X
Register for free to receive latest news stories direct to your inbox
Register
In a new series of features, we visit prominent companies that have recently relocated in Birmingham, giving you an exclusive look inside their new space as well as their plans for the region.
From a slightly dated boutique space in Blythe Valley that used to serve as Fieldfisher’s regional office, the European law firm has arrived in the heart of Birmingham’s city centre.
Ranjit Dhindsa
The move to striking new offices in Birmingham’s prime Paradise development at 2 Chamberlain Square isn’t just a relocation, it’s a declaration of intent.
Giving me an exclusive tour of the space, Birmingham office leader Ranjit Dhindsa explained the significance of moving into the city’s professional services cluster, and how their fabulous launch party — hosting over 200 business leaders as well as partners from the firm’s European offices — felt like the firm had truly arrived in the region.
“We were so pleased because people came to the opening who we wouldn’t normally see, some big names in the city as well,” Dhindsa said. “All that effort we put in for 18 months, two years –by the time we arrived, it really felt good. It’s just created excitement and momentum.”
The European spine
Discussing what sets the firm apart, Dhindsa’s vision for the Birmingham office is clear: Fieldfisher’s strategy is distinctly European rather than global. With 28 offices across 14 countries, the UK remains its largest market, and the firm focuses on a “spine” through England with its presence in London, Birmingham and Manchester.
Dhindsa with guests and entertainers at the office launch party on 5 March
The decision to finally enter the city proper, after starting in Coventry and later moving to Blythe Valley, came alongside a fortuitous alignment with mayor Richard Parker’s West Midlands Growth Plan.
“We had a look at the West Midlands Combined Authority’s current Growth Plan for the next five years,” said Dhindsa. “It was amazing how it almost aligned with our growth plan in terms of our sectors and routes to market in this region.”
The tech and life sciences sectors are among the focus areas for the new Birmingham base.
“Tech is huge for us as a firm, and the tech scene in Birmingham is growing,” Dhindsa noted. “Where the amount of growth might be smaller here compared to London, the opportunity is so much bigger. You’ve got cyber, you’ve got health tech, you’ve got med tech, fintech —all these clusters are here.”
Given the mention of med tech and health tech, it’s easy to see why life sciences are a natural focus area in addition to tech. Dhindsa said about the sector: “With the innovation, the research, the spin offs, that is just a great, big opportunity for us. So that was really exciting.”
This focus on tech is reflected in the firm’s launch of a dedicated Birmingham ‘Super Tech’ team that has formed as part of its wider European tech group.
Dhindsa also mentioned that a big motivator for the move was that some of Fieldfisher’s most prominent clients had been moving to Birmingham. “We want to be close to all our intermediaries. We’re just following the business,” she said. “We would be mad not to be here.”
She added: “We want our clients to come into Birmingham, see their lawyer, see their banker, see their surveyor, and that’s what this cluster is doing here. So already, it’s like we’re a new business. Since we moved here, it’s just so much easier.”
A city centre game-changer
In terms of change and strategic planning, Dhindsa mentions an almost ‘blue skies’ style approach: “I remember my managing partner saying, ‘Don’t go with the mindset that you are an existing business. Go with the mindset that you are a new business. You’re in a new location, in a new office, got a new market. Imagine we’ve got a blank page. What shall we do?’”
The strategy seems to have paid off, with Dhindsa describing the new office as a “game changer” that has caused a cultural shift.
“Although we’ve only been here since February, I can see the change in people. They’re still great lawyers, but they’re changing. I was saying to them, ‘Network, network, network’, now that we’re in the middle of this community. In fact I don’t have to say anything now –it’s almost like their energy is focused.” 
The office itself was a stroke of luck, as the previous tenant, a financial services firm, left behind high-quality furniture and a considered design, saving the firm a significant sum that was instead channelled into advanced technology.
“We’ve got to give up the old ways,” said Dhindsa, expressing a desire to want to be known as a technologically advanced firm.
The result is a fit-for-purpose, highly flexible workspace built with movable screens, desks with adjustable height, and plug-and-play technology allowing staff to work from different spaces around the office.
“Everything’s sleek and it just fit,” said Dhindsa. “From the staff point of view, it feels like, ‘We are valued; Fieldfisher appreciates our work’. And it creates FOMO –you want to be here.”
“I might be in my honeymoon period,” Dhindsa laughed, “but I think this is going to last.”
In addition to the practical elements, a staff common area with kitchen facilities, table tennis, and cafe-style booths provides a relaxed communal environment. It’s also perfect for celebrations such as the team Eid party hosted by the office in March.
A dedicated welfare and cultural room, with integrated washing facilities, provides private space for prayer or quiet reflection. And easily one of the most striking features of the office is the panoramic view of Chamberlain Square, from a lounge area that can be used for events or more informal hosting.
Hunting for good talent
Fieldfisher is positioning itself as a challenger in the Birmingham legal market, offering specialist services it believes are under-served including tax litigation, international arbitration, competition law and privacy law. “It’s a wide open market for this,” Dhindsa said.
Along with its expertise in business transformation and specialist disputes e.g. for tax, IP, competition, or property, the firm also prides itself on its international mindset and network, actively pushing work from Europe, particularly Germany, into the regions rather than London.
Now that the doors are open, the focus has shifted unabashedly to growth.
“A lot of people are quite shy about saying they want to grow, but I will say it, unashamedly. I absolutely want good talent.”
Beyond the law, the firm is embedding itself into the corporate and social fabric of the city. Plans are in place to host at least two community or business events a month, ranging from a book launch on imposter syndrome in leadership to initiatives with local charities and Birmingham Children’s Hospital. “Our diary if full of community,” said Dhindsa.
As the professional services cluster around Paradise strengthens, Fieldfisher is betting that offering a blend of European connectivity, legal specialisms, and a prime city centre base will attract both the talent and the clients it needs for its next chapter in the region.
Register now to receive our free daily business news emails…