Merger watch – Norton Rose Fulbright Dubai team in talks to join rival

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Legal mergers Baker BottsNorton Rose Fulbright

It’s a cliché that you can’t do large legal mergers without some fallout, a truism that Norton Rose Fulbright now has the chance to contemplate, as it emerges that its Festival Towers Dubai office is likely to move in the wake of its merger this month.

Dubai is one of the few international jurisdictions where Norton Rose and US partner Fulbright & Jaworski had overlapping offerings, which has resulted in a clash of personalities. The two firms combined on 3 June forging a top 10 global practice in revenue terms.

SFO to recruit 10 more barristers in defence of Tchenguiz brothers multi-million pound claim

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Litigation Slaughter and May

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is to recruit an additional 10 junior barristers to join the team involved in the defence of the multi-million damages claims brought by the Tchenguiz brothers.

Last year property tycoons Robert and Vincent Tchenguiz sued the SFO for more than £200m after the agency made serious mistakes in its investigation of their role in the collapse of Icelandic bank Kaupthing, of which they were executives.

Clyde & Co continues to reap benefits of Barlows merger with 17% hike in revenue

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Financial results 2013 Clyde & Co

Clyde & Co has posted a 17% hike in turnover for 2012-13 as the firm continues to reap the benefits of its 2011 merger with Barlow Lyde & Gilbert.

The insurance focussed firm’s revenues have increased from £287m in 2012 to £336.6m in 2013, amidst a sluggish prevailing European economy. According to chief executive Peter Hasson, without including Barlow’s revenues, Clyde & Co would have reported a single digit growth of around 6%.

Guest post: What does thinking like a professional mean?

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Comment

Ask yourself this question: do you think of yourself as a professional? For many readers of this blog, I suspect the answer to that question is a rather straightforward, Yes. Now ask yourself this question. Does thinking of yourself as a professional make you more or less ethical?

That is the fascinating issue explored in a new paper from Maryam Kouchaki from the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard. I urge all of you with an interest to read it. 

After Travers defeat, Linklaters faces discrimination claim by former paralegal

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Legal regulation LinklatersTravers Smith

Linklaters is being sued by a former paralegal for unfair dismissal and discrimination just weeks after top 50 law firm Travers Smith was found to have discriminated against a former trainee because she had fallen pregnant.

The case against Linklaters started today (10 June) in the London Central Employment Tribunal and the hearing is scheduled to run for six days.

Comment: The ABS dilemma – join them sure, but shouldn’t you be beating them?

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ABS Riverview Law

Amid all the hype surrounding alternative business structures (ABS) one story that emerged last month stood out – the aggressively-marketed Riverview Law’s eye-catching alliance with 48-partner practice DMH Stallard.

In an ABS market heavily focused on the high street and volume insurance work, the deal stands out for aiming to provide something different to corporate buyers of legal services.

Deal Watch: Clutch of US firms including Skadden, Cleary and Kirkland secure high value corporate mandates

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Corporate

After the slowest opening M&A quarter for a decade the past week saw signs of the forecasted uptick in M&A activity as a clutch of US firms including Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Kirkland & Ellis and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton secured high value mandates.

In what is said to be the largest Chinese takeover of a US company, Hong Kong-based meat processing giant Shuanghui International Holdings has acquired the world’s largest pork processor, Smithfield Foods, in a deal worth $4.7bn, or $7.1bn including assumed debt. US Paul Hastings led by Hong Kong-based partner Raymond Li advised the buyer alongside LB Global 100 US firm Troutman Sanders, led by corporate partners Mason Bayler, David Myers and Coburn Beck. Smithfield Foods was advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett led by M&A partners Robert Spatt and Patrick Noughton and McGuireWoods led by corporate partners David Oakey and James Anderson.

Dundas cancels vacation scheme as trainee intake is deferred

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Trainee retention CMS UK

Dundas & Wilson’s beleaguered City office has deferred its 2014 trainee intake by a year and cancelled its London summer vacation scheme just weeks before students were due to arrive.

Around 24 students who were due to spend two weeks at the Scottish firm’s London office next month have been told the scheme will no longer go ahead, which it blames on the ‘firm’s strategic business objectives.’

Asia round-up: K&L Gates, Akin Gump, Addleshaws and Milbank bolster presence

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Asia

A raft of leading UK and US firms boosted their East Asian presence this past week, including K&L Gates, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy and Addleshaw Goddard, with Hong Kong, Beijing and Tokyo a continuing focus of international attention.

On 31 May, Hong Kong corporate partner Virginia Tam moved from White & Case to US rival K&L Gates’ established 19-lawyer office, set up as its first Asian post 15 years ago.

Guest post: Legal aid reform – a fiscal realist’s view

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Legal affairs

Even I’m concerned about Chris Grayling’s proposals for criminal legal aid. When the government announced cuts to civil legal aid, I broadly backed them, in contrast to most lawyers. Now, the government’s proposing some further cuts to civil legal aid as well as major changes to the criminal legal aid system most dramatically, a move to competitive tendering of publicly-funded criminal defence work.