Introduction
This statement is made pursuant to section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes Irwin Mitchell LLP’s slavery and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 30 April 2018.
However, it should also be seen as reflective of the approach taken by the whole Irwin Mitchell Group of companies in ensuring there is transparency in the Group’s supply chains, responsible procurement of new suppliers and takings steps to prevent modern slavery.
Part of the Irwin Mitchell Group, Irwin Mitchell LLP is unique, both in its culture and its approach to law. Nationally acclaimed, with strong international capabilities, Irwin Mitchell LLP is one of a few law firms to provide a diverse range of legal services to businesses and private individuals. It has a strong customer service culture and a high level of client retention.
In December 2015 Irwin Mitchell merged with Thomas Eggar, creating the 11th largest law firm in the UK with 2966 colleagues which includes 243 Partners and 14 offices.
Our Structure
The company has a group structure with Irwin Mitchell Holdings Limited sitting above Irwin Mitchell LLP and a number of subsidiaries. It has an established office network covering Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Leeds, London, Gatwick, Manchester, Newcastle, Southampton, Chichester, Newbury, Sheffield, and a consulting office in Middlesbrough. Irwin Mitchell Scotland LLP is a separate Scottish legal practice regulated by the Law Society of Scotland and has an office in Glasgow.
Irwin Mitchell LLP provides a wide range of legal services to over 200,000 clients a year, with particular strengths in litigation. The firm is divided into three divisions: Personal Legal Services (PLS), Private Wealth Services (IMPW) and Business Legal Services (BLS). It adopts a partnership approach to its clients, underpinned by the latest technology, innovative pricing and excellent service delivery.
Our Group Policies
As part of our ongoing commitment to combating modern slavery, we have reviewed / are in the process of reviewing, and have updated, a number of our Group wide policies, including but not limited to:
- Whistleblowing Policy
- Anti-Bribery & Corruption Policy
- Procurement Policy
- Contracts Policy
- Employment and recruitment policies which comply with all UK law
Our Due Diligence Processes
As part of our efforts to monitor and reduce the risk of slavery and human trafficking occurring within our supply chain, we have taken the following steps:
- cleansed and consolidated financial data in respect of the Group’s suppliers;
- identified a sample of suppliers to our businesses by reference to level of annual financial spend;
- conducted a risk assessment of a sample of our suppliers including the nature / type of business and any adverse press / regulatory findings; and
- gathered information in respect of those suppliers in relation to either their own compliance with the Modern Slavery Act (where appropriate) and / or their commitment to ethical business practices and transparency in their own supply chains.
The firm and the Group as a whole have also enhanced its Procurement resource within the last twelve months so as to further strengthen our approach to ensuring transparency, and minimising the risk of modern slavery within its supply chain.
This, combined with a robust Contracts Policy and collaborative working amongst the Group Services function, will ensure that both now and in the future, the Group’s approach to the procurement and onboarding of new suppliers is robust, transparent and risk-based.
These steps have been taken to enable us to:
- establish and assess areas of potential risk in our businesses and supply chains;
- monitor potential risk areas in our businesses and supply chains;
- reduce the risk of slavery and human trafficking occurring in our businesses and supply chains; and
- provide adequate protection for whistleblowers.
Risk and compliance
Irwin Mitchell LLP and the Irwin Mitchell Group have taken steps to evaluate the nature and extent of its exposure to the risk of modern slavery occurring in its supply chain. We do not consider that the Irwin Mitchell Group operates in high-risk sectors or locations.
The Irwin Mitchell Group does not tolerate slavery and human trafficking within its supply chains and would immediately seek to terminate its relationship with a supplier where evidence of a failure to comply with the Group’s policies was discovered.
Andrew Tucker
Group Chief Executive
Irwin Mitchell LLP
October 2018
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