‘You’re never done’ – Simmons’ Hoyland on finding the firm’s identity and what’s next

‘You’re never done’ – Simmons’ Hoyland on finding the firm’s identity and what’s next

‘You’re never done. I’ve been at this for 14 years and I’ve still got a long list of things to do. It makes you wonder what you’ve been doing this whole time,’ muses Simmons & Simmons managing partner Jeremy Hoyland as he prepares to step down from his leadership role.

The City HQ of the firm he’s led since 2011 is quiet the Friday afternoon that Legal Business comes to visit; fitting for the softly spoken, but reflective, Hoyland. A stand at reception with copies of The Big Issue serves as a gentle signpost that there is life beyond the bottom line at Simmons.

When LB sat down with Hoyland for his first leadership interview back in 2011, aged 43, he was chomping at the bit to start ticking off a lengthy to-do list he had drawn up. Three terms later, while the list remains unchecked, Hoyland is clear on what he feels he has achieved.

One of the first things I said to the partnership was that we were going to face up to uncomfortable truths. We had huge strengths and what I wanted to do was focus on those strengths.

‘You’re never done. I’ve been at this for 14 years and I’ve still got a long list of things to do. It makes you wonder what you’ve been doing this whole time.’

For Hoyland that’s meant routing the firm to a clear sector focus rather than trying to be all things to all people.

Carrying on the work his predecessor Mark Dawkins started, under Hoyland the firm has focused on asset management and investment funds; financial institutions; healthcare and life sciences; and technology, media and telecoms (TMT).

Pointing to the strategy’s success, Hoyland says: ‘A huge portion of what we do in corporate is for the sector clients. Transactional work for funds is a huge part of our practice, and many of our best deals fall within the sectors. But that’s not how a traditional City corporate practice is aligned, and it certainly isn’t where Simmons was in 2010.’

Income from the four sectors now makes up more than 80% of firm-wide revenues, with financial institutions the biggest contributor (at around 32%), followed by asset management (28%), with healthcare and TMT each bringing in around 10% based on LB estimates.

This focus has had a clear impact on results. Under Hoyland’s leadership, Simmons’ revenue increased from £251.7m in 2011-12 to £574m in 2023-24—a 128% rise. Meanwhile, PEP has also more than doubled, climbing by 102% from £529,000 to £1.07m over the same period.

According to both Hoyland and former partners, just as important as the firm’s sector realignment has been Hoyland’s ability to help Simmons – and its partners – feel comfortable in their own skin.

‘Before, we weren’t clear about the advantages [our sector focus] gave us and what it meant for people to fit within those sectors. If you’re a finance lawyer, it was always pretty obvious how you fit. If you’re a litigator or a corporate partner – maybe not so much,’ says Hoyland.

As one former partner comments: ‘Before Jeremy, the strategy was “How can we be more like this group of firms?” or “How can we overtake that group of firms?”’

Hoyland took up the mantle in the wake of failed merger talks with Mayer Brown in 2010 and, while it has long been assumed that a Simmons merger with a US firm was inevitable at some point, it hasn’t happened.

Hoyland maintains that no substantial talks have taken place during his tenure. That’s not to say there haven’t been opportunities though.

‘One of Jeremy’s great strengths is saying no,’ says a former partner, who suggests that Hoyland has turned down multiple approaches during his time in charge.

So how does Hoyland think his firm is positioned now? During his time at the helm, the battle for talent has grown ever more competitive, particularly over the last five years. And it’s clear that while Simmons’ 50% pep growth over this period is impressive, it lags behind those at the top of the market.

Hoyland acknowledges that others can outgun Simmons looking at financial metrics alone but maintains that success is about more than just money. ‘If you only compete on money there’s always some firm that is more profitable than us; we have to hire people for whom money is not the only thing they are looking for.’

‘I’m not sure the partners have always enjoyed all of my emails, but taken in the round, I think it’s been a good ride.’

He points to 32 lateral partner hires globally in 2024 as evidence of Simmons’ success. Fourteen of these hires were in London, with recent recruits including Clifford Chance’s former head of UK real estate construction, Marianne Toghill, and DLA Piper’s head of UK competition, Sarah Smith.

‘If your client base is in one of our sectors, then this is a better platform for you than most other firms. And it’s also an extremely good place to work,’ he enthuses.

Hoyland argues that the ‘super profitability’ at the top of the market has left a gap for firms like Simmons, with competitors pricing themselves out of certain markets and clients. However, he worries about the sustainability of this dynamic and the impact it may have on both lawyers’ wellbeing and how the industry is perceived externally.

He laments the fact that none of his three children so far want to follow him into the career he loves, put off by what they see as the industry’s ‘crazy expectations’.

Not that Hoyland is going to have too much time for regrets. While his time as managing partner is coming to a close in April, Hoyland’s journey with Simmons is not. He is set to remain a partner but will relocate to the firm’s Milan office after the summer to take up a new role that will see him travelling around the firm’s European offices and helping partners to pitch together for more cross-border business as well as working with clients to identify services they would like to see as Simmons expands in Europe.

Describing himself as a ‘details person’, he admits that his desire to be managing partner was partially driven by being ‘sufficiently arrogant to want to be in control, to make decisions, and to manage the purse strings,’ meaning that letting go may be hard.

With his successor yet to be decided, Hoyland acknowledges that he is ‘absolutely’ going to find it difficult watching someone else do his old job. He mentions a recent conversation with a former magic circle managing partner:

‘He said that when he finished it felt physically like someone had lifted the weight of his shoulders. I wonder whether I’m going to feel like that. I don’t feel like that now but maybe I will. I sort of hope so.’

And, as to how his time as managing partner will be remembered at Simmons?

‘I hope I’ll be perceived to have been successful and to have made a contribution to the firm. I’m not sure the partners have always enjoyed all of my emails, but taken in the round, I think it’s been a good ride.’

Jeremy Hoyland Bio:

Sep 1991 – Joins Simmons

April 1997 – Makes partner

April 2005 – Takes up leadership of financial markets team,

May 2011 – Begins first term as managing partner

April 2025 – Due to step down as managing partner and transition to a new EU role.

tom.cox@legalease.co.uk

Money’s worth: how do clients rate Ashurst’s value proposition?

Money’s worth: how do clients rate Ashurst’s value proposition?

Ashurst


Value: Billing and efficiency

76.09


Billing transparency 75.01


Billing: value for work done 75.09


Communication & case/matter management 80.95


All scores are global and /100.

Of all of the factors involved in client satisfaction, value for money is among the most important, not least for GCs under pressure to keep a lid on their legal spend.

And while the best law firms do not come cheap, a reputation for providing value can be a clincher when it comes to winning work.

In our previous data blogs, we’ve looked at how top firms stack up against each other for the quality of their lawyers – based on the views of their clients – but that is just one of a range of metrics we can benchmark firms on.

The responses from hundreds of thousands of Legal 500 referees that we receive every year offer detailed insight into how firms compare on billing and efficiency, and by taking Ashurst as an example, the data reveals how clients view the firm’s value proposition.

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‘A well-kept secret’ – inside Covington’s City corporate push

‘A well-kept secret’ – inside Covington’s City corporate push

While other flashier US firms might attract more headlines for their London growth strategies, Covington & Burling has for some time been building up a sizeable presence in the capital.

Over the last decade, the firm’s City base – which dates back to 1988 – has grown its headcount by around 50%, and is now home to around 140 lawyers.

And 2024 saw the firm make bold steps in the City corporate market with a trio of high-profile lateral hires from Sidley Austin – M&A partner Phil Cheveley, private equity partner Lyndsey Laverack and private equity real estate partner Jade Williams-Adedeji.

‘Covington has always wished to keep the focus on the great work of its clients and shied away from publicity for its own sake,’ said Laverack. ‘The firm is a bit of a well-kept secret, notwithstanding the fact that we’ve been in London for nearly 40 years.’

Other major City hires last year included the addition of Adrian Chiodo from Paul Hastings to lead the firm’s European leveraged finance practice – and the firm’s growth in London is far from over, according to Washington DC-based corporate head Catherine Dargan.

We have been investing in London for some time, and we expect that to continue,’ explained Dargan. We remain committed to strategically identifying and pursuing lateral hires and are always open to opportunistic additions. However, we are not focused on growth for growth’s sake. We are eager to grow in London, but we are determined to do it the right way.’ 

The firm’s most recent hire, Cheveley, who joined in November, brings a wealth of experience from firms including legacy Shearman & Sterling, where he served as EMEA and Asia M&A head, and Travers Smith, where he spent 17 years and was head of corporate M&A and equity capital markets.

Cheveley described Covington as an ‘excellent fit’ for his practice, emphasising the firm’s focus on healthcare and life sciences – for which it has a top-tier London practice – as well as technology and financial services. ‘Covington already has a strong M&A practice in London, but the opportunity is there to further deepen the bench strength,’ he said. 

‘The firm has excellent relationships with marquee clients globally, and there’s huge potential to further leverage and enhance those relationships to win increased volumes of transactional mandates from them.’ 

Cheveley’s arrival was preceded by Laverack and Williams-Adedeji also making the move from Sidley in July, and he described being reunited with his former colleagues as ‘a very happy coincidence’.

‘I’ve known Covington for quite a number of years; over time, we had some high-level discussions, but things fell into place shortly after Lyndsey and Jade – people I’ve always enjoyed working with – decided to move. My decision, however, was almost entirely independent of their move.’

The hires take lawyer count in Covington’s London corporate practice to more than 60, sitting in a global team of approximately 330.

The lateral investment investment comes amid a broader pickup in M&A activity, which Cheveley expects to continue, driven by favourable financing, emerging alternative capital, potential US tax cuts, and a shift toward lighter regulations and more deal-friendly merger controls. 

However, he cautioned: ‘There is naturally uncertainty around what form these reforms will take and the impact they will have. This uncertainty, coupled with the fundamental frailty of a number of national economies, would suggest that the return to high levels of M&A activity remains some way off, with only a modest improvement in the early part of 2025 as the new transacting landscape is established.’ 

Across private equity, Laverack noted that digital infrastructure and renewable energy are key areas of focus. She added: ‘We also expect to see continued investment in the fintech area, specifically in payments and money transmission, and increasing use of crypto currencies on those platforms. We are [also] still seeing strong interest in senior living and other living sectors.’ 

As for the recent wave of lateral moves at other firms, Dargan argued that some of these moves are ‘more defensive than offensive’, and that Covington’s all-equity partnership is a clear differentiator when looking to attract talent.

‘Globally, there is significant movement among firms, with lawyers seeking different platforms or higher compensation. We are fortunate to operate with a single-tier partnership, which means laterals are joining us primarily for the value we offer – our platform, culture, relationships, and broader expertise.’ 

elisha.juttla@legalease.co.uk

The silk class of 2025: ten names to note

The silk class of 2025: ten names to note

The King’s Counsel system remains the most prized designation for elite advocates in the world. One hundred and five lawyers – 104 barristers and one solicitor – were selected from the 2024 process, the results of which were announced last week.

The overwhelming majority of the new silks are already ranked very highly within their practice areas in Legal 500, and it would be a fool’s errand to try to pick a ‘best of’ for that reason, but here are ten of the designees who illustrate the broad range of talent in their professions today, as well as the broad scope it covers. 

Adam Wagner, Doughty Street Chambers 

Doughty Street Chambers is the set with the largest number of members parading to Westminster Hall, with five in the 2025 cohort, a distinction shared with Essex Court Chambers. Notable for being one of the most prominent barristers on X (formerlyTwitter) since the 2010s – a time in which, at a previous chambers, he was a founder of UK Human Rights Blog – Wagner was one of the most visible commentators on the mechanics of the lockdown policies created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the pandemic, of late he is notable for representing pro bono the families of British-linked hostages who were kidnapped as part of the October 7th terrorist attack on Israel, including that of UK-Israel dual national Emily Damari, who was released by Hamas earlier this month. 

Laura Poots, Pump Court Tax Chambers 

A natural candidate for silk as winner of tax junior of the year at the 2024 Legal 500 Bar awards, Poots is ranked tier 1 for the tax: corporate section as well as also being ranked for tax: personal and tax: VAT and excise. Recent cases of note include representing HM Revenue and Customs in the Court of Appeal in a dispute with hedge fund BlueCrest Capital Management. A more unusual instruction in her career was her – unled – 2022 role representing the Falkland Islands’ Commissioner of Taxation in that jurisdiction’s Court of Appeal in a case regarding its tax “ring-fencing” of petroleum extraction activities. Poots is not the only female tax barrister being recognised in this round, with Marika Lemos of Devereux Chambers also appointed. 

James Berry, Serjeants’ Inn Chambers 

In a career punctuated by a two-year stint as Member of Parliament for Kingston and Surbiton – defeating, and then losing his seat to, current Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey – James Berry’s return to the Bar has borne fruit, having earnt silk the hard way through the conventional appointment process rather than as a political “nylon” (the colloquial term for a junior given the designation as a result of a political appointment). He is ranked as a top-tier junior in Legal 500’s police law (forces and constables) section on the strength of his practice representing both forces and officers – earning him the award for public services and charities junior of the year at the Legal 500 UK Bar Awards 2024. His recent work includes representing the Metropolitan Police in disciplinary proceedings against the former head of the Metropolitan Black Police Association, who was found to have shared racist messages in a WhatsApp group. 

Julia Smyth, Landmark Chambers 

Smyth, the 2024 Legal 500 Bar awards immigration junior of the year, is notable for her public law practice, focusing on immigration, nationality and the welfare state. Formerly in-house government lawyer, she represents Child Poverty Action Group, a core participant in the economics module of the Covid-19 inquiry. However, much of her notable work of late has been in the immigration and nationality space, regularly representing the government in the Court of Appeal. In one recent case, she represented the government, defeating an appeal by an Albanian man who fraudulently applied for British citizenship under a false name and date of birth, also claiming to be Kosovar, against the decision to strip him of his British citizenship. The set – which dominates planning law as well as being notable – has four appointees this year – its record. 

Edward Craven, Matrix Chambers 

In a diverse practice illustrated by ranking in nine Legal 500 practice areas, Edward Craven is best known for cases at the interaction of human rights, technology and business. In 2024, he was a lead junior in the case of a number of Nepali and Bangladeshi migrant workers, who were found to be able to bring their claim against Dyson, for alleged human trafficking it its Malaysian supply chain, in the English courts – his work in this space playing a key role in securing him the title of group litigation junior of the year at the 2024 Legal 500 Bar awards. Regarding AI, he also represented the defendant in Andrew Prismall v Google UK Limited, securing a strike-out of a claim over the Royal Free Hospital’s co-operation with Sir Demis Hassabis’ Google Deepmind to detect and treat acute kidney injury. Other work includes sports and financial crime cases. 

Nakul Dewan, Twenty Essex 

Already a notable senior lawyer on the international arbitration circuit, Nakul Dewan adds English silk to a career which has seen him designated as a Senior Advocate in 2019 by the Supreme Court of India. He is already ranked as a tier one leading Silk in Legal 500 Asia Pacific’s Regional International Arbitration: the Bar coverage, on the strength of his Indian designation. Dewan is active both as counsel and arbitrator across a range of commercial and energy disputes, and is one of the small but growing cohort of English barristers primarily based in Singapore. He follows in the footsteps of Harish Salve KC of Blackstone Chambers, who has dual designation both in India (in 1992) and England (2020). 

Jacqueline Renton, 4PB 

Ranked in the top tier for family: children and domestic abuse in Legal 500, Jacqueline Renton is notable for her practice in private international law in the family context. Many of her cases concern the Hague Convention 1980, including 77 reported cases, 16  Court of Appeal cases and six appeals to the UK Supreme Court. Recently, she – pro bono – represented the father of a fifteen-year-old in 2024 Court of Appeal case Re P, in which the child sought to stay in the United Kingdom with his Spanish father, against the wishes of the child’s mother, who sought a Hague Convention return order. 

Niranjan Venkatesan, One Essex Court 

As victor of junior of the year at the 2023 Legal 500 Bar Awards, Niranjan Venkatesan’s name is an unsurprising feature of this year’s list of appointments. While also called to the Indian Bar – in an appointment round with several selections showcasing the English legal profession’s links to the world’s largest common law jurisdiction – his practice is no means defined by those connections, having appeared across a varied range of large cases in the Commercial Court and International arbitration, such as having appeared as a leading junior for the defendants in the Invest Bank v El-Husseini litigation. 

Daniel Feetham KC, 3 Hare Court and Hassans 

One may think that Legal Business has committed a typographical error, or worse, a major blunder in protocol, by including Feetham KC’s postnominals prior to this year’s ceremony in Westminster Hall. Not so: he already has the designation in respect of Gibraltar, the jurisdiction in which he was born, raised and built his career in private practice, rising to role of head of litigation at market-leading firm Hassans. He adds English silk to his CV, having become a full member of London set 3 Hare Court in 2023. In politics, he served as Minister of Justice from 2007 to 2011 among other roles in the British Overseas Territory. 

Jason Pobjoy, Blackstone Chambers 

Jason Pobjoy has a diverse practice, covering both public law and commercial cases. In public law, he is known for his work for the claimants in the litigation over the government’s proposal to relocate asylum seekers to Rwanda, and for the Duke of Sussex in the judicial review surrounding his security arrangements, as well as for the Government Legal Department in Russian sanctions cases, such as those concerning ex-Formula One driver (and son of oligarch Dimitry) Nikita Mazepin. Of late, he represented Elliott Management in an appeal of its judicial review of the London Metal Exchange’s decision to suspend trading in nickel futures in March 2022, after a price spike which – if the trades stood – would have left LME members on the hook for a $20bn margin call. In late 2024, in a now-unusual case for an English barrister to take on post-Brexit, instructed by Carter-Ruck he successfully represented a Moldovan client in a judicial review.

Dealwatch: Baker McKenzie and Gibson Dunn lead on $5bn data centre investment while US trio orchestrate $27bn energy deal

Dealwatch: Baker McKenzie and Gibson Dunn lead on $5bn data centre investment while US trio orchestrate $27bn energy deal

Baker McKenzie and Gibson Dunn have played key roles in KKR’s $5bn investment in a stake in Gulf Data Hub, one of the largest independent data centre platforms in the Middle East. 

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Putting a number on it – how do clients rate Slaughter and May?

Putting a number on it – how do clients rate Slaughter and May?

Late last year, Legal Business and Legal 500 unveiled a data project that has been in the works for some time – looking at how highly firms are recommended by clients.

That data, collected from Legal 500 referees, offers an entirely new perspective on the world’s largest law firms, enabling us to reorder the Global 100 by a new customer satisfaction metric – Net Promoter Score (NPS)*.

Of the eighteen UK-heritage firms in the Global 100, the firm with the highest NPS is Slaughter and May (and we will be revealing NPS for the LB100 very soon) but NPS is not the only metric we have data for – we also ask referees to score law firms on metrics such as billing, communication and value for money

So while Slaughters comes highly recommended by clients – how does it compare to its peers on criteria such as partner and associate quality and availability?

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‘Everyone will be watching’: disputes partners pick out the trends to watch for 2025

‘Everyone will be watching’: disputes partners pick out the trends to watch for 2025

If there’s one thing litigators aren’t disputing, it’s that workflow is not likely to drop as we settle into 2025.

Activity in the UK dispute resolution market ‘is showing no signs of abating’, says Paul Lewis, joint managing partner of Herbert Smith Freehills’ global disputes practice. He maintains that with litigation remaining one of the country’s top exports, the market is set to stay busy. ‘The reputation of the English Courts continues to be at an absolute high’, he says, making the UK an attractive place for both claimants and litigation funders.

Investor-related disputes are a key driver for the steady uptick in claims, suggests Oliver Middleton, chair of the London litigation and trial department at Latham & Watkins. He points out that the increasing sophistication of investors has resulted in ‘a lean towards a US-style approach to litigation, which involves parties using it as a tool rather than as something to avoid.’

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‘A big space to attack’ – how shifting markets are opening up opportunities for firms across the UK

‘A big space to attack’ – how shifting markets are opening up opportunities for firms across the UK

When talking to managing partners at law firms based across the UK, one thing is clear – there’s no shortage of challenges for them to contend with.

Whether it’s keeping their staff happy, competing for quality work, or staying on top of client priorities, law firm leaders have their hands full.

But while they juggle all these challenges, shifting dynamics in the major legal markets across the UK mean that new opportunities are emerging for national and regional players, as a tier of firms long viewed as the national elite increasingly turn their attention to the international arena.

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