Jaishree Kalia talks to Clyde & Co’s new senior partner as veteran head Payton hands over the baton after 29 years
There are succession issues and succession issues. James Burns, the incoming senior partner at Clyde & Co, is facing the latter category as he takes the helm of the world’s largest legal insurance specialist, which has been one of the most successful UK practices of the last decade and run by a respected figure for nearly three decades.
Two years on from the top-15 firm’s merger with Barlow Lyde & Gilbert (BLG), its strategy is to grow its disputes practice, expand internationally (on the back of significant expansion this year) and gear up for its next global management board election.
Up for grabs is Burns’ old spot on the board and global head of dispute resolution Benjamin Knowles’ seat, whose term expires this November, although he is entitled to be re-elected. At the time of going to press, the firm had yet to make any announcement. These latest elections come after Burns replaced longstanding senior partner Michael Payton, who stepped down after 29 years’ service and will continue as chairman from 1 November.
Elections for the other three positions on the board – currently held by disputes partner Simon Konsta, global head of international projects and construction group John Morris and employment and pensions partner Robert Hill – are due in autumn 2014.
Burns is conscious of not letting management elections rock the boat at a firm that enjoyed a 17% increase in revenue in 2012/13 to £336.6m and an increase in profit per equity partner of 4% to £580,000. ‘Sometimes when there are management changes, it can have an impact upon business and we want that to be as positive as possible. My appointment to senior partner was determined at the start of the year so there has been plenty of time for transition to take place,’ he said.
‘While I will obviously approach some things a little differently, the succession process from Michael has to date been seamless. In the last four to five years, we have had one election. There has usually been consensus within the firm.’
Knowles added: ‘It’s a case of more of the same, but the same has been very good.’
So what is more of the same? Highlights of the past year include obtaining a licence to launch in Beijing, opening in Madrid (with the hire of a four-partner team from DAC Beachcroft in May) and tying up an Indonesian alliance in September with Lubis Ganie Surowidjojo. The firm has also this year built up its Australian presence, which was launched in 2012 with a team from top-tier firm Allens and now includes nine partners and 45 fee-earners. Recent hires include King & Wood Mallesons partner Beth Cubitt and Glen Warwick from Norton Rose Fulbright to launch its Australian construction and projects practice.
Last year also saw the firm become the first to launch in post-Gaddafi Libya.
Central to the strategy is further international expansion, in Africa, Latin America and the US, where the firm has four offices, 150 lawyers and around $80m in turnover – but a US merger is still off the cards.
‘We have organically grown our US practice and have no current plans to merge with a US firm. Managing a transatlantic merger is clearly a significant undertaking. Any partners or teams who join us have to be the right fit and focus on our core sectors,’ Burns comments.
‘Managing a transatlantic merger is clearly a significant undertaking. Any partners who join us have to be the right fit and focus on our core sectors.’
James Burns, Clyde & Co
Disputes account for 71% of total revenue and will be a focus as the firm looks to grow in the area. In June, Clydes hired Manches data protection and privacy law expert Margaret Tofalides to boost global disputes and strengthen its intellectual property and data privacy capability.
Clydes’ rivals still question how the Manchester volume practice acquired from BLG (via the sale of Halliwells) fits into the firm’s long-term strategy. Burns argues the practice will remain key. ‘There is continuing price pressure in the insurance market and while our Manchester office works on some very complex claims, it provides exceptional value for money.’
There will also be much interest in the working relationship between Burns and Clydes’ long-term chief executive Peter Hasson, a similarly strong-willed personality.
On a general level, all eyes will be on the firm after the two-year lock-in period agreed with BLG partners ended in April (partners who left before this time had to pay a hefty sum for the privilege).
There has already been some fallout, including seven legacy BLG partners who left the firm’s Hong Kong office in April 2012. A trio of BLG partners also left ahead of the merger in 2011. However, the general perception is that the firms were a good match and – no doubt helped by the fact that BLG’s options at the time were limited – the merger has bedded in well.
Knowles added: ‘We have now done all the hard work of integrating systems and working practices. We integrated two different but complementary practices operating within the same field. It would have been a lot more difficult if we had merged with a firm that had a very different client base.’