A household legal name will return to the Edinburgh property market in a deal which sees Simpson & Marwick become part of the ambitious Aberdeins professional services firm.

Simpson & Marwick will go out on its own following an amicable de-merger from global law firm Clyde & Co.

The residential property specialist’s 26-strong team will move into dedicated new offices and will continue to focus on the buoyant property markets in Edinburgh and East Lothian.

The firm has one of the best recognised and most highly trusted names in the Scottish capital’s residential property market and traces its roots back to 1886. The residential property division was a niche area of the legal practice when Simpson & Marwick as a whole merged with and changed its name to Clyde & Co in 2015.

Simpson & Marwick Partner, Richard Loudon, who steps up to Chairman after 41 years with the firm, said: “We move with the full support of Clyde & Co as the services we offer are not part of their global core areas of expertise. The time is right, for both Clyde & Co and ourselves, to de-merge our residential property division.

“I am delighted that we can continue to protect the legacy of the Simpson & Marwick brand established in 1886. We will take it forward into a new era, unlike so many well established and respected Edinburgh law firms that have disappeared in recent years.”

Simpson & Marwick will become part of the Aberdeins group, the professional services firm launched earlier this month, with its founder Rob Aberdein joining Simpson & Marwick as Managing Partner.

Simpson & Marwick chairman Richard Loudon (left) and managing partner Rob Aberdein

The existing Simpson & Marwick team of Solicitor Director Bobby Fife and Property Directors, Louisa Raistrick, Katie Macdonald and Di Jennings, will continue to offer decades of combined legal and estate agency experience.

Bobby Fife added: “This is an exciting move for our entire team. The new firm will be traditional in terms of a relentless focus on client service, while also making use of cutting-edge technology.”

Clyde & Co’s commercial real estate team in Scotland is unaffected by the move.

Simpson & Marwick’s Edinburgh team will be moving to a new office in the city’s West End while its East Lothian office will remain at 88 High Street, North Berwick.

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