When the hurlyburly’s done – nationalism, devolution and another turbulent period for Scots law firms

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Devolution, nationalism and the dramatic shake-up in its political landscape – it’s been another turbulent period for Scots law firms.

In the early hours of 8 May, Alex Salmond, the former leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), delivered his victory speech after being returned to Westminster as MP for the constituency of Gordon, Aberdeenshire, ousting the Liberal Democrats from the seat.

‘There’s going to be a lion roaring tonight, a Scottish lion, and it’s going to roar with a voice that no government of whatever political complexion is going to be able to ignore,’ he declared.

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The prize – is team recruitment all it’s cracked up to be?

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For many ambitious law firms the holy grail of partner recruitment is the team hire. Legal Business asks if hiring en masse is all it’s cracked up to be.

A little over a decade ago structured finance partner Jonathan Walsh had reached the moment of truth after months of discussions. Walsh told his firm, Norton Rose, he was resigning along with fellow partners Vincent Keaveny, Bruce Somer and Simon Porter for Baker & McKenzie, taking a sizeable chunk of the firm’s City securitisation practice with it.

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Fault lines – tax, Brexit and what the general election means to City lawyers

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After a relatively stable coalition government, Britain goes to the polls amid huge uncertainty, with the main parties far apart on key policies. Legal Business assesses the manifestos to identify the issues impacting the City and the profession.

‘You can follow all the polls but the money is a much more reliable guide,’ observes one Magic Circle partner. ‘At Ladbrokes you can get the odds on who’s going to be prime minister after the election, but this is not on 8 May but August. They think it will take that long to sort it all out.’

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Go your own way – legal boutiques and the seductive appeal of being your own boss

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City lawyers are risking mega salaries to strike out on their own. Legal Business explores what is driving the current wave of boutiques and asks how these start-ups have fared.

Six-figure salaries, plush City offices, institutional clients throwing work your way – what’s not to love? Quite a lot, it seems. The post-Lehman environment has seen uncharacteristic enthusiasm from City lawyers to strike out on their own and create their own boutiques, recapturing the independence lost within increasingly regimented global outfits.

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Hunting Dragons – Anti-corruption in Asia

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Once a byword for bribery, the Asia region has toughened anti-corruption measures in recent years, but enforcement remains hard to predict. We team up with Simmons & Simmons to assess the client response.

Any multinational worthy of the label has to be in east and south-east Asia. The scale of the market, its manufacturing base, and its growing consumer population make it impossible to ignore.

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Game Over – Global London firms make winning moves as US players secure their breakthrough

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2014 found US firms in London gaining even more ground. Legal Business’ 13th annual Global London survey charts the key players and winning moves as leading firms make their breakthrough.

A line of taxis wait patiently along Old Broad Street as White & Case’s partners exit the office one after the other apologising for the delay. In January 2015, the firm ran up a £12,000 waiting charge from Addison Lee because partners failed to come out on time as they were overrun with work, mainly M&A deals. There’s no doubt it has been a dynamic start to the year for many global firms in London. And following a strong 2014, many firms expect this level of activity to continue.

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The Third Wave – high stakes City deals for Akin and Cooley highlight changing tactics

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With Akin Gump and Cooley securing multimillion-pound teams, a wave of new entrants to the City are re-writing the playbook for expansion in London. What is driving the new breed?

Sitting in the airport lounge at Fort Worth, Texas, flicking through magazines and eating stale sandwiches, 25 maintenance staff waited to board flights to London, Frankfurt and Hong Kong. While they were less than thrilled to be spending their weekends rewiring computers, moving desks and changing security codes for a bunch of lawyers thousands of miles from home, the woman who sent them was jubilant, having just pulled off the deal that would reposition her law firm as a genuine international player.

Continue reading “The Third Wave – high stakes City deals for Akin and Cooley highlight changing tactics”

The Third Wave – high stakes City deals for Akin and Cooley highlight changing tactics

Posted on |

With Akin Gump and Cooley securing multimillion-pound teams, a wave of new entrants to the City are re-writing the playbook for expansion in London. What is driving the new breed?

Sitting in the airport lounge at Fort Worth, Texas, flicking through magazines and eating stale sandwiches, 25 maintenance staff waited to board flights to London, Frankfurt and Hong Kong. While they were less than thrilled to be spending their weekends rewiring computers, moving desks and changing security codes for a bunch of lawyers thousands of miles from home, the woman who sent them was jubilant, having just pulled off the deal that would reposition her law firm as a genuine international player.

Continue reading “The Third Wave – high stakes City deals for Akin and Cooley highlight changing tactics”

Game theories – many approaches as European firms tackle the City

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Rising transactional activity has given European firms in the City renewed confidence but playing in London remains a tricky game.

In April 2014, Iberian leader Cuatrecasas Gonçalves Pereira moved into empty London office space rented out by its French ally Gide Loyrette Nouel as part of the development of the firms’ referral alliance established two years previously. Located in London’s financial district at 125 Old Broad Street, Cuatrecasas was the third European law firm to take up space in the building, moving to the 14th floor; the previous year Italian practice Chiomenti had moved in one floor above after leaving its former offices in Mayfair.

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