Who are we?

History of Lester Aldridge

Lester Aldridge was founded in 1796.

The firm as it is now traces its origins to the merger of two large Bournemouth firms in 1988. Our perception of the legal marketplace was that clients wanted to achieve the quality of service provided by City of London firms but at a much more competitive price. At the same time there was a stream of talented lawyers wanting to leave the City for a more balanced lifestyle. We believed that we could harness that talent and build a firm that would be a true partnership between clients and lawyers.

The newly merged firm put into effect an ambitious plan to become a regional, national (and in some areas, international) provider of core legal services with additional niche markets such as charities, marine, contentious trust and probate, asset finance and volume debt recovery. The firm now has four offices in Bournemouth, Bournemouth International Airport, and Southampton and, following a merger in 2004, London.

Whilst we have faced competition from larger national firms, we have succeeded in offering something to our clients that others have not - a genuine partnership. This results in very close links with our clients, so that their problems become our opportunities to offer assistance and as a result forge a valuable relationship between their organisation and us.

In 2006, we took steps to change our status from a traditional partnership to that of a limited liability partnership as part of a financial review. We are a financially sound business whose breadth of service ensures we are well equipped to deal with the current economic conditions. All our clients need to be assured that any offer put forward is both sustainable and viable.