Vidisha Joshi—Hodge Jones & Allen

Pioneering London law firm, Hodge Jones & Allen has appointed 38-year-old Vidisha Joshi to be its new managing partner, making her one of the youngest lawyers in the country to run a major firm.

Senior partner Patrick Allen, will hand over the role on 3 January 2017, having been in the job for the last 40 years since opening the firm. He will retain his role as senior partner and chair of the firm’s management board.

It has been a meteoric rise for personal injury solicitor Vidisha Joshi. She joined the firm in 2012 to implement a new case management system across the firm, which she delivered in just six months, a year ahead of schedule.

A year later she was promoted to associate and after a further 12 months later to partner. In 2015, she was promoted a third time to head the firm’s largest department—personal injury—also joining the firm’s board as an equity partner.

Vidisha will carry on leading the firm’s PI team and acting for clients, particularly in relation to accidents in public places. Current cases include acting on behalf of the husband of a woman who was killed in Knightsbridge by a falling tree during Hurricane Gonzalo.  

Vidisha says: “It’s been a real journey in a short space of time. I joined Hodge Jones & Allen because I fully believed in the firm’s ethos. We have a rich heritage of fighting for justice and I am passionate about becoming one of the guardians of that legacy. I am excited about steering our brilliant people through the firm’s next evolution.

“Undoubtedly, the firm’s partnership will continue to face challenges but we have successfully adapted to survive fundamental changes over the last two decades including the loss of most legal aid and the LASPO reforms. We have coped with intensifying competition and regulatory and funding changes and are stronger for it. Our highly analytical approach gives us insight into how our business runs and with it comes the ability to make well-informed decisions, while ensuring we remain relevant to the people whose rights we are fighting for.”

Patrick says: “I am immensely proud of what the firm has achieved since I set it up with Henry Hodge and Peter Jones in 1977. It has been incredible to be part of creating legal history with many groundbreaking cases which have helped people to overcome adversity.  We have attracted amazing lawyers to the firm and trained many more.

“As senior partner, I will continue to play a key role in the business and its future strategy. I am confident that with Vidisha the firm has a great leader with the drive and determination to take it forward and continue the fight for justice for our clients by using the law to improve their lives.”