Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) has completed its first panel review with the appointment of nine firms – including two Magic Circle firms, it confirmed today.

Four firms have retained places on the roster and five new firms have been appointed.

The original panel, which was appointed in 2014 and later extended for another two years in 2017, comprised: Addleshaw Goddard, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Osborne Clarke, CMS, Kennedys, and Scottish firms Gillespie Macandrew and Thorntons.

Of those, only Freshfields, Addleshaws, CMS and Gillespie were retained. The new panel sees the addition of Dentons, DLA Piper, Linklaters, MacRoberts and TLT.

The FTSE-100 energy giant began its first panel review in September last year, with 40 firms applying to take part in the process.

In a statement, SSE deputy general counsel, Stuart Waddell said: "We had significant interest in the panel and believe that that we have found a strong combination of firms to support the SSE businesses.

"The key objective in establishing the new panel was to appoint firms that not only deliver excellence in service, but which also reflect SSE's values and support SSE's ambition to deliver the low carbon infrastructure needed to help the UK reach net zero emissions."

The new panel covers the company's U.K. legal services and will go live in March 2020 for a three-year term, with the option to extend for a further two years.

The panel firms were appointed to act in specialisms covering commercial, property and contentious areas of work covering SSE's regulated and unregulated businesses.

Freshfields has advised the company on M&A since 2014, including on the merger of its retail operations with Npower's in 2017.

Meanwhile, Gillespie previously focused on Scottish property while Addleshaws and CMS advised the company on construction, corporate, finance and other litigation matters.

SSE has revenues of more than £31 billion and more than 20,000 employees.