Our Heritage: Nearly 200 years in the heart of London
London is one of the world’s great cities, a place where history has been made for more than 2,000 years. It’s also a fast-moving place that has witnessed enormous change in its time as an important business hub.
Not everything changes, though. Sometimes, in the midst of all that progress, you find businesses with a long and proud history that have managed to stay fresh and relevant through the decades.
Underwood & Co is such a firm. We were established by our founder, Charles Underwood, in 1845, early in the reign of Queen Victoria.
Through the rest of the 19th century, three generations of Charles’s family delivered legal services to professionals and wealthy families in the West End of London – then, as now, a bustling quarter of this great city.
The values that underpin our outstanding advice and personal service to loyal clients to this day were established in those early exchanges. They have remained at our core during the decades since.
During the 20th century, Underwood & Co grew and diversified its portfolio and began to serve enterprises including retail businesses, banks and hotels, as well as professionals such as property investors, accountants, surveyors, doctors and dentists.
It was in 1998 that Underwood & Co merged with Corbould Rigby & Co, a firm with an equally long heritage. That combination saw our expertise broaden even further to cover property consultancy, landed estates, trusts and probate.
Underwood & Co became a Limited Liability Partnership in 2004, well before many other professional service businesses.
Our long heritage gives us the expertise, confidence and values that underpin our status as a leading provider of commercial law services.
Underwoods have been my legal advisors and represented me in both personal and company related matters for close to two decades. Over the years I have always received the most thoughtful and well-crafted advice from several different lawyers with the firm, covering both private and business situations. Consequently I have never hesitated to suggest the firm to friends and colleagues whenever I have been asked to recommend a good lawyer.”
Islamic Art Consultantcy