DWF has announced a 56% increase in its profit earnings per partner to £333,000 as turnover grew by more than £10m.

The law firm, which employs one-third of its 1,100 staff in Liverpool, increased its revenue in the year to April, 2010, to £71.5m – nearly £200,000 per lawyer.

Andrew Leaitherland, managing partner at DWF, said: “These are clearly a great set of results that, we believe, differentiate us from a large number of our competitors.

“The economic conditions for all of us have continued to be challenging but we have still managed to achieve significant growth both in revenue and margin.”

The growth has been in contentious areas, led by a 48% rise in revenues in its people practice group, which covers employment law and pensions.

Insurance and litigation, specialisms in Liverpool, were both strong with revenues up more than 20% in each area.

DWF is based in Manchester and also has offices in Leeds, London and Preston. Its 17% revenue growth saw it break into the top 50 law firms and it is targeting a place in the top 30.

Mr Leaitherland added: “I don’t see us taking our foot off the gas, both in terms of growing our headcount and our revenue.

“I firmly believe that we are in an extremely strong position within the legal marketplace, especially with our sustained investment in our transactional and contentious teams. “Our commitment to clients continues to be paramount for us but it is our values that will differentiate us and provide the framework for our ambitious future growth as we strive for the status of a top 30 law firm.”