After the surge a pause – expansive A&O sees a lull in growth as first Magic Circle player confirms 2013 results Jaishree Kalia Having been the stand-out City player in its weight class since the 2008 banking crisis re-shaped the global legal market,…
Guest post: Criminalising corporate law – proposed UK fraud penalties take a leaf out of the US sentencing guidelines Legal Business Tough new proposed sentencing guidelines for bribery have been published in a consultation which closes in early October. The proposals…
White & Case continues capital markets drive as Milan boasts full DCM suite Jaishree Kalia White & Case has made no secret of its strategic objective to boost its global capital markets capability and last…
Litigation watch: SJ Berwin wins IP battle for Sky against Microsoft Sarah Downey SJ Berwin has scored a significant victory in the important tech area of intellectual property rights in cloud data storage,…
Deferred Prosecution Agreements: Form over substance? Sarah Downey The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) last week published a draft Code of Practice setting out their approach to the use…
71 new shareholders and a Madrid chief – today on Baker Mac’s intranet Caroline Hill It says something about the evolution of the legal market when a single global law firm makes up more partners…
Financials update – Field Fisher Waterhouse pays the cost of merger mania Sarah Downey After a turbulent year that saw it unsuccessfully attempt merger discussions with both Laurence Graham and Osborne Clarke, Field Fisher…
Revolving Doors: Squire Sanders, Pinsent Masons and Bird & Bird boost corporate and finance capability Legal Business Squire Sanders has today announced the hire of US Dorsey & Whitney City-based corporate finance partner Matthew Doughty in a week that has also seen…
Clyde & Co advises Olswang on claim arising from £460m Esporta sale Legal Business Clyde & Co’s professional financial disputes team led by rated team head Sarah Clover is advising Olswang on a multi-million pound claim stemming from…
Asia-Pac continues to challenge new entrants as DLA Piper freezes Australia salaries Francesca Fanshawe The impact of the Australian downturn has once again been thrown into sharp relief after DLA Piper’s staff in the…
Speechly posts flat financials but forecasts PEP boost next year Sarah Downey Speechly Bircham has posted flat financials for the 2012/13 year following failed merger talks with Withers and a spate of…
Guest Post: Legal education review – why everyone is happy and no one is smiling Legal Business So the first round of the Legal Education and Training Review (LETR) is complete. Julian Webb et al’s report is…
Government spending review brings legal aid cuts and privatisation closer as MoJ’s budget cut by 10% Legal Business The government’s plans to cut criminal legal aid and privatise parts of the court services appeared to edge one step…
Nicholas Medcroft joins Wilberforce Chambers as Erskine makes key hires and two leading sets take on new head Sarah Downey Nicholas Medcroft has joined Wilberforce Chambers from Outer Temple Chambers in a week that has also seen Erskine Chambers welcome…
Deal watch: CMS, Matheson and Akin Gump act on high-profile international deals Legal Business As international M&A catches the headlines, CMS Cameron McKenna has advised a consortium owned by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing…
Revolving Doors: Field Fisher hires Taylor Wessing’s David Kent as Irwin Mitchell and TLT make key hires Legal Business Taylor Wessing’s long reputed head of inward investment David Kent is to join Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW) in a week that…
Travers senior lawyers to be paid for interruptions to family life as firm adopts more merit-based model Legal Business Travers Smith has become the latest City firm to overhaul its lockstep for senior associates in a bid to incentivise and…
Kennedys unveils 9% turnover increase and signals further expansion to its network Legal Business Kennedys has today announced a turnover increase of 9% after a year of both lateral hires and organic growth, with…
Coming on like 2009 – Weil Gotshal becomes the first major NY firm to announce job cuts this year Legal Business So far the wave of redundancies that have rippled through the UK legal profession has not been replicated across the Atlantic…
Corporate: Alibaba and Kabel Deutschland deals land roles for Freshfields, Linklaters and Hengeler Mueller Legal Business Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters have landed two major corporate mandates advising Alibaba on what Reuters describes as ‘the most…
