Legal Business

‘Fantastic addition’: Mishcon hires Withers’ wealth planning co-head

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Strategic recruitment Mishcon de Reya

Mishcon de Reya has appointed Withers’ co-head of European wealth planning Filippo Noseda, who joins Mishcon Private on Monday (19 June).

Dual-qualified in England and Switzerland, Noseda has advised clients including governments and wealthy individuals on the establishment, restructuring and implementation of trusts and private foundations, as well as on UK and international tax issues. 

Noseda spent 14 years at high-ranking global private client firm Withers, where his top-tier personal tax, trusts and probate team was shortlisted in the Private Client Team of the Year at the 2017 Legal Business Awards.

Noseda joined Withers in 2003 and was made up to partner in 2006. His expertise includes wills and probate, generational succession planning and family governance.

James Libson, Mishcon’s head of private, hailed the hire of Noseda for his expertise in international tax planning and comparative law. ‘He is a recognised expert in the fields of international tax planning and comparative law and is a fantastic addition to our team.’

‘His experience with international issues complements our client base and will undoubtedly help us and our clients to navigate this unprecedented legal and political landscape,’ Libson said.     

Noseda said that having ‘helped build the comparative law capabilities at my previous firm’, today’s appointment ‘will enable me to focus on my core areas as part of a dynamic and well run multi-disciplinary firm.’

‘We are faced with some of the defining questions of our generation and Mishcon de Reya’s exceptional reputation will play an important role in helping define and resolve those issues’, Noseda added. 

Noseda’s arrival boosts Mishcon’s private client capabilities, where the firm is particularly strong in art and cultural property. The firm boasts clients such as the Gagosian Gallery and The Fine Art Fund Group.

Mishcon has been pro-active in securing lateral hires in 2017, appointing David Leibowitz and Joanna Lampert from Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) as partners in April.

Restructuring and insolvency partner Leibowitz and real estate litigator Lampert, both joined Mishcon on 2 May. Leibowitz is the second departure from BLP’s restructuring and insolvency group in the last three years, after the firm lost highly-rated former head Ben Larkin to Jones Day in 2014.

Another key hire in 2017 for Mishcon was Jo Rickards’ arrival from Kingsley Napley. Rickards joined Mishcon’s business crime group as a partner, specialising in white collar crime such as corruption, fraud and money laundering.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

For more coverage of Mishcon de Reya’s recent success, read: ‘The USP – What is Mishcon’s secret formula?’ 

 

Legal Business

‘Young and ambitious’: Mishcon picks six legal start-ups for incubation programme

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Legal tech Mishcon de Reya

Mishcon de Reya has revealed a six-strong shortlist of legal tech start-ups to participate in its incubator programme, MDR LAB. The companies were selected after a pitch day at Mishcon’s London office on 25 April, where 19 companies presented their products.

The MDR LAB project is the latest of several technology incubation programmes where law firms are offering free legal advice to hook up with up-and-coming companies early in their development. Slaughter and May, Simmons & Simmons and Addleshaw Goddard have similar programmes which focus on fintechs, although Mishcon’s MDR Lab focusses exclusively on legal start-ups.

Overseen by chief strategy officer Nick West and in conjunction with tech investment fund L Marks, MDR LAB seeks to promote legal-minded technology that will benefit both lawyers and their clients. The scheme began in January.

The chosen companies will now engage in a ten week period where their products are applied to the market, with the start-ups given access to Mishcon’s roster of lawyers for advice.

West (pictured) told Legal Business that the firm hopes to run the programme again in the future, and commented: ‘Fundamentally it was a good fit between what they wanted to do and what we wanted to do. We focus on certain types of law, so we didn’t want to pick companies who were way outside of our expertise. They’re young and ambitious start-ups who want to change the way that the legal industry works.’

Of the six selected companies, two are based in the UK with the other four coming from Germany, the US and India.

Everchron is a start-up founded by former litigators designed for intuitive management of litigation cases. The technology automatically generates witness files and allows lawyers to quickly find relevant information.

Orbital Witness is a concept stage start-up based on assisting real estate lawyers via satellite imagery. It provides historical images of a site and claims to be an improvement on existing satellite image technology such as Google Earth. Orbital Witness aims to use machine learning to analyse imagery and solve clients’ queries.

Ping is a US-based product which automates timekeeping and provides data analysis for law firms, while SaltDNA is a Belfast-based start-up which offers software which enables complete privacy in mobile communications.

Indian start-up Surukam is a tool for managing contracts and Berlin-based company Synergist allows customers to draft, negotiate and sign contracts without redlines or email.

Mishcon’s hire of West from New Law pioneer Axiom was the start of a clear strategic push into the legal tech arena. Last year saw the launch of Mishcon Discover, making the firm the first in the UK to provide e-discovery services in partnership with a technology provider.

Other firms to invest up and coming legal tech firms include Dentons, which created NextLaw Labs in 2015 to boost innovation. NextLaw Labs invested in legal tech start-up Apperio in March 2016 and backed two startups, Libryo and Clause, as part of an initial co-investment worth around €200,000 towards the end of last year.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

For more on Mishcon, read: ‘The USP – What is Mishcon’s secret formula?’

Legal Business

Major LIA mandate for Enyo ends as SocGen settlement reached

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Litigation Enyo LawHerbert Smith FreehillsMishcon de Reya

The Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) represented by Enyo Law, has settled its longstanding dispute against Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) client Societe Generale (SocGen) and Mishcon de Reya client Walid Giamhi.

The LIA had sued Libyan businessman Walid Giahmi in 2014 in connection with an alleged $58m bribe paid to him by SocGen. The LIA has been fighting a number of cases to recoup losses made on deals during the financial crisis, including a separate action against American bank Goldman Sachs, which was dismissed after a two month trial last year.

But the LIA has now withdrawn its case against SocGen and Giamhi, and is liable for Giamhi’s costs. The LIA’s case was discontinued on the second day of trial, before oral openings could take place.

Giamhi was represented by Mishcon’s head of fraud defence Kathryn Garbett, with Enyo Law’s Simon Twigden acting for the LIA. HSF advised the French bank with a team led by Rupert Lewis.

Garbett, who described the LIA’s case as a ‘baseless conspiracy theory’, commented: ‘Giahmi provided full disclosure of all of his financial records and telephone communications dating back to 2006, which showed no illegal payments at all. Giahmi was also forced to seek confidentiality protection for the identities of other individuals in Libya giving evidence in the proceedings because of the risks to their lives and the lives of their families. The court agreed to impose these protective measures in the face of opposition from the LIA.

‘Giahmi is relieved that these proceedings, which had been brought in breach of Libyan Law, have come to an end.’

The LIA has been a key client for Enyo Law, which has advised it on this claim as well as LIA’s failed $1bn claim against Goldman Sachs over nine large financial derivative transactions that lost over 90% of their value.

In a statement Societe Generale said: ‘Societe Generale and the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) jointly announce that they have signed a confidential settlement agreement that resolves all matters between both parties concerning five financial transactions entered into between 2007 and 2009 that have been the subject of legal action in the English High Court. The terms of the settlement are confidential. Societe Generale wishes to place on record its regret about the lack of caution of some of its employees. Societe Generale apologises to the LIA and hopes that the challenges faced at this difficult time in Libya’s development are soon overcome.’

Twigden’s team on the case consisted of Brick Court Chambers’ Mark Howard QC, Roger Masefield QC, Richard Blakeley and Craig Morrison. Lewis instructed 3 Verulum Buildings’ Adrian Beltrami QC, Nathaniel Bird and Emmanuel Sheppard alongside One Essex Court’s Sandy Phipps QC and Anthony de Garr Robinson QC. Garbett was supported in her defence of Giahmi by fellow fraud Mishcon defence partner Claire Broadbelt, and instructed Maitland Chambers’ Paul Girolami QC.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Triple exit for BLP as Mishcon and Barclays take on partners

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Strategic recruitment Berwin Leighton PaisnerMishcon de Reya

Mishcon de Reya has hired Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) partners David Leibowitz and Joanna Lampert, while partner Bobby Schrader is joining Barclays after less than two years with BLP.

Restructuring and insolvency partner Leibowitz and real estate litigator Lampert will join Mishcon on 2 May. Leibowitz is the second departure from BLP’s restructuring and insolvency group in the last three years, after the firm lost highly rated former head Ben Larkin to Jones Day in 2014.

His departure leaves BLP’s restructuring practice with three partners, including head Ben Jones, and partners Marc Trottier and Ian Benjamin. It is understood Leibowitz is not likely to be replaced, as the firm’s current strategy is to focus on its core sectors.

Leibowitz has been at BLP for nearly 30 years. He qualified in 1986, was made up to partner in 1992 and has litigation experience acting for banks, insolvency practitioners, trade creditors, shareholders, the Insolvency Service and foreign lawyers. Lampert has been at BLP since 1999 and was made up to partner in 2006. She specialises in the most contentious aspects of real estate and acts for owners, occupiers, developers and funders of corporate real estate.

Meanwhile, Schrader is joining Barclays following a recent secondment with the bank. He joined BLP as partner in late 2015 from Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) to start a US securities group and build the corporate finance practice. Schrader had been at BAML for a decade and was last assistant general counsel and director. One BLP partner said: ‘Barclays is a valuable client relationship for us, and the US securities practice is more of a support function on deals rather than originating its own work. So the firm decided rather than keep supporting the practice, he had a great opportunity at Barclays and that was mutually beneficial for the firm and the client.’

Most recently, BLP confirmed in March that nine of its lawyers, including intellectual property (IP) head Simon Clark and head of the brand management and trademarks group Ian Gruselle are leaving the firm for TMT specialist Bristows as the firm identified it as ‘not a central issue’ for clients in the firm’s core sectors in a review conducted last year. Earlier this year, Playtech also hired relationship partner Alex Latner as general counsel.

Recent BLP hires include data protection partner Kate Brimsted from Reed Smith and corporate tax partner Mark Brailsford from Osborne Clarke, both hired last month.

georgiana.tudor@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Partner promotions: Mishcon cuts appointments in half as Fieldfisher makes up nine

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Partnership promotions Mishcon de Reya

Fieldfisher and Mishcon de Reya have announced their partner promotions for 2017, with the latter seeing three associates being made up. That number is half of last year’s figure, where six associates were promoted.

In this year’s partner promotions for Mishcon, Susannah Kintish, Ben Annable and Chhavie Kapoor have all been made up. Kintish, who has been with the firm since 2008, has been promoted to the firm’s employment department. A Lovells trainee, Kintish has accrued significant experience during her time at Mishcon, notably acting for recruitment company Fawkes and Reece in obtaining an injunction against an ex-employee who stole confidential information.

Annable has been promoted to Mishcon’s corporate department with a specific expertise in UK and cross-border M&A and joint ventures. Annable, who has been with the firm since 2010, previously advised Quotient Bioresearch on the sale of its Quotient Clinical division to Bridgepoint Development Capital in December 2016.

Kapoor, an expert in property litigation, will be promoted to the firm’s real estate practice. Kapoor has been with Mishcon since 2014, but has had prior spells at Nabarro, Eversheds and RPC. Kapoor’s practice focuses on advising developers on how to avoid disputes, and also providing counsel to both landlords and tenants in relation to business lease renewals among other issues.

Mishcon managing partner Kevin Gold (pictured) commented: ‘It’s fantastic to welcome these people to our senior team, and the fact we can do this is indicative of the talent we have at the firm.’

Elsewhere, Fieldfisher has announced its largest round of promotions since 2010, with nine associates being made up across the firm. The number is a considerable improvement on last year’s iteration when only two lawyers were made up to partner.

The promotions have added depth to Fieldfisher’s corporate, IP, real estate, dispute resolution, privacy and private client practices, with the associates taking on their new roles on 1 May 2017.

All but one of the new partners have been made up in the firm’s London office, while Olivier Proust has become a privacy partner in Fieldfisher’s Brussels office. James Seadon, a former Mayer Brown trainee, has been promoted in IP, while Fieldfisher-trained Mikhail Basisty has been appointed to the corporate team.

Fieldfisher managing partner Michael Chissick said: ‘These partners are not only a reflection of their own hard work and dedication, but they also reflect the range of opportunities we offer as a firm. I look forward to seeing to them develop in this new stage of their careers.’

Mishcon partner promotions in full:

Susannah Kintish, employment

Ben Annable, corporate

Chhavie Kapoor, real estate

Fieldfisher partner promotions in full:

Mikhail Basisty, corporate, London

Gordon Drakes, IP, London

Louise Elmes, real estate, London

Tom Guida, IP, London

Aymen Khoury, dispute resolution, London

Olivier Proust, privacy, Brussels,

Andrew Sanderson, dispute resolution, London

James Seadon, IP, London

Penny Wotton, private client, London

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

LLP latest: Travers’ top paid takes home £1.5m as Mishcon ‘shares the love’

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Financial results 2016/17 Mishcon de ReyaTravers Smith

LLP accounts show City elite firms Travers Smith and Mishcon de Reya both saw double digit turnover growth in 2016. While Travers lifted its top paid member to £1.5m, Mishcon’s highest paid dipped slightly.

For Travers, revenues jumped from £105.2m to £120.3m over the year to 30 June 2016, accounting for a 14% increase. As a result of another year of double-digit growth, operating profit at the firm also grew 12% from £52.4m to £58.5m. The highest paid member at Travers bagged £1.5m in 2016, increasingly slightly from last year’s figure of £1.3m. This figure in LLP accounts does not necessarily equate to the highest paid equity partner and can relate to ‘golden handshakes’ to retiring members.

As the firm continues its upward financial trajectory, staff numbers and costs have also expanded, with the number of fee earners increasing from 265 in 2015 to 282 this time round. Support staff numbers were also up from 152 in 2015 to 167 this year, with staff costs increasing in tandem from £36.2m to £42.7m.

Travers Smith senior partner Chris Hale commented: ‘It was a good set of results, with a good performance all-round. Our transactions teams did well, as did our disputes team and advisory businesses. The current year won’t be as spectacular, but is likely to be good in the circumstances.

‘Unlike many other firms, we won’t benefit from a massive currency uplift because we have very little income to convert from Euro or dollars into sterling but on a like-for-like basis, I’m sure this year we’ll hold our own.’

In the firm’s first year as an LLP, Mishcon recorded another period of growth as turnover rose 18% to £130m from £110m for the year to 9 April 2016. Operating profit was up from £40.6m to $45.1m.

Mishcon managing partner Kevin Gold told Legal Business that he attributed the firm’s success to ‘the development of the brand and the continuing development of our people. Altogether it was a reasonable year.’

Gold (pictured) added: ‘The continued growth of our twin strategies, aspiring to be the leading disputes house in London and one of the leading private client firms, was aided by a good year in the dispute and private wealth markets.’

The average number of members at Mishcon rose from 83 to 91, but remuneration for the highest paid member dipped slightly from £1.74m to £1.73m. Staff costs were up to £45m from £39.2m, while the average number of partners was up from 525 to 588.

Gold explained the drop in highest paid member as ‘spreading the love.’ Gold also indicated that profit per equity partner at the firm was ‘around the £1m mark’, which would be a potential increase on last year’s reported figure of £950,000.

The firm entered a revolving credit facility in March 2015 in order to fund the fit out of its new offices, which it moved into in July 2015. According to the accounts, while the facility was originally agreed at £18m, some of the loan has been repaid and the facility has been reduced to £10.8m. The statements say the firm expects to pay the loan back by March 2020 when the facility expires.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

Read more: ‘The USP – What is Mishcon’s secret formula?’

Legal Business

Mishcon, A&O and Freshfields major winners at 2017 Legal Business Awards

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Allen & OveryFreshfields Bruckhaus DeringerMishcon de Reya

Mishcon de Reya, Allen & Overy (A&O) and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer were among the major winners at the 2017 Legal Business Awards, with Macfarlanes’ senior partner Charles Martin recognised as Management Partner of the Year.

Mishcon (pictured) was named Law Firm of the Year for the second time in five years, winning the most coveted award for what is been a startling run over the last decade (as can be seen in our December cover feature ‘The USP – What is Mishcon’s secret formula?‘.

A&O was of the one night’s main winners, picking up two awards: Competition Team of the Year and Legal Innovator of the Year, thanks to the successful launch of its MarginMatrix product and collaboration with Deloitte. Meanwhile, Freshfields picked up one of the most sought-after awards, Private Equity Team of the Year, for its role advising Advent International on the £1.5bn sale of the Priory Group to Acadia Healthcare.

Our Lawyer of the Year award this year was given to commemorate the work and life of the late Frances Murphy of Slaughter and May, one of the finest City M&A partners of her generation.

In other key practice categories, Clifford Chance was selected as Corporate Team of the Year for its role advising National Australia Bank on the three-and-a-half year-long demerger and subsequent listing of CYBG; while Ropes & Gray won Finance Team of the Year for advising Virgin Media on two innovative transactions. In one of the most competitive slots, Latham & Watkins was named US Law Firm of the Year.

Gowling WLG was a joint winner alongside Hogan Lovells in the Real Estate Team of the Year category, then returned to the stage to pick up the CSR Programme of the Year award for its work on establishing the Suited For Success charity.

Our disputes category was split for the first time this year, with Boies, Schiller & Flexner named Commercial Litigation Team of the Year for obtaining the first summary judgment from the Financial List in a landmark case for Barclays, while Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom picked up the International Arbitration Team of the Year award for securing victory for the Republic of South Sudan in its ICSID dispute with Sudapet Company.

Other major awards saw Virgin Media’s legal team named In-House Team of the Year for its role in the success of two major initiatives for the company in the last year, while Scotland’s leading independent, Brodies, picked up National/Regional Firm of the Year after a very strong 2016.

The awards were presented to 900 guests in a gala ceremony last night (23 March) hosted by renowned journalist and newscaster Alastair Stewart. The event was preceded by a reception to mark the launch of this year’s GC Powerlist report.

The winners were selected by an external judging panel comprising the following senior general counsel: Nilema Bhakta-Jones, group legal director of Ascential Group; Claire Chapman, general counsel (GC) and company secretary of Daily Mail and General Trust; Kate Cheetham, general counsel at Lloyds Banking Group; Kirsty Cooper, group GC and company secretary at Aviva; Claire Debney, director of legal strategy at Shire; Chris Fowler, GC UK Commercial for BT; FT GC Dan Guildford; Geoffrey Timms, GC and company secretary at Legal & General Group; Zoopla Property Group GC Ned Staple; Nigel Paterson, general counsel at Dixons Carphone; Nyeem Syed, assistant GC, financial & risk at Thomson Reuters; and Tony Williams of Jomati as well as Alex Novarese and Mark McAteer from Legal Business.

Our May edition will include a full report of the night. For more details on the awards, click here.

mark.mcateer@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business Awards 2017 – The Winners

Bristows – TMT Team of the Year

Ropes & Gray – Finance Team of the Year

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom – International Arbitration Team of the Year

Ashurst – Restructuring Team of the Year

Allen & Overy – Competition Team of the Year

CMS Cameron McKenna – Energy and Infrastructure Team of the Year

Boies, Schiller & Flexner- Commercial Litigation Team of the Year

Irwin Mitchell – Private Client Team of the Year

Bond Dickinson – Insurance Team of the Year

Clifford Chance – Corporate Team of the Year

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer – Private Equity Team of the Year

Gowling WLG/Hogan Lovells – Real Estate Team of the Year

Three Crowns – Boutique of the Year

Frances Murphy, Slaughter and May – Lawyer of the Year

Gowling WLG – CSR Programme of the Year

Vieira de Almeida – International Firm of the Year

Ahsan Gulabkhan, Virgin Atlantic – Rising Star In-House Counsel of the Year

Virgin Media – In-House Team of the Year

Charles Martin, Macfarlanes – Management Partner of the Year

Latham & Watkins – US Law Firm of the Year

Allen & Overy – Legal Innovator of the Year

Linklaters – Legal Technology Team of the Year

Brodies – National/Regional Firm of the Year

Mishcon de Reya – Law Firm of the Year

Legal Business

Freshfields, Mishcon and White & Case up for the top prize as shortlist unveiled for 20th Legal Business Awards

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Freshfields Bruckhaus DeringerMishcon de ReyaWhite & Case

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Mishcon de Reya and White & Case are among the firms competing to be named Law Firm of the Year at this year’s Legal Business Awards.

Also shortlisted in the flagship category for the awards, which take place at Grosvenor House Hotel on 23 March, are Clyde & Co, Osborne Clarke and Stewarts Law.

The full shortlists, revealed below, will see high-calibre law firms, in-house teams and individuals competing across 24 categories, including 12 practice area awards at the 20th year of the Legal Business Awards.

The finalists for the coveted In-House Team of the Year award are Anheuser-Busch InBev, Barclays, Crown Estate, Sellafield, Shell and Virgin Media.

City giants Linklaters, Clifford Chance and Travers Smith are among the firms fighting it out to be named Corporate Team of the Year. In the Dispute Resolution category, Boies, Schiller & Flexner, Stewarts Law and Mayer Brown are among those in contention. In private equity, one of the most in-demand strategic practices areas in the Square Mile in recent years, the shortlist includes Freshfields, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Baker McKenzie.

With American law firms securing an increasing share of high-end work in the City, Latham & Watkins, Goodwin Procter, and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan are among the shortlist for US Law Firm of the Year in what will be one of the most competitive categories of the night.

The winners, which will be unveiled at the gala ceremony with a 1,000 guests hosted by journalist and broadcaster Alastair Stewart, are decided by an independent judging panel of senior general counsel.

This year’s panel comprises: Nilema Bhakta-Jones, group legal director of Ascential Group; Claire Chapman, general counsel (GC) and company secretary of Daily Mail and General Trust; Kate Cheetham, general counsel at Lloyds Banking Group; Kirsty Cooper, group GC and company secretary at Aviva; Claire Debney, director of legal strategy at Shire; Chris Fowler, GC UK Commercial for BT; FT GC Dan Guildford; Geoffrey Timms, GC and company secretary at Legal & General Group; Zoopla Property Group GC Ned Staple; Nigel Paterson, general counsel at Dixons Carphone; Nyeem Syed, assistant GC, financial & risk at Thomson Reuters; and Tony Williams of Jomati.

Major winners last year, included Pinsent Masons, which was named Law Firm of the Year and Herbert Smith Freehills, which won the Dispute Resolution Team of the Year award, while Skyscanner walked away with the in-house prize.

mark.mcateer@legalease.co.uk

Click here for more information or email ben.lawless@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business Awards 2017: The full shortlist

TMT Team of the Year

Bristows

Cooley

DLA Piper

Powell Gilbert

Reed Smith

Simmons & Simmons

Finance Team of the Year

CMS Cameron McKenna

Herbert Smith Freehills

Linklaters

Paul Hastings

Ropes & Gray

Simmons & Simmons

International Arbitration Team of the Year

Baker McKenzie

Boies, Schiller & Flexner

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

Three Crowns

Weil, Gotshal & Manges

Restructuring Team of the Year

Allen & Overy

Ashurst

Bond Dickinson

Clifford Chance

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

Paul Hastings

White & Case

Competition Team of the Year

Allen & Overy

Ashurst

Bristows

Herbert Smith Freehills

Mishcon de Reya

Travers Smith

Energy and Infrastructure Team of the Year

Burges Salmon

CMS Cameron McKenna

DLA Piper

Pinsent Masons

Shearman & Sterling

Sullivan & Cromwell

Commercial Litigation Team of the Year

Boies, Schiller & Flexner

Charles Russell Speechlys

Clyde & Co

Mayer Brown

Stewarts Law

Weil, Gotshal & Manges

Private Client Team of the Year

Charles Russell Speechlys

Harbottle & Lewis

Irwin Mitchell

McDermott Will & Emery

Stephenson Harwood

Withers

Insurance Team of the Year

Bond Dickinson

DAC Beachcroft

DLA Piper

Eversheds

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom

TLT

Corporate Team of the Year

Clifford Chance

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Linklaters

Shearman & Sterling

Slaughter and May

Travers Smith

Weil, Gotshal & Manges

Private Equity Team of the Year

Baker McKenzie

Clifford Chance

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher

Hogan Lovells

Norton Rose Fulbright

Real Estate Team of the Year

Berwin Leighton Paisner

Gowling WLG

Hogan Lovells

Macfarlanes

Norton Rose Fulbright

Reed Smith

White & Case

Boutique Law Firm of the Year

Candey

Humphries Kerstetter

Powell Gilbert

Sacker & Partners

Signature Litigation

Three Crowns

Lawyer of the Year

Maurice Allen, DLA Piper

Peter Crossley, Squire Patton Boggs

Jo Hickman, Public Law Project

Sue Millar, Stephenson Harwood

Frances Murphy, Slaughter and May

Mark Rawlinson, Morgan Stanley

Joanne Wheeler, Bird & Bird

CSR Programme of the Year

Bond Dickinson

CMS Cameron McKenna

Dechert

Dentons

Gowling WLG

Hogan Lovells

International Firm of the Year

Garrigues

Gómez-Acebo & Pombo

Magnusson

Mason Hayes & Curran

Noerr

Vieira de Almeida

Wolf Theiss

Rising Star In-House Counsel of the Year

Edward Anderson, Sainsbury’s

Julia Boyle, Telefónica

Jonathan Cope, RSA Group

Ahsan Gulabkhan, Virgin Atlantic Airways

Craig Harris, British American Tobacco

Sarah Rosser, Vodafone

In-House Team of the Year

Anheuser-Busch InBev

Barclays

Crown Estate

Sellafield

Shell

Virgin Media

Management Partner of the Year

Tim Eyles, Taylor Wessing

Richard Foley, Pinsent Masons

John Joyce, Addleshaw Goddard

Charles Martin, Macfarlanes

Mark Rigotti and Sonya Leydecker, Herbert Smith Freehills

John Westwell, Foot Anstey

US Law Firm of the Year

Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson

Goodwin Procter

Latham & Watkins

Paul Hastings

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan

Sidley Austin

Sullivan & Cromwell

Legal Innovator of the Year

Allen & Overy

Axiom

Dentons

Lawyers On Demand

Pinsent Masons

RPC

Vodafone

Legal Technology Team of the Year

Addleshaw Goddard

Linklaters

Mishcon de Reya

Riverview Law

Simmons & Simmons

Taylor Wessing

National/Regional Firm of the Year

Brodies

DMH Stallard

Freeths

Harper Macleod

Mills & Reeve

TLT

Law Firm of the Year

Clyde & Co

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Mishcon de Reya

Osborne Clarke

Stewarts Law

White & Case

Legal Business

‘Major implications for solicitors’: Law Society backs Mishcon in Dreamvar property fraud case

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Legal regulation Mishcon de Reya

The Law Society is considering intervening in a negligence case between Mishcon de Reya and its former client, Dreamvar, after Dreamvar was duped into buying a property from a fake owner.

A High Court judgment in December last year found Mishcon liable for negligence and ordered the firm to pay £1.08m to Dreamvar in damages.

In September 2014, Dreamvar was duped into buying a £1.1m property in Earl’s Court, West London. The property seller impersonated the actual property owner via a forged driving licence and TV licence before disappearing with the £1.1m fee.

Dreamvar’s claims against Mishcon related to its failure to identify ‘a number of features relating to the transaction which individually or collectively should have alerted it to there being a real risk of fraud.’

Mishcon is taking the case to the Court of Appeal, and stated that: ‘This judgment has major implications for solicitors and for the professional indemnity market. This goes beyond real estate and the result will impact on all transactional lawyers.’

The Law Society has announced its intention to intervene in the case, but was unable to provide a timeline for when a decision will be made.

Law Society president Robert Bourns said: ‘The Law Society is aware of the Dreamvar case and the potential difficulties it poses for practitioners working in conveyancing. We are currently considering the full implications of the case, including whether it would be appropriate for us to intervene in the appeal and what additional guidance we should provide to practitioners on the matter.’

Robin Simon represented Mishcon in the case, and instructed Radcliffe Chambers’ Jeremy Cousins QC and Peter Dodge. Dreamvar was represented by Healys which instructed David Halpern QC.

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Mishcon’s claimants succeed as Supreme Court rules an Act of Parliament is required to trigger Brexit

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Brexit Mishcon de Reya

The Supreme Court has ruled that the UK cannot leave the EU without parliamentary approval, in a decision which means there will be a debate in the House of Commons to determine how Article 50 can be triggered.

Lord Neuberger, president of the court said: ‘The main issue is concerned with the fact that the government has a prerogative power to withdraw from international treaties as it sees fit. However the government cannot do that if it changes UK laws without the consultation of parliament.

‘Today by a majority of eight to three the Supreme Court rules that the government cannot trigger article 50 without an act of parliament.’

A press statement from the Supreme Court also asserted that the devolved regions of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales do not need to be consulted to trigger Article 50.

Lead claimant and 51-year-old investment manager Gina Miller was represented by Mishcon de Reya, who instructed the services of Lord Pannick QC and Rhodri Thompson QC.

Mishcon disputes partner Rob Murray (pictured) who is acting on the case, dismissed the possibility of an appeal: ‘The Supreme Court is the end of the line. I’m not expecting any reference to the European Court of Justice. It’s not something that was argued in the hearing.’

Bindmans partner John Halford, represented the People’s Challenge group. The group, backed by a CrowdJustice campaign that has raised around £170,000, argues that ‘Royal Prerogative cannot be used to remove ordinary people’s rights granted by Act of Parliament.’ Halford instructs a team that comprises Helen Mountfield QC of Matrix Chambers and Gerry Facenna QC of Monckton Chambers.

Representing the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis, was Blackstone Chambers’ James Eadie QC. Eadie, who has been nicknamed ‘the Treasury Devil’, has previously advised the government on issues such as drone strikes and prisoner voting.

The 11-strong panel of justices is the largest ever assembled for a court case since the inception of the law lords in 1876. The justices are: Lord Neuberger, Lady Hale, Lord Mance, Lord Kerr, Lord Clarke, Lord Wilson, Lord Sumption, Lord Reed, Lord Carnwath, Lord Hughes, and Lord Hodge.

Prime Minister Theresa May gave a landmark speech on 17 Jan outlining the UK’s future relationship with the EU. It was announced that the UK will sever its ties with the single market, however May emphasised that she envisioned a ‘truly global Britain.’

Debevoise & Plimpton London co-managing partner Lord Goldsmith said: ‘The political significance of this decision will be much debated, but its practical implications are clear. Prime Minister May’s deadline of 31 March to invoke Article 50 now seems in danger. The ability of the Government to put through an Act of Parliament without causing further delay in the timetable will surely be strongly tested in the coming weeks.’

Lord Chancellor Elizabeth Truss said: ‘While we may not always agree with judgments, it is a fundamental part of any thriving democracy that legal process is followed. The government has been clear that it will respect the decision of the court.’

tom.baker@legalease.co.uk

Read the full decision here.

Read more in: ‘Great expectations – Neuberger speaks’