Better Business / Member news
‘Pioneering’ managing partner at Barcan+Kirby announces retirement
Bristol-based law firm Barcan+Kirby is celebrating the remarkable career of its managing partner, Bill Willcocks, who will retire from the partnership in March 2025 after 27 years with the firm.
Bill will continue to support the firm in a consultancy role, with current executive partner and family lawyer, Anna Wilson, set to succeed him as managing partner.
Since qualifying as a solicitor in 1994, Bill has specialised in personal injury and dispute resolution. He joined Kirby Simcox in 1998, became a partner in 2001, and assumed the role of managing partner in 2010 following a merger with Sheppard.
In 2015, Bill played a pivotal role in the successful merger with Barcan Woodward, forming Barcan+Kirby, and he has led the firm as managing partner since 2017.
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Under Bill’s leadership, Barcan+Kirby has flourished both commercially and culturally. The firm has experienced a 67 per cent increase in partners, alongside a significant shift towards gender diversity, growing from an 80 per cent male partnership to a 60 per cent female one.
The team has also expanded, with staff numbers rising by 34 per cent from 139 in 2015 to 186 in 2024.
Bill has been instrumental in broadening the firm’s scope beyond traditional high-street legal services, building a strong reputation in company and commercial law across Bristol and beyond.
Bill will be deeply missed by colleagues who describe him as an inspiring leader, a generous mentor, and a role model of professionalism, fairness, and warmth.
His calm, approachable manner, combined with his fantastic sense of humour, has made a lasting impact on everyone who has worked with him.
Bill said: “It has been a privilege to have been entrusted with the leadership of Barcan+Kirby, and before that, Kirby Simcox, for the last 13 years. Reflecting on how the firm has grown since 2001, when I was first appointed as a partner at Kirby Simcox, amazes me.
“I have had the privilege of working with some exceptional colleagues over the last 30 plus years since I qualified as a solicitor, sadly not all of whom are still with us. I have learned from each of them and hope I may have left a positive mark on others along the way.
“I leave the firm in very good hands as I retire, and I am confident that its culture will continue to thrive. Caring for and respecting one another—whether clients, colleagues, or the wider community—lies at the heart of everything we do, and I am proud to have played a part in that.
“Most of all, though, I am looking forward to not setting my alarm clock.”
Main photo: Barcan+Kirby
Barcan+Kirby are member of the Bristol24/7 Better Business network, an initiative to help businesses thrive while creating a positive impact on Bristol and the people who live here. As part of their membership, businesses can publish member news stories like this. For more information, visit my.bristol247.com/better-business
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