White & Case has again advised Polish telecoms group Play Communications and its shareholders, Novator and Olympia, this time on Play’s €1bn initial public offering (IPO) on the Warsaw stock exchange.
The IPO, which is the largest in the telecommunications sector in the past two years, values Poland’s second biggest mobile network operator Play at €4bn. Continue reading “‘Exciting growth journey’: White & Case advises Polish telecoms company Play on €1bn IPO”
DWF has fulfilled its ambition to enter the South American legal market with new associations in Argentina, Panama and Colombia, following swiftly on from the firm’s Asia launch in June.
The Manchester-headquarted firm has entered into associations with VAGEDES & Asociados in Argentina, Fabrega Molino in Panama and Duarte Garcia Abogados (DG&A) in Colombia. The associations will operate as ‘best friends’ arrangements and are not exclusive. Continue reading “DWF breaks into South America with associations following Asia launch”
Fieldfisher is retaining all of its London-based trainees for a second consecutive year, with a 13-strong cohort qualifying into a range of practice areas.
The newly-qualified lawyers (NQs), who will earn £63,000 a year, will join Fieldfisher’s corporate, dispute resolution, employment and pensions, finance, intellectual property, regulatory, property litigation and technology practices. Continue reading “Fieldfisher posts 100% autumn trainee retention rates for second consecutive year”
Former Linklaters’ global chief operating officer Simon Thompson (pictured) has joined Baker McKenzie’s London office as its new chief operating officer (COO) with effect from August.
Continue reading “Former Linklaters global COO to head Baker McKenzie’s London office”
A host of UK firms including Bond Dickinson, TLT and DAC Beachcroft have been appointed to West Yorkshire authorities’ legal framework (WYLAW) for three years.
A total of nineteen law firms have been appointed across ten lots which include childcare law, general litigation, routine property and contracts, commercial and IT. National firms Browne Jacobson, Ward Hadaway and Weightmans also feature on the roster. The last WYLAW review was carried out in June 2013 resulting in a panel which included Eversheds Sutherland and Pinsent Masons. Continue reading “Firms including Bond Dickinson, TLT and DAC Beachcroft appointed to local authority framework”
Casting an eye over the results for the world’s 100 largest law firms, 2016/17 has been the definition of grinding out a result. Not a pretty result at that.
The group as a whole hiked revenues 3% to $98.82bn, pretty much tracking the increase in lawyer numbers. In part due to the strength of the dollar, there are some surprising results. The number of $2bn-plus law firms has fallen from ten to eight (thanks to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters). The number of $1bn-plus firms falls from 35 to 34. Consolidation continues to be a force in the industry but almost exclusively in the global mid-tier, not its upper echelons. Continue reading “Comment: A grinding year for the Global 100 as US leaders assert dominance”
DAC Beachcroft‘s profit per equity partner has increased 20% from £358,000 to £432,000, despite subdued revenue growth which the firm attributed to global investments and challenging market conditions over the year.
The firm recorded a 3% revenue rise from £201.6m last financial year to £207m this year.
DAC Beachcroft notably further reduced its debt by £1m to £19m over the period. Continue reading “‘Particularly pleasing’: DAC posts 20% rise in PEP despite subdued revenue”
Trowers & Hamlins will retain 70% of its second-year trainees in newly-qualified (NQ) roles this autumn, while Withers has decided to keep 73% of its final-year group this year, both a fall from last year’s retention rates.
Seven Trowers’ trainees from ten-strong cohort will be retained to qualify into the firm’s commercial property, corporate, construction and real estate departments. Continue reading “Trowers and Withers post fall in autumn trainee retention rates”
Following Work Group’s conditional £18.8m reverse takeover bid for West-End firm Gordon Dadds, Work Group confirmed it has successfully raised £20m, as the firm gears up to publicly list in August.
Work Group said in a statement that it had raised £20m through the conditional placing of new ordinary shares in Work Group, at a post-consolidation price of 140 pence per share, which would give the enlarged group a market capitalisation of £40m, based on the placing price on admission to AIM. Continue reading “‘Major consolidator’: Work Group raises £20m as it gears up to list Gordon Dadds in August”
Ashurst has retained 95% of its 20-strong second year trainee cohort, with 19 of those in London accepting permanent newly-qualified (NQ) solicitor contracts at the firm.
King & Spalding litigation partner Christopher Wray, nominated as FBI director, earned $9.2m for his partnership share over the last eighteen months, according to documents.
Slaughter and May has announced today (12 July) that it will retain 91% of its second-year trainees for newly qualified (NQ) lawyer positions at the firm this autumn.
Continue reading “Magic Circle: Slaughters first to announce 91% trainee retention rate”
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Slaughter and May, Morgan Lewis & Bockius and Davis Polk & Wardwell all returned to act as co-owner Pearson agreed to sell a further 22% stake in Penguin Random House (PRH) to Germany’s Bertelsmann, with the UK education company aiming to recapitalise the business to generate net proceeds of around $1bn.
Mishcon de Reya has brought in Mike Owen from PwC as the fourth member of its expanding cyber security consultancy service, advising clients on cyber intelligence, risk consultancy and reputation management.
Continue reading “Mishcon boosts fledgling cyber security consultancy service”
Disruptive general counsel (GC) Christine Cordon has departed her role at luxury travel company Secret Escapes to become head of legal at venture capital business Arts Alliance Ventures.
Continue reading “Disruptive GC Cordon exits Secret Escapes for new role in venture capital”
Spanish banking giant Santander has appointed a host of firms including Slaughter and May, Ashurst and Reed Smith to its UK legal panel for three years.
Continue reading “Santander appoints firms including Slaughters and Ashurst to UK legal roster”
The Ashurst partnership has elected London partner Karen Davies and Sydney partners James Marshall and Barbara Phair to its 10-member management board for three years, in a year marked by revenue growth and some partner exits.
Continue reading “‘Exciting times’: Ashurst elects three new board members after mixed year”
I come from a big family. The only male. I have four sisters and was exposed to the talent and influence of women very early on.
My father’s influence led me into law. He had a very small law firm, just himself and another partner. And he was obsessed with me as his successor to get into law but in a different way from him. He was visionary enough to see that the law was going to change and it was better for me to do something different.
With a listless economy, an oil and gas industry decimated by low commodity prices, and uncertainty over its future relationship with the EU and the rest of the UK, Scotland is lacking both clarity and optimism over its future.
To recap as the UK tiptoes towards banana republic territory in the wake of last month’s inconclusive, prediction-defying general election: City professionals face the prospect of an unsteady government negotiating a logistically-epic exit from the EU with an uncertain agenda against a much larger and better prepared counter-party. That is until the next general election in perhaps the autumn.
But let us put politics to one side and assume that a form of substantive Brexit is happening. Where does that leave top London law firms with such ominous clouds hanging over London as a finance and legal services hub?
Continue reading “Magic Circle playbooks in Europe are full of contradictions”
