Anthony Hughes graduated from Sheffield University with an LLB (Hons) and has worked with a number of leading Manchester law firms, becoming a partner in 1995 and a managing partner in 2001. He practised in the litigation sector, specialising in insurance disputes—primarily of a casualty and regulatory nature.
When Peter Rickson retired in 2001, Anthony succeeded him as managing partner of what became Ricksons, taking the firm from around £5million per annum in fee income to around £14 million by 2006, at which point he agreed a merger with DWF.
Having sat on the board at DWF for two years, Anthony was invited to become CEO of Horwich Farrelly, which he did in May 2009. During his tenure he oversaw large scale change and growth of the business from around £18 million to around £23 million, converting the business into an ABS and running a process with KPMG for external investment.
In January 2014, Anthony formed Jackson Hughes Consulting, offering strategic consultancy advice to the legal, insurance and claims sectors, and has been involved in a number of projects since, including specific merger and acquisition activity.
In February 2019, he joined Simpson Millar as COO. One of his key areas of responsibility was growing the business by acquisition and during his time with the firm he completed various deals as well as overseeing operational changes, including a re-design of the Target Operating Model and helping navigate the business through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anthony is currently commercial officer with Keller Postman, a US-backed law firm specialising in group actions and consumer redress. He was invited to take over as chair and CEO of The CHO in August 2022, a role he does alongside that with Keller Postman.
Anthony has always been an active member of the business community and was on the board of Preston North End Football Club as a non-executive director from 2004 to 2022. He has held a number of other non-executive positions at organisations such as S&G Response, Infinity Underwriting, Zebra Legal Consulting and Pareto Financial Planning. Anthony remains a non-executive director of niche insurance and mobility services provider Driver Further.
