Fieldfisher has opened a new legal solutions hub in Belfast, setting its sights on headcount of 125 at the base within the next three years.

Northern Ireland's economic development agency, Invest NI, handed over £630,000 of funding to the office.

The new office, designed to house staff working in legal and risk management as well as technical and business support roles, has initially launched with 14 staff.

Fieldfisher expects to increase headcount almost 10-fold to 125 within three years, with about 90 hires expected to happen this financial year.

Fieldfisher managing partner Michael Chissick told Legal Week that he sees the firm's tech, real estate, financial markets and litigation practices making a lot of use of the Belfast base.

On what motivated the move, Chissick added: "The financial incentive was a sweetener, with the grant from Invest NI. But it was also the graduate talent. We're hungry for talented, energetic people to join us. Belfast has Queens University and Ulster University here, both producing a number of talented graduates – and many of our legal professionals here will be predominately law grads wanting to get into law."

The office launch follows similar moves by firms such as Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Clifford Chance, Hogan Lovells, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner and Herbert Smith Freehills, which have all opened volume service centres outside of London to improve efficiencies.

Fieldfisher's established its Belfast presence last year when it linked up with local nearshoring service provider Donaldson Legal Consulting (DLC), providing the firm with wider negotiation and documentation capabilities. 

Under the initiative, DLC head Alison Donaldson will become managing partner of Fieldfisher Belfast, and will also oversee operations at Fieldfisher's alternative legal services platform, Condor, which launched in January 2017.