Turnover at the firm rose to £33.05m from £31.4m.

Writing in the review of the accounts, Lorne Crerar, chairman of Harper Macleod, said: “We have met and, in many cases, exceeded our strategic aims for the year. We believe our brand and the general well-being of the business has never been stronger as we look to the opportunities and challenges which will lie in the years ahead.

“As with previous financial years the market for legal services in Scotland continues to present the business with a series of interesting challenges. We continue to relentlessly focus upon delivery of high-quality legal services and in a cost-effective way for our expanding client base.

“We are supporters of the proposals for reform of legal services regulation which would put us on an equal footing with non-Scottish domiciled law firms operating in our jurisdiction. Our wellbalanced and varied service lines will help us face the challenges of emerging economic headwinds.”

He added: “It follows that despite the risks and uncertainties of the short and medium term, we believe as the market continues to consolidate, we see opportunity to be a very different legal service offering in Scotland leading to positive outcomes for our stakeholders.

“We have established a very strong brand in Scotland that resonates our culture, and we look to continue to grow and sustain that brand through our innovative way of working and relentless focus on service delivery.”