DLA Piper has posted marginally improved financial results its global business, with fee income for 2013 up by less than 2% from $2.44bn (£1.46bn) last year to $2.48bn (£1.48bn).

Profit per equity partner (PEP) was $1.32m (£790,000), up by just 1% on last year's figure of $1.31m (£784,000). But the PEP figure was aided by a drop in equity partner headcount from 461 to 454, with the firm's net profit slightly down, standing at $602m (£360m).

The relatively flat performance comes after last year's revenue and PEP figures saw upticks of 8.6% and 6.9% respectively.

Earlier this month, figures for DLA's international partnership, covering all the firm's operations outside of the US, showed overall turnover up by 1.5% to £800m.

Those results came in the wake of the announcement of a new management team for the firm, due to come into effect from May 2015.

Current co-chairman Tony Angel will step down from the role, to be replaced by current co-chief executive Sir Nigel Knowles. London-based IP partner Simon Levine will step into Knowles' CEO position.

Meanwhile, Americas co-chair and corporate and finance practice head Roger Meltzer will become joint global co-chair alongside Knowles, while Americas co-chair Jay Rains will step into the joint-CEO role alongside Levine. Angel's fellow global co-chair, Lee Miller, will remain at the firm in a senior advisory capacity.