Etnerprise Minister Arlene Foster with John Mallon and Kate Docherty of Axiom. PIC: PRESSEYE

ENTERPRISE, Trade and Investment Minister Arlene Foster today announced that Axiom is to create 97 new jobs over the next four years.

Axiom is an innovative provider of technology-enabled legal services and will create the new posts as part of a £9million investment in the local economy.

The firm comprises 1,200 lawyers, process engineers and technologists who serve over half the Fortune/FTSE 100 across 13 offices and five centres of excellence globally, including its Centre of Excellence in Belfast.

Arlene Foster said: “This announcement marks a substantial re-investment in Northern Ireland by an existing investor and is a very positive boost for our economy.

“With Invest Northern Ireland support, Axiom is investing in a major expansion creating 97 new jobs, which will bring valuable skills to the important legal services sector here.

“With roles available across a variety of functions, this investment will provide a wide range of opportunities for people at various stages of their career, from graduates to legal and other professionals.

“These are high quality positions with salaries well above the Northern Ireland private sector median, contributing an additional £3.9million every year to the local economy.”

The jobs will be created over the next four years, offering an average salary of £40,000. Invest NI is supporting the investment with an offer of £727,500.

Kate Docherty, Vice President of Client Delivery at Axiom said: “We have always aspired to transform the legal marketplace. The expansion of our Belfast Centre of Excellence is that aspiration realised.

“That expansion has been fuelled by the growth of our Managed Services business, including our recently announced $73 million partnership with one of the world’s largest banks to create an industry-leading approach to managing risk in derivatives and core contracting agreements.

“Not only does this innovative approach contribute to better risk mitigation and a more efficient legal process for our multi-national clients, but it provides our now growing number of employees in the region unprecedented access to a unique training curriculum designed to make them engaged partners with our clients.

“We are delighted by the success of our operation in Belfast and its contribution to our growth globally. Our expansion in this region is a testament not only to that growth, but to the skilled pool of available talent in Belfast who have made that success possible.”

The new jobs will include a mix of lawyers, negotiators and project managers as well as some additional roles in operations and legal technology.