, alongside its 12-year old secondment business. Axiom's existing delivery centres are based in India and the US, in Texas and Illinois.

Axiom said it also considered other locations for the centre including Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol and Leeds, with Cape Town in South Africa and the expansion of its existing centre in India also mooted.

However, the firm said it chose Belfast based on the availability of graduates, the quality of the local legal talent pool, cost efficiency and financial support packages on offer.

London-based general manager Chris DeConti told Legal Week: "The other UK bases had the benefit of closer proximity to London but we were persuaded by the talent pool in Belfast and a real ambition by the candidates we interviewed in our due diligence process to take part of innovation in the legal industry."

"We will be paying these lawyers really competitively, which is clearly less than they would be paid in London but really good rates based on the local market."

Axiom is headquartered in New York but has a substantial business in the UK, with around 150 employees in London.

Northern Ireland enterprise minister Arlene Foster said: "This significant investment by an innovative, global company is testament to the reputation of Northern Ireland's workforce. The new centre will employ over 100 lawyers and paralegals and pay salaries significantly above the Northern Ireland private sector median, contributing almost £4m a year to the local economy."

The news comes after top City law firms Allen & Overy and Herbert Smith both set up support centres in Belfast last year after securing funding from local authorities in return for creating jobs in the city.