Jordans, the Bristol-based corporate information group, has launched a corporate law business to offer legal support services to companies across the UK.
The group has set up Jordans Corporate Law under the Alternative Business Structure arrangements, which encourage new entrants into the legal market. 
However, it stressed it would not be in conflict with legal firms but would support them by helping them lower costs through outsourcing services.
Jordans Corporate Law will supply a wide range of corporate legal, governance and compliance services from its Bristol base where it employs a 20-strong team of lawyers, paralegals and corporate compliance experts, led by a senior lawyer Debbie Farman.
The firm’s launch last night at Bristol’s M Shed museum was attended by many of the region’s top legal and accountancy professionals.
Jordans already works for 75% of the UK’s leading law firms and accountancy practices as well as an increasing number of corporates.
Ms Farman is confident that it can extend the work they already do for these companies.
“Jordans is a highly-respected name nationally and internationally,” she said.
“It totally understands how the worlds of accountancy and law operate and it’s a company that people already trust and want to work with.
“That trust will be critical as we will be extending our offer and looking to provide a lot of additional support services – such as corporate and commercial legal advice, and non-contentious litigation work.”
Jordans CEO Nick Rees added: “We certainly haven’t entered into this new arena lightly – not least because of the potential for conflict of interests with those clients who already offer similar services.
“Indeed, what we will be offering – and how we offer it – has been largely determined by what our clients have asked us for.
“We feel we can complement what they do because our role is to provide services they already cover but where they need to work hard to manage their margins.
“We are here to continue to support businesses, not to compete with them. By outsourcing services through us, their costs and time frames will be guaranteed – and so too will the quality.”
Jordans Corporate Law joins a growing number of legal firms basing themselves in Bristol. London-based international firm Simmons & Simmons opened an office in Bristol two years ago, and Exeter law firm Foot Anstey has doubled the size of its Bristol since opening.
Jordans is one of the oldest companies working in the legal field. It was established 150 years ago and is among the world’s best known names in law and accountancy publishing, the UK’s leading property search provider for UK conveyancers, forms over 25,000 UK companies every year and also provides a huge range of compliance services.
It employs 185 people at its Bristol headquarters.
