SCOTTISH specialist criminal law firm MTM Defence Lawyers has received a Top Tier (Tier 1) legal accreditation in the The Legal 500 UK 2020. The award, which benchmarks the firm and puts it in the top 3 specialist criminal law firms in Scotland, comes as the firm announces the opening of its new London office to service its growing caseload from south of the border. This brings the total number of MTM offices to four – the others being Edinburgh, Glasgow and Falkirk. The firm is currently deriving around 10% of its revenue from London-based legal business.

The Legal 500 UK is the “industry bible” of the legal profession, and accreditation is based on a lengthy audit process involving assessors from the Legal 500 team and interviews with clients. Many of MTM’s referred cases come to the firm directly as a result of its accreditation, as well as personal recommendation.

In addition to being recognised by the Legal 500 UK 2020 as a Tier 1 firm nationally for its specialist criminal law expertise in the category “crime – general”, the firm is also ranked as a Tier 2 firm and recommended in the category “crime – fraud” for its work in fraud cases.

Commenting on the award and the opening of the London office, MTM director Neil Hay said: “This is seventh consecutive year in which MTM has been ranked by the Legal 500 UK, and it’s especially pleasing that we are judged to be one of the top 3 criminal law firms in Scotland, based on independent assessments. That is a huge recommendation in terms of client feedback and makes us all deeply aware of how the firm is trusted by clients across the UK and internationally to deliver the best results in all Scottish courts. The opening of our London office is based on the growing number of cases and clients from London and internationally who require our services and our presence in London.

Neil Hay continued: “The firm is seeing more and more complex cases where criminal charges are brought against people that can have major impacts on personal and professional lives in cases that often involve family law issues, as well as property and cross-border issues. Many of these cases are often referred to us by top Scottish law firms and top London law firms.”