Travers chief to serve two more years ahead of return to practice

Travers Smith managing partner Andrew Lilley has been re-elected for a second term at the City firm's helm.

Lilley (pictured) will take up his position on 1 January 2013 after receiving the backing of partners, who were consulted over the summer by senior partner Chris Carroll.

He will take up a reduced period of two years – rather than three – when his current term formally expires, at which point he intends to return to full-time fee earning.

Lilley, who was head of the firm's employment practice before taking up the managing partner role, has continued to fee earn throughout his time as managing partner.

He said: "With my term coming to an end at the close of 2012, I was pleased to offer to carry on in the role for a further two years with a view to returning to full-time client work from January 2015.

"An absence of more than five years from full-time client work would make that harder to achieve. In terms of strategy for the firm over the next couple of years, we are not planning any U-turns.

"Building on the success of last year, we will continue to focus on the practice areas where we excel, investing further in our sector initiative which enhances our understanding of the business arenas in which our clients operate in the UK and internationally."

The news comes as the firm is gearing up to elect a new senior partner, with incumbent Carroll set to step down next summer. He has already stated that he will not run again.

Travers reported very strong results for 2011-12, with an 18% increase in revenue taking turnover to £83.8m up from £71m in 2010-11. Profits per equity partner climbed 24% to £804,000 over the period, up from £650,000 in 2010-11.