The firm, which was founded in 1955 and employs 22 staff, attributes its strong performance to continued demand across a broad range of legal services, including residential and commercial property, employment, family law, dispute resolution and commercial litigation.

Managing partner Linda Fyffe, who has been with the firm for 13 years, acknowledged that the year brought its share of difficulties. Rising interest rates, the ongoing cost-of-living pressures and global instability all created uncertainty in the property market, which accounts for half of Laurie & Co’s business. “There’s always challenges in any business, you just can’t drop the ball,” she said.

Despite a degree of caution in the Aberdeen market, still recovering from the impact of the 2015 oil price crash, Ms Fyffe identified Royal Deeside as a particularly resilient area. The Aboyne and Ballater offices have benefited from steady demand, driven in part by buyers seeking second homes in an area with strong royal associations.

“It’s quite affluent out there,” she told The Press and Journal, describing the Deeside market as “buoyant” in contrast to the more subdued city market. She added, however, that Aberdeen itself has shown renewed confidence this year, with more closing dates and a positive outlook for the months ahead.

Ms Fyffe is clear that with many smaller practices being absorbed by larger firms, she believes there is real value in remaining at a scale that allows the firm to offer competitive fees without compromising on quality.

“We want to stay at a size we can still offer value for money to clients,” she said, “and they’re not having to pay big firm prices, but they’re still getting the same quality of service”.