Bird & Bird has announced it will open in Tokyo before the end of the year, with the new base set to be led by corporate partner Hiro Iwamura, who is joining from Ashurst.
The launch marks the first significant move for the firm since February’s unveiling of its new five-year strategy – which includes the ambitious goal of reaching €1bn in revenue within the next half-decade.
In another blow for Travers Smith, respected corporate M&A and ECM partner Richard Spedding has left to join Linklaters, on the back of the departure of a private equity duo to Goodwin late last month.
A Legal 500 Hall of Famer for small to mid-cap equity capital markets, Spedding was at Travers or 25 years. Experienced in public M&A and the UK Takeover Code, Spedding recently co-led the firm’s team advising key private equity client Inflexion on its £342m takeover of DWF.
Legal 500 Hall of Famer Satnam Tumani, previously head of the SFO’s anti-corruption and bribery unit and a longstanding partner at Kirkland & Ellis, recently moved to boutique firm Edmonds Marshall McMahon. He spoke to LB about his brief to build a new practice, the contrasts between Big Law and boutique law, and his nostalgia for the days of letter-writing
Keystone Law has released its financial results for 2023-24, posting a 15.1% revenue boost to reach £87.9m.
The results, which cover the financial year to 31 January 2024, come after a sustained period of recruitment for the firm, which is continuing to sign up lawyers attracted to its non-traditional, decentralised model.
Norton Rose has reported an 8.7% increase in global revenue, marking a turnaround from two years of declining revenue.
Profit per equity partner (PEP) jumped almost 33% from $1.05m to $1.4m in 2023, as the number of equity partners declined by 21% from 644 to 506.
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has broken ranks from its Magic Circle peers on associate salaries, increasing newly-qualified (NQ) pay from £125,000 to a new high of £150,000.
The move puts clear water between the firm and Slaughter and May, Linklaters, A&O Shearman, and Clifford Chance, all which pay their NQ lawyers £125,000.
Eversheds Sutherland, Allen & Overy and Womble Bond Dickinson were among the major winners at the inaugural Legal 500 UK ESG Awards 2024, which welcomed more than 400 guests to the InterContinental London Park Lane on 24 April.
Sidley Austin has continued its decade-long streak of growth in London, posting a 12.4% hike to reach $209.7m, with firmwide revenues reaching the $3bn mark.
While global revenues grew 6.1% on last year, with profit per equity partner (PEP) up 10.3% to $4.6m, the Chicago-headquartered firm’s London office stood out with another year of double-digit growth.
Allen & Overy has hired its second partner from the London arm of Milbank so far this year, bolstering its restructuring practice with the addition of partner Karen McMaster.
Recognised as a leading individual in The Legal 500, McMaster leaves Milbank after six years at the US firm.
Following his initial appointment to lead Baker McKenzie’s London office in 2021, managing partner Ed Poulton has been re-elected for another three-year term, starting from July.
Speaking to Legal Business, he described the process of being re-elected as ‘relatively straightforward’.
‘We conduct soundings so that the partners get a chance to speak to a small group of partners,’ he said. ‘The message was I had strong support and people wanted me to continue.’
