Shepherd and Wedderburn have shelved plans for a firm wide Christmas party this year.

The Firm has been told that Shepherd and Wedderburn, which has 70 partners and employs almost 600 staff, have made the decision as part of a series of measures to restrict overheads during the current economic depression.

It is understood that S+W’s Edinburgh office will now have no formally arranged Christmas event for staff.

Earlier this month, Macleod and McAllum in Inverness warned of the likelihood of redundancies across the highlands, and several firms across Dundee and the central belt have either made staff redundant or deferred traineeship placements, as the economic impact of the banking sector’s restrictions on lending ripples through the economy.

Shepherd and Wedderburn did confirm that the firm-wide event would not be taking place, but added that ther would still be events taking place.

"This year we will not be holding a firm wide Christmas party, however, there will be a series of divisional Christmas nights out taking place so all staff will still have the opportunity to go out and have an enjoyable night with their colleagues over the festive period," they said.