Appleby has confirmed coming layoffs at the Victoria Street law firm, one of the world’s largest offshore firms.

The move comes as observers cite concerns over the future of the economy, with forecasts of an impending recession in the United States and Europe that could impact employment trends here and abroad.

A new survey this week reported global CEOs’ pessimism that economic growth will decline in the year ahead.

Bermuda managing partner Brad Adderley yesterday put the redundancies down to an internal reorganisation.

He said: “We are in the process of reorganising and streamlining some of our business support departments, with the possibility of no more than six support role redundancies. No lawyers are affected and we continue to expand our legal teams.”

Earlier this week Appleby, formed on the island more than 125 years ago, announced they were strengthening their legal team with three new lawyers working in insolvency, corporate and commercial law and technology.

There are reports that some of the staff who have lost jobs have already been notified.

Two months ago, Jason Hayward, the Minister of Economy and Labour, reported that Bermuda’s economy contracted by 1.7 per cent in the second quarter 2022.

Despite the lack of growth, Mr Hayward insisted that the island’s economy was “trending positively” and was on “a good trajectory”.

Appleby have more than 200 lawyers and 450 staff in more than ten different countries, providing corporate and commercial legal services as well as litigation and insolvency advice.

Appleby cut 11 jobs in 2011 and six in 2012.