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”
National Grid has reorganised its in-house legal function following the £13.8bn separation of its gas distribution business.
Continue reading “National Grid reshuffles in-house team as firms join new panel”
Cutting-edge legal tech is no longer an optional extra for law firms. In our latest round table with McCann FitzGerald, legal technologists debate the key barriers to success
The last five years have seen the emergence of early adopters in the legal technology sphere, firms that have embraced innovation and adopted artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics and predictive coding tools, not only to increase efficiency, but to reshape the way they work. Continue reading “The bleeding edge – The legal tech debate”
Five years since the turbulent union of Herbert Smith and Freehills, the global challenger has chosen Mark Rigotti as its sole chief executive. Is the culture clash over?
Managing the delicate power balance between managing partner and senior partner is tricky at the best of times. But how do you address the cultural minefield as a foreigner taking the lead executive role of a 134-year-old City institution still coming to terms with a turbulent merger, especially when your opposite is a particularly influential and strong-willed senior partner? Continue reading “Taking over – one leader at HSF but is the culture clash over?”
Victoria Young and Madeleine Farman talk to new heads on the US, high yield and China.
While in recent years Allen & Overy (A&O) has been probably the most confident of the City’s leading banking shops, it remains a fast-evolving world for even the most potent of banking teams. Since the market turned in 2008, Magic Circle firms have faced tight margins and the increasingly ominous incursion of US-dominated finance products in Europe’s credit markets. Continue reading “The Finance View – A&O’s new practice chiefs on repositioning the City’s top finance shop”
Amid a turbulent market, the three-way union of Camerons, Nabarro and Olswang has forged a UK giant. Has Camerons picked up a bargain or will there be buyer’s remorse?
September 1988. Twenty fresh-faced trainees are preparing for their first day at Nabarro Nathanson. Among the recruits are Iain Newman, Paul Stevens and Duncan Weston. Not only will the trio go on to have prominent careers in City law and remain on good terms, but more than 25 years later they would kickstart the UK’s largest-ever legal merger. Continue reading “Sale of the century – Has Camerons picked up a bargain with Olswang and Nabarro?”
After a rocky 2016 with Brexit and Trump, we ask the City’s leading corporate players how 2017 will play out. Continue reading “The last word: Dealbreakers”
