DWF boss Matt Doughty on life after listing and why most firms aren't ready for PE

In this episode, we sit down with DWF CEO Matt Doughty to discuss what comes next for the UK’s biggest private equity-owned law firm.

We discuss DWF’s positioning today: a 5,000-strong global business generating more than £500 million in revenue, split roughly 50-50 between insurance services and commercial legal work. Doughty explains why the firm is doubling down on five core market groups and why “discipline” and clarity about a firm’s “right to win” matter more than chasing the latest trend.

A major theme of the conversation is, understandably, capital. Doughty revisits DWF’s 2019 IPO - the largest law firm listing at the time - and what life was really like as a public company, from market disclosures to share price scrutiny. He reflects on the challenges of telling a complex equity story to investors, the impact of macroeconomic headwinds, and what ultimately changed when private equity firm Inflexion took the business private in 2023.

Now operating under PE backing, Doughty outlines why he believes private equity isn’t right for every firm, and why he doesn’t expect a “tidal wave” of investment into Big Law.

The Non-Billable Podcast is sponsored by Legora, the legal AI platform used by leading law firms and in-house teams.

Chapters

00:01 Introduction
01:20 Taking over as CEO and following Nigel Knowles
02:45 Leadership style and protecting DWF’s culture
06:32 DWF today: insurance, commercial and global scale
09:34 The five market groups driving growth
13:12 Why DWF chose to IPO in 2019
15:46 Life as a listed law firm: governance and share price pressure
24:22 Going private: the Inflexion deal and PE backing
34:21 Why private equity isn’t right for every law firm