South: Legal funder Doorway assists Moore Barlow

Legal funding organisation Doorway Capital has completed on a significant financing deal for Moore Barlow, the full-service law firm resulting from the recent merger of Hampshire and London-based Moore Blatch and Surrey-based Barlow Robbins.

The announcement sees Doorway acquire disbursements worth in excess of £3 million in a move that demonstrates the company’s confidence that funding for law firms can be structured and completed, despite the considerable challenges brought about by Covid 19

Moore Barlow is one of the UK’s leading law firms, with a significant geographic footprint across the South East and serving clients nationally and internationally. With 70 partners and a total staff of nearly 500, Moore Barlow has offices in Southampton, Guildford, Woking and Lymington, as well as two locations in London (Richmond and the City).

Ed Whittington, managing partner of Moore Barlow, said: “We are delighted to have sold our disbursement book to Doorway in conjunction with the merger between Moore Blatch and Barlow Robbins, providing us with resilience in these challenging conditions.”

Steve Din, founder of Doorway, said: “We are particularly impressed with how the management team at Moore Barlow was able to resolve the operational challenges brought about by Coronavirus.

“We anticipate that as well as a permanent change in working habits, Covid 19 should likely bring about an acceleration in consolidation amongst law firms, and the physical space they need to occupy.”

The latest purchase for Doorway comes after it announced the launch of its unique finance package that allows law firms with litigation practices to sell their disbursement books outright in order to free up funds that can either be invested in more profitable pursuits or returned to equity partners.

Ray Black, partner and chief executive of Barlow Robbins, said: “I am pleased that organisations like Doorway are continuing to provide merger and other strategic funding in these difficult times. This has been a very positive move to create a firm platform for stability and future growth for Moore Barlow.”