Partners at legacy Norton Rose‘s European business will get a limited vote on the firm’s next potential US merger with New York firm Chadbourne & Parke, Legal Business understands. Continue reading “Legacy Norton Rose partnership given limited voting rights on Chadbourne merger”
In the wake of the eye-catching tie-up of CMS Cameron McKenna, Nabarro and Olswang, Legal Business noted last year that the gnomic messages around the union made it a hard one to judge. And even after a detailed assessment of the largest UK legal merger ever, as we undertake for this month’s cover feature, it’s not easy to put the pieces together. Continue reading “Comment: There’s value in CMS’ purchase and one big hurdle ahead”
BP has commenced a review of its panel of legal advisers, marking the oil giant’s first revamp since 2014. The decision to renovate the legal panel comes after the promotion of Eric Nitcher to general counsel (GC) in January this year. Continue reading “In-house: BP starts panel review under new general counsel”
Happy New Year, profession. Barely have we gotten into 2017 and the inevitable has happened: the legacy SJ Berwin business has entered administration, becoming the largest collapse in European legal history. Continue reading “Comment: As KWM cracks, beware re-written history and schadenfreude”
Eversheds LLP’s have revealed that the firm’s average remuneration per member has dropped 10% from £410,000 to £386,000 as the firm’s staff costs have increased 16% from £150.2m to £174m. Continue reading “Eversheds average member remuneration drops 10% to £386,000, as staff costs increase 16% to £174m”
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters are expected to take home £102m in fees as they advise on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Deutsche Börse’s attempted tie-up. Continue reading “Magic Circle duo to take home £102m in fees from mega stock exchange merger”
Pinsent Masons, Bond Dickinson and Shepherd and Wedderburn have all won places on Water Plus’ legal panel. The new business water retailer is a joint venture launched by FTSE 100 water company Severn Trent and United Utilities. Continue reading “Pinsents, Bond Dickinson and ShepWedd take panel spots for Severn Trent and United Utilities JV”
Hogan Lovells International, which covers the firm’s operations outside of the US, has seen an 8% increase in turnover compared to the previous year, according to the firm’s filings on Companies House. This saw revenue jump from £591m in 2015 to £638.2m for the year ended April 2016. Continue reading “Hogan Lovells International posts 26% PEP boost as firm moves to pay down pension liability”
Fieldfisher has strengthened its Chinese presence by opening a new office in Shanghai with four partners, and said it will double its partner count in the city by June this year. Continue reading “Fieldfisher returns to Shanghai with four-partner office opening”
With complex structures and global operations, it has become increasingly difficult to benchmark financial performance of major law firms… which is why it is often revealing to compare public accounts to initial disclosures.
The latest case in point is Anglo-Australian giant Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF), which has just confirmed 2015/16 revenues nearly £40m lower than its initial disclosure, citing the dramatic impact of fluctuating currencies over the year.
Dentons has announced today (7 February) it is to launch in Jeddah at the same time as Clifford Chance and Herbert Smith Freehills have revealed plans to scale back their presence in the Middle East.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Winston & Strawn have both added to their footprints in Texas this week, simultaneously announcing new offices in Houston and Dallas respectively.
Over 500 barristers have condemned proposals from the Bar Standards Board (BSB) to reform the regime for barristers-in-training.
High-profile members of the profession, such as former Lord Chief Justice Lord Woolf, are among the 505 signatories of an open letter to the BSB, criticising its suggestions for restructuring the exam process.
Ashurst’s latest LLP accounts show a spike in capital expenditure and a stark fall in operating profit defined a tough year for the Anglo-Australian firm in 2015/16, in which revenues fell for the second year in a row.
Continue reading “LLP latest: spending spike and debt increase underlines tough year for Ashurst”
Clyde & Co has strengthened its London office with a new recruit, as Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF), Bird & Bird, Sidley Austin and Barclays all secure new talent.
Despite a year of pronounced headwinds, our annual focus on the ten largest offshore firms reveals that 2016 activity levels remained robust with an increasing focus on Asia and continued strength in dispute resolution. However, among the leadership of these firms there is little doubt that Brexit has had an inevitable effect on performance.
‘The reality of Brexit has and will continue to impact business as much as the prospect of Brexit has done,’ says Jonathan Rigby, managing partner at Mourant Ozannes. Continue reading “The year offshore in review – The Iron Islands”
In a margin-conscious environment it is tough for advisers to catch a client’s eye, but according to flagship research into GC attitudes, a group of quality City law firms are standing out from the crowd through cutting-edge service delivery.
Management at Addleshaw Goddard is planning to ultimately phase out its third partnership class, which has been created to accommodate the firm’s merger with Scottish practice HBJ Gateley. Continue reading “Addleshaws plans to disband third partnership tier as Scottish merger beds down”
CMS Cameron McKenna is to stretch its top of equity to accommodate the highest-earning Nabarro partners, as the firms prepare for their tripartite merger with Olswang on 1 May. Continue reading “Camerons to raise top of equity to keep Nabarro heavyweights”
Allen & Overy (A&O) has continued its expansion in the US with the appointment of Eugene Ingoglia to its investigations and litigation practice in New York, its third litigation hire in the US in a month. Continue reading “A&O continues US expansion with third litigation hire in a month”
