NORTH-EAST law firm Clark Willis is expanding one of its regional bases and has plans to expand another.

Earlier this month, the firm expanded beyond its original base in Darlington's Bondgate to take another office in the town's Valley Street, and is increasing its present workforce of 60.

Nineteen people will be based in new premises, which include the housing and personal injury claims departments.

Clark Willis is also looking to move to new premises to enable it to expand its operation on the Army base at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, from where its conducts property, family and courts martial work.

Jonathan Willis, managing partner at the firm, said Clark Willis was already looking to build on its recent expansion.

"In Darlington, we really needed more space and very quickly, as a result of an increase in work volumes, but now we need to look at the future and how we can move on from here," he said.

"Our plans are to ultimately bring us back under the same roof, which may include new purpose- built premises."

"In Catterick, the building we occupy is quite old, and although it's in the centre, it does not lend itself well to modern working methods.

"In due course we will need to consider perhaps something more suitable but, for the time being, we are prioritising our resources in Darlington." Clark Willis is expanding on the back of increased quantities of Legal Aid work.

It is the only firm in Darlington to hold more than four licences to conduct Legal Aid work under the LSC Unified Contract, holding them in the family, crime, housing, mental health and mediation categories of law.

New appointments have been made in the housing, criminal, family and property departments, increasing the number of lawyers at the firm to 26.

Paul Smith, partner in the firm and head of civil litigation, said: "It was a difficult decision, we felt you either had to be totally committed to Legal Aid or not, and we realised that it was not sensible just to dabble in it."

Clark Willis also has an office in Billingham, near Stockton, where the firm was established in about 1965 by John Willis.

His son, Jonathan, took over the business in 1993 when he was with his then business partner, Colin Clark, in Darlington's Duke Street.

The two later joined with Peter Wastnedge in the firm's present Bondgate base in 1995. There are now five partners - Jonathan Willis, Peter Furness, Phillip Duffy, Christopher Bunting and Paul Smith.