What’s the point of Baker McKenzie?

Paul Rawlinson

Ever wonder what Baker McKenzie is waiting for? The firm once had a crystal clear market position as the only major commercial practice that got anywhere near being truly globalised. And while the sprawling nature of the network meant a 20-year battle to shrug off the franchise tag, Bakers has long achieved polished mid-market credibility in many key jurisdictions. While it was never a threat to the US and London elite, the logic for an emerging giant to handle the mid-stream work for global plcs speaks for itself. Yet Bakers has continually fallen short of its own rhetoric.

Having been an international trailblazer, growth has been pedestrian for a decade now and there is too little evidence of the oft-promised push up the value chain. Continue reading “What’s the point of Baker McKenzie?”

BLP’s US merger bid – a certain loss of confidence

St Louis

If nothing else, it is safe to say Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP)’s not-very-convincing claim that management was not dead set on a US merger was stretching it. Because recent news that the firm is debating a union with Bryan Cave screams: ‘We really want a US merger!’

The talks come after last year having gone through a bruising but short courtship with the far larger Greenberg Traurig, the thrusting Miami shop which had a culture clash with BLP that could not have been more obvious if it had been heralded by fireworks. Continue reading “BLP’s US merger bid – a certain loss of confidence”

The last word: Speaking out

Tamara Box

With the recent Weinstein revelations shining a light on sexual harassment and misogyny across every industry, we ask senior lawyers for their views

Call it out

‘Sexual harassment of anybody in any circumstance is outrageous. It must be called out at every opportunity and condemned for what it is – an insidious abuse of power.’

David Morley, member, Mayor of London’s International Business Advisory Council Continue reading “The last word: Speaking out”

Client profile: Mark Maurice-Jones, Nestlé

Mark Maurice-Jones

Unusually for the current UK and Ireland general counsel (GC) of Swiss multinational and famed KitKat creator Nestlé, Mark Maurice-Jones’ career started in teaching.

Armed with a chemical engineering degree from the University of Cambridge that he was unsure how to utilise, Maurice-Jones opted for a year-and-a-half-long stint in Hong Kong teaching maths, physics and chemistry. But ultimately he found the pull of a career in the law more alluring. Continue reading “Client profile: Mark Maurice-Jones, Nestlé”

The Departed

Why would a partner quit an elite London law firm with decades of history, Rolls-Royce support and a superb client base for the uncertain prospects of the City arm of a US rival?

Money is the obvious answer and in a sector in which laterals regularly increase their compensation by 50-100%, that is obviously a big part of the equation. One Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer rainmaker is currently reported to be sitting on a $10m a year standing offer. Continue reading “The Departed”

Offshore: Riding the storm

palm trees in a storm

Think offshore centre and certain calm images spring to mind: elegant yachts, crystal blue water, sparsely-populated beaches and gently sloping palm trees. However, in September this idyllic cliché was superseded in the public consciousness by horrific scenes of destruction as Hurricane Irma and then Hurricane Maria ripped through the Caribbean. The British Virgin Islands, where nine of the top ten offshore law firms have an office and nearly 400,000 offshore companies are registered, were catastrophically affected.

Favoured by Chinese companies in Hong Kong for more than 30 years, ‘a BVI’ is shorthand for an offshore company, so renown is its status. But while the narrative coming out of the British Overseas Territory has been defiant with Lorna Smith, interim executive director of BVI Finance, saying there was ‘no doubt’ it will fully return, it could take some time before full operational normality as a commercial and litigation centre is restored. At press time, the territory’s company register continued to function via the online portal, VIRRGIN and just prior to the disruption, company incorporation certificates were sent to London by the BVI Financial Services Commission to have them issued there. The commercial division of the High Court had resumed and matters were being heard by the commercial judge sitting in nearby St Lucia in person, or by teleconferencing or videoconferencing if agreed by the parties. Continue reading “Offshore: Riding the storm”

Looking stateside again: BLP in ‘surprising’ merger talks with Bryan Cave

‘Surprising’ was the adjective frequently deployed by City partners in October when merger talks between Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) and US firm Bryan Cave were unveiled, with BLP going back to the US market 19 months after its attempts to tie up with Greenberg Traurig ended brutally.

The new candidate for a transatlantic union is closer in size and profitability to BLP compared to Greenberg and the union would create a 1,700-lawyer entity with 32 offices in 12 countries.

Continue reading “Looking stateside again: BLP in ‘surprising’ merger talks with Bryan Cave”

‘Selling the crown jewels’ – Gateley partners in £10m share sale

Michael Ward

Following Gateley’s landmark listing in 2015 where partners pocketed a combined £25m, some senior partners have taken home almost £500,000 each after a stake in the top 50 UK law firm was sold for nearly £10m in October.

Documents at the London Stock Exchange (LSE) show a sale of 6.21% of the firm’s equity due to a ‘strong demand from new institutional shareholders’.

Continue reading “‘Selling the crown jewels’ – Gateley partners in £10m share sale”

Watchstone Group files defence as war of words with S&G over Quindell continues

The ongoing Slater and Gordon (S&G) saga shows no sign of abating, as the Watchstone Group (formerly Quindell) in October denied fraudulently misrepresenting itself over the sale of its professional services arm to the beleaguered law firm.

The £637m buyout in May 2015 proved to be the beginning of a downward spiral for S&G as, following the deal’s completion, the Serious Fraud Office launched a probe into Quindell’s accounting practices. As a result, S&G’s shares tumbled. Continue reading “Watchstone Group files defence as war of words with S&G over Quindell continues”

Disputes eye: How the talent flow demonstrates the Bar’s strength

Speaking to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer disputes veteran Jon Lawrence this summer on his decision to join Brick Court Chambers, he said he was not ready for the golf course just yet.

But there has been a wave of Freshfields heavyweights of Lawrence’s vintage who have made a similar move, notably former managing partner Ian Terry, who went to One Essex Court and Raj Parker, who went to Matrix Chambers in 2016. Continue reading “Disputes eye: How the talent flow demonstrates the Bar’s strength”

As Nextlaw swells, will Dentons’ platform mark the end of referral clubs… or something bolder?

Marco Cillario assesses whether Nextlaw is a network or Dentonsʼ Uber

With typical distaste for the status quo, Dentons chair Joe Andrew last year described the launch of Nextlaw Global Referral Network as the beginning of the end for traditional law firm networks. The new platform, conceived and paid for by Dentons, differed from other networks in not charging membership fees and being open to any number of members globally. Continue reading “As Nextlaw swells, will Dentons’ platform mark the end of referral clubs… or something bolder?”

‘Good people are expensive’: Simmons to launch in Dublin through local hire

jeremy hoyland

As speculation continues in the Irish market as to which international law firm will be the next to come knocking on the door of local partners, Simmons & Simmons has confirmed plans to launch in Dublin with a lateral hire from Mason Hayes & Curran (MHC).

Simmons, which had long been rumoured to be considering a launch in the city, has hired MHC’s head of investment funds and financial regulation Fionán Breathnach. The firm will focus on asset management initially, a core practice area for Simmons, with plans to expand further into the financial institutions sector with more local hires. Continue reading “‘Good people are expensive’: Simmons to launch in Dublin through local hire”

Letter from… Frankfurt: Where political deadlock is fine for business… but not all lawyers

Frankfurt

What a difference a few hundred miles can make: an election not resulting in a clear majority; a government polling much worse than expected; a leader weakened; and complicated negotiations ahead. In London, such headlines spell uncertainty, prudence, even panic.

While any poll in the UK fills its legal community with trepidation, the Germans reacted to the results of the federal election on 24 September by either stressing that no-one should overestimate the impact of politics on business or by saying it was good news. Says Georg Seyfarth, veteran corporate partner of German blueblood Hengeler Mueller: ‘Building the coalition will be difficult and it will take time. However, eventually we will see a “Jamaica coalition”, which will be good for businesses. The M&A market will not be affected.’ Continue reading “Letter from… Frankfurt: Where political deadlock is fine for business… but not all lawyers”

The Legal 500 view: we are changing to reflect the needs of in-house UK

Alexander Boyes and Hayley Eustace review the latest launch of the UK edition

The 2017 edition of The Legal 500 is our biggest yet, for a number of reasons. The demand for ʻlegal directoriesʼ has increased in the past few years, due in part to more movement in the market, firms getting smarter at marketing, clients having less time, globalisation – which all leads to a need for independent third-party review. Continue reading “The Legal 500 view: we are changing to reflect the needs of in-house UK”

NYLon focus continues as Kirkland and White & Case announce promotion rounds

Elite US firms ramped up their London partner headcounts in October, with Kirkland & Ellis making up a record 97 new partners – equal to more than 10% of its existing partnership – 13 of them in its fast-growing London base, while White & Case’s more modest 31 included seven in its City arm.

The number of London promotions at Kirkland more than doubled last year’s round and its total tally is up on last year’s 81. The 2,000-lawyer US firm has an unusual model in that it makes up large ranks of salaried partners before considering promotions to its tightly-held equity, which at the end of 2016 totalled 359 of its 820 partners. Continue reading “NYLon focus continues as Kirkland and White & Case announce promotion rounds”

Litigators warn of impact on clients as ENRC wins right to appeal controversial privilege decision

Serious Fraud Office

Legal professional privilege (LPP) was thrown a lifeline last month, when mining giant Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC) was granted the right to appeal against a controversial order to disclose documents in a Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation.

ENRC has been the subject of a long-running investigation by the SFO relating to alleged fraud, bribery and corruption. In May, the High Court ruled that certain documents prepared by ENRC in relation to the probe were not covered by LPP and therefore had to be disclosed. Continue reading “Litigators warn of impact on clients as ENRC wins right to appeal controversial privilege decision”

Autumn dealwatch: Euro mega deals keep Magic Circle busy

Freshfields and K&E act on Monarch administration

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s restructuring chief Ken Baird and finance partner Catherine Balmond led the team advising KPMG as Monarch Airlines filed for administration. Kirkland & Ellis and Reed Smith advised the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), while Stephenson Harwood acted for the Pension Protection Fund. Continue reading “Autumn dealwatch: Euro mega deals keep Magic Circle busy”

Boon for City real estate market as Eversheds Sutherland leads on largest-ever UK fund launch

In a major boon to the UK property market, recent changes to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) have sparked a trend that saw Eversheds Sutherland advise on the largest-ever launch of a UK property fund for Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) in October.

The portfolio, worth over £2.7bn, seeded by the transfer of two existing Royal London property portfolios, includes central London properties in New Bond Street, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, Oxford Street and St Paul’s. With a minimum investment of £50m, it is designed to expose the UK’s commercial real estate market to institutional domestic and foreign investors. Continue reading “Boon for City real estate market as Eversheds Sutherland leads on largest-ever UK fund launch”

Irresistible forces

Donny Ching

Alex Novarese, Legal Business: Looking at the top of the market, how is buying behaviour changing?

Donny Ching, Royal Dutch Shell: I see increasing sophistication in sourcing legal services. I am sure you all have experienced tenders and reverse tenders. More corporates are looking at using different tools, also driven by the contracting and procurement [C&P] organisation. Procuring legal services used to be the last bastion, where C&P could not touch. That is changing. We hired our own pricing analyst sourcing officer a couple of years ago. He has done phenomenal work and opened our eyes to what is possible. Continue reading “Irresistible forces”