Hill Dickinson LLP

General information

A history of excellence

Hill Dickinson’s journey began back in 1810, with the opening of a Liverpool legal practice by the firm’s founder, Edward Morrall. The practice quickly established itself as a leading maritime law firm, at a time when Liverpool was widely regarded as the second port of the British Empire.

Over the decades, the firm has continued to distinguish itself and has been involved in many famous cases during its two centuries of continuous legal practice. The most famous of these were the sinking of the Titanic and the sinking of the Lusitania.

The firm’s identity as ‘Hill Dickinson’ began to emerge in 1865, when John Edward Gray Hill joined the partnership. John Dickinson joined the firm in 1874, but it wasn’t until 1910 that the firm became ‘Hill Dickinson & Company.’ The most recent change of name to ‘Hill Dickinson LLP’ took place in 2005.

Building on strong foundations

To become the leading national and international firm it is today, Hill Dickinson has gone through a series of mergers and acquisitions. This includes the acquisition of London-based commodities practice, Middleton Potts, on 1 July 2009. This was a strategic acquisition for Hill Dickinson to boost its presence in the commodities sector and add further weight to its global reputation for shipping and transport work. Most recently, in July 2010, the firm acquired the Liverpool and Sheffield offices of Halliwells.

Firm future

From its beginnings in maritime law, the firm has grown to incorporate and be recognised for its expertise in seven practice areas: insurance; company and commercial; marine; employment and pensions; healthcare; property and construction; and professional risks.

We now have more than 190 partners and 1,300 people operating from offices in Liverpool, Manchester, London, Chester, Sheffield, Piraeus (Athens) and Singapore.

2010 marked Hill Dickinson's 200th anniversary, with celebrations of the firm's historical pedigree, current achievements and future aspirations. In the same year the firm was National law firm of the year at the Legal Business Awards 2010.

Hill Dickinson continues to expand and evolve, ensuring it has the global reach and breadth of expertise that clients expect of a forward-thinking law firm.