Wedlake Bell. Credit: New London Development

Top 100 firm Wedlake Bell has launched a redundancy consultation round for senior associates in its real estate and business disputes practices.

The consultation initially involved 15 senior associates – 10 in the real estate practice and five in the business disputes practice – the London firm's managing partner Martin Arnold told Legal Week. But that has since been whittled down to four positions — three in the commercial property team, and one in the property litigation team.

Arnold attributed the cuts to the firm's "top-heavy commercial property team structure".

"It is about business process and being able to supply the appropriate service to appropriate clients," Arnold said. "This resulted in the conclusion that we had a top-heavy structure in a couple of areas."

He said the 61-partner firm was "going through a proper process" and has "notified everyone at that level" of the consultation round, which he said encompassed only those at senior associate level, and not partners.

He stressed that the consultation round was not part of a "wider programme" of redundancies.

With revenues of £34 million, Wedlake Bell was ranked 80th in Legal Week's table of the U.K.'s top 100 firms for 2017-18. The single-office firm is based near Mansion House in London.