Anna Cole-Bailey rounds up the latest senior corporate in-house moves
A string of general counsel (GCs) have made career changes of late, including high-profile names such as the long-serving Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) European legal chief Sajid Hussein and Rio Tinto GC Philip Richards. Continue reading “‘Time for a change’ as multiple corporate legal chiefs leave posts for pastures new”
The leadership of Slaughter and May’s Italian ally, BonelliErede, claims the firm has moved far ahead of its competitors after the recent takeover of litigation and corporate independent, Lombardi e Associati.
In a significant move for a market traditionally used to schisms, the merger – effective from July – sees Bonelli strengthen its position as the largest of the country’s three champions, growing its lawyer headcount by 70 to more than 500. Continue reading “Italian legal market consolidates as local champion Bonelli merges with rival Lombardi”
Eversheds Sutherland has chosen one of the most competitive legal markets for its first US office launch since its transatlantic union went live just over two years ago.
The firm in June opened its seventh US base in Chicago, home to strong Global 100 players Sidley Austin and Mayer Brown, and the world’s highest-grossing firm, Kirkland & Ellis. The focus will initially be on real estate, M&A and litigation, targeting the diversified industrials, technology, media and telecoms, financial institutions and energy sectors. Continue reading “Eversheds launches in Chicago and dreams of California in first post-merger US moves”
Slaughter and May and Clifford Chance (CC) are representing the City elite on a £4.8bn offer for Merlin Entertainments, in a deal that brought together a line-up of heavy hitters with Kirkland & Ellis and Latham & Watkins also fielding veteran partners.
The deal was announced on 28 June with Merlin, which is being advised by Slaughters, agreeing the terms of a recommended offer. The acquiring consortium comprises Kirkbi – the investment vehicle for Lego’s founding family – alongside private equity houses The Blackstone Group and the CPP Investment Board (CPPIB). Continue reading “City and US heavyweights line up on Lego owner’s £4.8bn offer for Merlin”
While some law firms claim to be all things to all clients, for almost a decade Simmons & Simmons has focused its efforts with increasing rigour on a select number of sectors. Given its unhappy period of drift as a generalist corporate finance player, recent years have delivered far better results. And nowhere is that more in evidence than in its particular take on financial services.
Its importance is reflected in the numbers. Currently the firm has 117 partners across its financial markets practice, 63 of which are in the UK, while 40% (around £150m) of firm-wide revenue comes from finance. Even here the firm has often avoided too much business-as-usual work for banking clients – a certain route to poor margins – to zero in on funds, asset managers and more esoteric areas of regulation. Continue reading “Deal View: A niche within a finance niche gives Simmons that much-needed edge after years of drift”
If there’s one City practice that has barely paused for breath in recent years, it is private equity (PE). Global buyout values reached a record high in 2018 and, while Mergermarket data suggests the first half of 2019 slipped back somewhat, activity levels remain strong, with take-privates driving much marquee M&A activity.
This has only served to underline the drawing power of the sector’s top dealmakers and recent years have seen a flurry of lateral moves. Kirkland & Ellis, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Latham & Watkins are among the most potent threats to the Magic Circle, but others, such as Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Willkie Farr & Gallagher have also made investments to build out their City operations. Continue reading “Top Trumps, City-style – Who holds the cards in private equity?”
This issue holds our annual Global 100 survey results, but which Global 100 firms top The Legal 500 for number of top-tier recommendations?
To view the editorial commentary of the rankings go to: legal500.com Continue reading “Legal 500 Data: Behind the story”
It is a complex world. Globalisation, increasingly interconnected economies, decades of tougher regulation and, yes, frenetic levels of law making across the world mean that getting business right is harder than ever and not all the proliferating risks can be managed.
All perfect conditions for litigators, which is why much of the post-banking crisis boom in legal services has been driven by demand for contentious law, rather than the transactional work that used to underwrite the high-end legal market. Continue reading “The clean-up crew – The rise of the in-house litigator”
‘Some of the management are dinosaurs. They don’t understand how important this is.’ So speaks one loyalist Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer partner of a growing unease shared by some regarding the City giant’s direction.
When Legal Business’ last focus on the 276-year-old institution hit desks in late 2015, the question was how newly-elected senior partner Edward Braham and co-managing partner Chris Pugh would secure the firm’s place in the Global Elite as the challenge from profitable US rivals mounted. Continue reading “The Global 100: The devil you know – The two visions for Freshfields”
Compared to the dramatic events that have defined each of the three previous years, 2018/19 was relatively benign for the world’s top 100 law firms. True, the world has been dealing with increasing protectionism, US-China trade wars and the endless saga of the UK-EU divorce. But none of these headwinds were a shock for an industry that three years ago was reeling from the Brexit referendum in the UK and in 2017 from the start of Donald Trump’s presidency in the US.
Last year’s Global 100 report spoke of two milestones, with the global legal elite smashing the $100bn collective revenue barrier and entering the age of the $3bn law firm. Those looking for events of a comparable magnitude this time around will be disappointed. But if the legal industry appeared resilient in summer 2017 and flourishing 12 months later, this year it is nothing short of booming. Collectively, these are the strongest results since the pain of the financial crisis started to be felt ten years ago. Overall revenue for the group grew by 9% to $113.51bn – the fastest rate of growth for a decade; gross profit rose by a healthy 8% to hit $43.44bn – a pace unmatched in ten years. Average profit per equity partner (PEP) also rose by a solid 7% to $1.87m. Continue reading “Global 100 overview: Escape velocity as the world’s largest firms pick up momentum”
Another headline panel session from our flagship corporate counsel event, Enterprise GC, saw four in-house banking lawyers reflect on the regulatory dynamics of their sector.
Greg McEneny, general counsel (GC) of the non-ring-fenced Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets, kicked off the discussion by considering the change in skillset brought on by post-financial crisis regulation: ‘I used to think of myself as a transactional lawyer but now I very much see myself as a regulatory lawyer.’ Continue reading “Postcards from the most-regulated – Bank GCs reflect a decade of change”
One of the set-piece debates of day one of Enterprise GC covered a pressing issue for general counsel (GCs) – how to widen their skillset by gaining board experience, as well as practical tips on becoming a non-executive director (NED) in particular. The session, chaired by veteran City columnist James Ashton, featured some seasoned campaigners: Michael Coates, associate GC for Shell UK and a director for a number of Shell companies; Eversheds Sutherland partner Denise Jagger, who has a portfolio of non-executive directorships and trustee roles; Stuart Morton, head of the legal and professional services function at executive search firm Odgers Berndtson; and Rob Webb QC, now a senior adviser at Brunswick and former GC for both British Airways and Rolls-Royce, who has held a number of board roles throughout his career.
Ashton began by asking the panel what advice they would give to a GC who has not yet got a non-executive role. Jagger said the key was to consider a NED role early in your career. ‘Too often I see people wait – whether it is retiring from the GC role or retiring from a law firm partnership – and then start to look.’ Continue reading “Broader horizons – How GCs can secure those prized outside roles”
For reporters used to the profession’s usual cautious pronouncements, it is striking how enthusiastic California lawyers are about the outlook; in the Bay Area you can forget the caveats that still dominate in New York and London. ‘We are in this extraordinary period of extended boom,’ says Cooley’s San Francisco corporate partner Rachel Proffitt. ‘We see equal strength in capital markets and M&A and that’s because there is so much capital. All indicators point to a continued strong year.’
The list of bullish quotes collected in a dozen interviews with the West Coast legal elite is certainly lengthy. Many note the much-touted fact that if the state was a country, California would be the world’s fifth-largest economy (now larger than the UK). It is also America’s most populous state and third-largest by land mass, measuring 770 miles at its longest point. Others simply invite you to drive down the 101 route from San Jose to San Francisco and look around at the offices of the Sunshine State’s corporate titans like eBay, PayPal, Google, Visa, Intel, Oracle, Twitter… the full list of tech giants remaking multiple industries on a global level. Continue reading “Global 100 – Letter from Silicon Valley”
The firms that appear in the 2019 Global 100 are the largest 100 law firms in the world ranked by revenue.
Financial data shown is for the last financial year – either calendar year 2018 or 2018/19. Financial years differ – most end in December in the US and in April in the UK. Continue reading “Global 100 Methodology and notes”
Despite Brexit, Trump and trade wars signalling a tentative prognosis from Global 100 leaders for the remainder of the year, many firms entered 2019 with engines blazing
‘Volatility, trade wars, Brexit and Trump notwithstanding, it’s been a good financial year. Each of our practice areas are strong in terms of work and economically. Mandates are flowing in, it’s a positive story. Threats are out there. Brexit will be priced into the market for the next eight to ten years. There will be peaks and troughs and no clarity for a while.’ Continue reading “The Last Word: New frontiers”
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Conyers’ Paul Smith, Róisín Liddy-Murphy and Jordan McErlean discuss
This year marked the tenth anniversary of the world’s first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. Cryptocurrency emerged as a by-product of digital cash with the goal of creating a decentralised currency, which would allow users to anonymously transfer funds online without restriction. Despite its overwhelming success, the crypto market is still very much in its adolescence with little regulatory governance. This article provides an overview of some of the challenges facing Cayman insolvency professionals (IPs) when confronted with insolvent estates possessing crypto assets1. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Novel issues facing Cayman insolvency professionals dealing with crypto assets”
