Legal Business

With an external legal spend in excess of $1bn since 2010, BP launches panel review

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Energy giant BP, which has paid around $1bn in external legal fees in relation to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010, has announced a review of its UK law firm adviser line-up.

Law firms have been asked to tender for a place on the FTSE 100 company’s new roster, pending the expiry in May of a three-year panel put in place in 2011. The review will be completed towards the middle of 2014.

The current panel includes Magic Circle firms Linklaters and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, as well as Norton Rose Fulbright, Olswang, Herbert Smith Freehills, CMS Cameron McKenna and Scottish firm McGrigors.

The review is being led by high-profile group general counsel Rupert Bondy (pictured), who also oversaw the 2011 review.

Linklaters is a longstanding adviser to BP, with corporate partner Stephen Griffin having advised on BP’s $27bn sale of a 50% share in TNK-BP to Rosneft, the major Russian integrated oil and gas company, as well as the dual-track IPO and $9bn private sale process of its chemicals business Innovene.

At Freshfields, meanwhile, ex-corporate head Mark Rawlinson prepared BP’s defence against a potential bid in the wake of the oil disaster.

The panel review follows the announcement in February that a further $150m of external legal costs can be expected in relation to the spill.

Sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Freshfields arbitration practice sees more exits as trio set up boutique in Germany

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Disputes partner Christian Borris is leaving Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer‘s Cologne office at the end of April to set up a local arbitration boutique.

His former two associates, Rudolph Hennecke who left the firm a month ago, and Sebastian Kneisel who relocated from its Cologne office to Frankfurt last year, will be joining Borris as partners to set up the new practice, Borris Hennecke Kneisel, which will launch on 1 May.

This is the second team to depart the firm’s global arbitration practice in recent weeks, following the exit of Constantine Partasides QC, consultant and former arbitration head Jan Paulsson and Paris arbitration head Georgios Petrochilos, who are leaving to set up arbitration boutique Three Crowns, alongside Jones Day’s Luke Sobota, Shearman & Sterling’s Todd Wetmore and global co-chair of Covington & Burling’s international arbitration group Gaetan Verhoosel.

Borris told Legal Business that the new venture comes as a result of the increasing conflict of interest issues between the firm’s arbitration and corporate group. ‘It became impossible for me to accept any mandates because of there were too many conflicts of interest,’ he added.

The new boutique will specialise in dispute resolution with a focus on arbitration, consisting of joint ventures, corporate, energy and investment disputes and general commercial arbitration.

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Numbers game – Freshfields awards 15 partner promotions across Europe, Tokyo and New York

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In the latest round of partnership promotions, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has made up 15 new partners to its ranks. While that figure does not represent a return to 2011 and 2012 levels, when 20 partners were made up, it is a slight increase on last year, when the number fell to 14.

Out of the 15 promotions, 13 have been promoted across Europe with five in London; three in Frankfurt; two each in Hamburg and Amsterdam; and one in Brussels. The remaining two lawyers were promoted to partner in the firm’s Tokyo and New York offices.

In terms of practice breakdown, the largest beneficiary was the Magic Circle firm’s disputes practice, where there were five promotions, following by finance (four); corporate (three); and one each in real estate, employments pensions and benefits; and antitrust, competition and trade. The appointments will take effect from 1 May 2014.

Freshfields senior partner Will Lawes said: ‘We are delighted that these outstanding young partners are joining the firm. They are all highly talented lawyers with a strong track record of client success. As a group, they will add significantly to the depth of our market-leading client offering around our firm.’

The news follows Allen & Overy’s (A&O’s) 16 partnership promotions, which the 2,700-lawyer firm announced earlier than expected in February to enable new partners to attend its partnership conference in March. That figure represents a 16% drop on 2013 promotion numbers, when 19 partners were made up.

Across A&O’s practice groups, international capital markets received the largest intake of new partners, with six promotions in total. This was followed by litigation and banking with four promotions each, and two in the corporate department. The firm made most of its promotions in London (five), followed by three each in Dubai and Hong Kong, and one in Perth, Sydney, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and New York.

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Freshfields lifer Julian Long takes over from Rawlinson as London managing partner

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Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has named current London corporate head and Freshfields lifer Julian Long as its new London managing partner, taking over from incumbent Mark Rawlinson, who is returning to client work.

Long, an M&A partner, has earned his stripes having been at Freshfields for his entire career, making partner in 1995 and being promoted to head of London corporate in June 2011. His former roles include sector group leader for the consumer, health and retail group.

Long will continue some client work in the complex domestic and cross-border M&A space but will stand down from his current role as head of the London corporate department in ‘due course’. The London head appointment is a three-year term.

Freshfields senior partner Will Lawes said: ‘We are hugely grateful to Mark for all that he has done as London managing partner. Under his stewardship, London has performed extremely well in challenging markets. On the people side, he has been an excellent champion of our people engagement initiatives and taken a major role in driving forward our very important inclusion and diversity agenda. We are lucky to have him now concentrating fully on his client work as the transactional markets recover.

‘We are fortunate to have a strong successor in Julian. The London corporate practice has continued to perform well under his wise leadership. His outstanding client relationship and people skills will help us to get the most out of the excellent capabilities of the London office.’

Long added: ‘At a time when our clients face so many challenges, and at the same time significant opportunities, I genuinely believe that we can support them with a remarkable level of consistency and breadth of client offering across our London office. We will continue to listen to and learn from our clients to ensure that we are providing the services that they most value.’

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

See Life during law: Mark Rawlinson for an in depth interview with Rawlinson

Legal Business

Making a splash – partners from Shearman, Covington and Jones Day join breakaway Freshfields arbitration boutique

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As brand new start-ups go, the Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer-breakaway arbitration boutique set up by heavyweight arbitrators Constantine Partasides, Paris-based Georgias Petrochilos and former arbitration co-chair Jan Paulsson earlier this month is making quite a splash.

Following news of its launch on 17 February, the latest announcement today (26 February), less than ten days later, is that Shearman & Sterling Paris international arbitration partner Todd Wetmore, Covington & Burling’s London-based international arbitration co-chair Gaetan Verhoosel, and Washington-based Jones Day litigation partner Luke Sobota have all resigned to co-found the new venture.

To say the boutique is making a name for itself already would be somewhere between hyperbole and irony, not least because it has yet to be given a name, however, the weight of the partners behind it means it has already been noticed by FTSE 100 companies, with a spokesperson for one major energy company recently remarking in an unofficial capacity that the boutique is of interest for being free of the conflicts that often dog established private practice arbitration practices.

All six named partners will be co-founders of the new firm, which will be run out of three major financial hubs: London, Washington and Paris.

Timothy Hester, chair of Covington’s management committee said: ‘We thank him [Verhoosel] for his contributions to our award-winning international arbitration practice, and wish him well in this next chapter of his career. We expect to continue to work closely with Gaëtan on existing as well as new matters, and we see a bright future for this practice.’

Shearman & Sterling’s head of international arbitration Emmanuel Gaillard added: ‘I have enjoyed working with Todd and seeing him develop into a great arbitration specialist. I have great respect for his work and have no doubt that he will continue to be successful in his new practice. I am thankful for his contribution and I am sure that we will continue working together in the years to come.’

Jones Day declined to comment.

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Arbitration heavyweights resign to form boutique

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Partasides and Petrochilos to join former colleague Jan Paulsson

Breakaway arbitration boutiques are increasingly common but they rarely have the gravitas of the latest entrant, as Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s London international arbitration group head Constantine Partasides last month resigned alongside Paris-based partner Georgios Petrochilos, to form a heavyweight trio alongside former co-arbitration head Jan Paulsson.

Dispute resolution partner Partasides spent ten years practising in the Magic Circle firm’s Paris office before returning to the UK in 2007 to head up its top-tier arbitration team. He is listed as a leading individual in The Legal 500 and recent arbitrations he has led include acting for a telecoms operator in a treaty claim regarding an expropriation of a multibillion-dollar business in North Africa.

Legal Business

Arbitration heavyweights – Freshfields group head Partasides and Paris partner Petrochilos resign to form boutique

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Breakaway arbitration boutiques are increasingly common but they rarely have the gravitas of the latest entrant, as Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s London arbitration group head Constantine Partasides resigns alongside Paris-based partner Georgias Petrochilos, to form a heavyweight trio alongside former co-arbitration chair Jan Paulsson.

Dispute resolution partner Partasides spent 10 years practising in the Magic Circle firm’s Paris office before returning to the UK in 2007 to head up the top-tier arbitration team.The Legal 500 describes him as ‘quick to master complex subjects’ and recent arbitrations he has led include advising a telecoms operator in a treaty claim regarding an expropriation of a multi-billion dollar business in North Africa.

Petrochilos, along with Paulsson, has served as adviser to international trade regulatory body The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (Uncitral) in connection with the revision of the Uncitral arbitration rules, and he now represents Greece as a delegate to Uncitral.

Meanwhile, Paulsson retired last year from the 2,332-lawyer firm, having joined in 1988 and had been head of its international arbitration group for 20 years. As president of the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), Paulsson helped Dubai develop its own arbitration centre in 2008.

The breakaway boutique follows recent examples including former Shearman & Sterling colleagues Christophe Dugue and William Kirtley, who late last year formed Dugue & Kirtley; and Hogan Lovells partner Jean-Georges Betto, who along with White & Case’s Christophe Seraglini, formed Betto Seraglini in November 2012.

Lucy Reed, Freshfields’ head of the international arbitration group, said: ‘We can confirm that partners Constantine Partasides and Georgios Petrochilos have decided to leave the firm and start an independent arbitration practice. As valued friends and colleagues we will be sorry to see them leave and we thank them for their contribution to the development of Freshfields’ world-leading arbitration practice. We wish them well in their new endeavour.’

David.stevenson@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

European expansion – A&O launches in Barcelona with hire of Freshfields partner

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Allen & Overy (A&O) has pointed to the growth and profitability of its Madrid office and the recovery of the Spanish economy for its decision to launch in Barcelona, with the hire of local corporate partner Antoni Valverde from rival firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, announced today (4 February).

Valverde, who made partner at Freshfields in 1997 and became co-head of the firm’s private M&A group from 2001 to 2009 and the leader of the Spanish corporate group from 2007 to 2010, focuses on private M&A and has acted for some of the key Spanish players on outbound M&A, including acting for Barcelona-based infrastructure operator Abertis on the €1.5bn acquisition of OHL Brazil in August 2012.

Valverde’s hire comes following a period of growth for the Magic Circle firm’s Madrid office over the past six years, including opening a litigation department with the appointment of Clifford Chance (CC) partner Antonio Vázquez-Guillén in 2008; hiring Antonio Martinez from Uria Menendez as a partner and head of the antitrust practice in 2009; and taking on Pablo Mayor also from CC to the corporate group in 2010 to further expand A&O’s public law offering.

Recent deals for the Spanish office include advising on Iberdrola’s sale of its 50% stake in British nuclear consortium NuGen to Japan’s Toshiba and on the €2bn equity investment made by Qatar Holding; as well as Bridgepoint Capital on the acquisition of a portfolio of wind energy assets from listed Spanish construction company ACS.

A&O’s Madrid managing partner Andrew Clark told Legal Business that the new office will be integrated with the firm’s existing office in Madrid and managed as one practice, with an aim to grow headcount across both offices in the next two years. The Madrid office currently has ten partners across its finance, corporate, litigation and tax offering.

The launch comes as recent figures suggest that M&A activity in Spain is picking up both in volume and value, with A&O’s own M&A index last month stating: ‘Excluding deals in the financial sector, driven by the restructuring of the Spanish banking system, the number of deals still increased by 24% in 2013 while deal value was up by over 50%.’ Firms including Magic Circle rivals CC and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have an office in Barcelona.

A&O global managing partner Wim Dejonghe said: ‘Spain’s economy grew at its fastest pace in almost six years in the final quarter of 2013 and this is reflected in the success and profitability of our Madrid office. Today’s news underlines the belief that there is a significant opportunity for us to further expand in Spain.’

Iñigo Gómez-Jordana, senior partner of A&O Spain added: ‘Spain’s latest M&A figures point towards recovery and new opportunities lie ahead for both our Madrid and Barcelona offices for all our practice areas. We look forward to Toni’s contribution, which will further strengthen our Spanish and international corporate offering, a strategic priority for the firm.’

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Revolving doors – Weil, Latham, Freshfields and Dentons among the firms opening 2014 with senior recruits

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Increasing confidence in the transactional market has contributed to a rash of senior partner moves at the start of 2014, with the UK’s leading firms bolstering both their London and international practices.

In the City, upwardly mobile US practices continued to boost their capability with Weil, Gotshal & Manges hiring Hogan Lovells banking and finance partner Chris McLaughlin, who has extensive experience of cross-border private equity buyouts and European real estate acquisitions and restructuring. His hire came a week after Latham & Watkins hired Weil Gotshal funds partner Nick Benson, its fifth City hire within the past 12 months.

Legal Business

In-house: Aon appoints Michael Wolf as global head of corporate as Prash Naik takes over as GC of Channel 4

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Insurance giant Aon has appointed Jenner & Block partner Michael Wolf as vice president and chief counsel, corporate, in a role that will see him assume global responsibility for all corporate transactions including M&A, divestures, joint ventures, partnerships and strategic alliances.

At Aon, which in January 2012 moved its corporate headquarters to London and has 65,000 staff across 120 countries providing risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, Wolf will report to executive vice president and general counsel Peter Lieb.

Prior to joining Aon, Wolf was a partner in Jenner & Block’s Chicago headquarters, where he concentrated on corporate and transactional law and led on transactions including the sale of General Motors to the U.S. Treasury. Before joining Jenner in 2003 as an associate, Wolf was with Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago.

Lieb said: ‘Michael brings the perfect set of skills and experience to achieve success in this role.

‘In a world where the magnitude, complexity and speed of risk management have increased exponentially, Michael’s seasoned leadership on mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, securities compliance issues, and corporate governance will add tremendous value to our firm. We are pleased to have him join the Aon team.’

Firms that have acted for Aon include Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, which advised the company on the relocation of its corporate headquarters led by corporate partner Julian Long.

A further senior in-house appointment has seen Channel 4 promote former head of legal and compliance Prash Naik to the new role of general counsel as part of an overhaul of its legal team.

Naik, who is in his 20th year with the broadcaster, having joined after just three years in private practice at now defunct firm DJ Freeman, will report to C4’s head of commercial affairs Martin Baker along with chief executive David Abrahams and chairman Lord Burns.

In his new role – alongside his existing responsibilities overseeing the legal & compliance department – Naik will now also take responsibility for the corporate legal team, working on corporate governance, data protection, freedom of information and regulatory issues.

Baker said: ‘Under Prash’s leadership, Channel 4’s legal and compliance team are rightly acclaimed as industry leaders and I’m delighted that he is taking on this new and expanded brief.’

The overhaul has seen new roles introduced, including that of controller of business affairs, which was filled last week by the BBC’s former head of legal, commercial and business affairs John Moran.

Moran began his career as a barrister in London before becoming a legal advisor within HM Treasury, joining the BBC in 1999 where he began as a legal advisor in the regulatory team.

Baker added: ‘John joins us with a terrific track record and will be invaluable in ensuring we deliver a first class business affairs service to our colleagues in the commissioning team and our independent suppliers.’

Recent triumphs for the C4 legal team led by Naik have included securing the necessary legal requirements to broadcast controversial programmes such as Drugs Live, which tested 25 volunteers taking Class A drug MDMA, and Plane Crash, which crashed a Boeing 727 to study the effect on test dummies.

caroline.hill@legalease.co.uk

francesca.fanshawe@legalease.co.uk