Four of the five equity partners have moved to firms who took on LLW’s work. Timothy Polding and Mr Rogers are at Oliver & Co in Chester, Anthony Marriott moved to Brown Turner, and Graham Smith is at St Helens-based Keith Park Solicitors. It is believed that the fifth partner, Martin Walker, is not currently practising.

In their report to creditors, LLW’s administrators said they understood “that the equity partners have insufficient personal assets to meet their individual liabilities, couple with their joint and several liability in respect of the overall partnership shortfall. We believe that they will shortly either propose an IVA or submit to bankruptcy proceedings.”

The administrators are investigating the circumstances in which LLW’s clients were transferred to other firms before the firm collapsed.

LLW’s partners have told the administrators they considered the transfers were “at best value” and protected clients.

But the administrators have appointed accountants Grant Thornton to appraise all six transfers to provide an “independent assessment” for LLW’s creditors.

The administrators are also looking into the termination of a long-standing contract LLW held with the Prison Officers’ Association (POA).

Mr Rogers had specialised in personal injury work for the POA for 17 years until the contract – which was described by a source close to the firm as “a significant part of LLW’s turnover” – was transferred to Thompsons Solicitors in July. DWF, the administrators’ solicitors, have been asked to consider “whether or not a breach of contract has taken place”.

The administrators are reviewing LLW’s trading history for the last two years, in response to a complaint about whether the partners continued to trade when they knew the firm was “destined for insolvency”. That is currently ongoing and an update is not expected at this stage.