Working under the radar, in-house lawyers in the fast-paced world of private equity operate in a unique environment
Unlike their private practice counterparts, in-house private equity (PE) lawyers prefer a low profile. Or, as one private practice partner puts it: ‘PE is a murky, sharp-elbowed world. In-house lawyers like to stay out of the limelight.’
Coming off the back of a 2015 that saw a more robust deal market and greater levels of activity in the real estate sector, the 2016 edition of The Legal 500 UK reflects a legal market which has not experienced this level of growth since 2008. Our coverage of the UK regions illustrates the divergent approaches firms have taken to achieve that growth. Firms with a broad national reach sit hand-in-hand with advisers that have chosen to focus on a single-site approach in many areas.
Continue reading “The Legal 500 view: Consolidation and risk define UK legal market”
Nabarro to cover costs of defending claim two years after lateral hire
Management at Addleshaw Goddard has launched arbitration proceedings against former head of real estate Mark Haywood, two years after he quit for Nabarro.
Continue reading “Addleshaws launches arbitration against former real estate chief Haywood”
NRF chief executive Peter Martyr defied expectations to reinvent Norton Rose as a progressive global player over more than a decade. Three years on from its ambitious US tie-up, where is the firm going next?
‘You will have to talk to Peter, we are not authorised to speak,’ says one Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) partner. It’s a familiar refrain in a firm that – despite its reputation as a friendly place to work – defers to central management. A lot.
Continue reading “On the bus – Inside the Norton Rose Fulbright masterplan”
Nearly 18 months after voting through modifications to its remuneration system, Clifford Chance (CC) has kicked off a firmwide review of where partners should sit on its lockstep in a bid to curb under-performance and retain star partners.
The firm traditionally operated a lockstep system with a single profit pool, where partners spent three years as juniors before progressing on to the equity ladder, which ranged between 40 and 100 points.
Continue reading “Clifford Chance begins review of lockstep points to encourage high achievers”
Eversheds sole adviser mandate to be reviewed next year
David Symonds, EMEA general counsel (GC) for merged entity Johnson Controls International (JCI), is leading a restructure of the company’s legal function following the completion of the $16.5bn combination of Johnson Controls and Tyco International in September.
Continue reading “EMEA GC leads legal restructure following $16.5bn Tyco-Johnson Controls merger”
King & Wood Mallesons’ (KWM) European partnership chose two new leaders last month, electing corporate partners Tim Bednall and Michael Cziesla as managing and senior partner for the legacy SJ Berwin practice.
The elections were triggered by the early retirements of managing partner William Boss and senior partner Stephen Kon, who return to full-time fee-earning, and come amid a turbulent 18 months for the Global 100 firm. The new leaders take their posts after the firm has missed profit distributions, seen global revenues fall, made a cash call and has been forced to restructure the partnership, with 24 legacy SJ Berwin exits.
Insurance head steps up as Burns switches roles
The partnership at Clyde & Co has avoided a divisive leadership contest as global head of insurance Simon Konsta won an uncontested election to become the firm’s new senior partner last month.
Dentons has officially launched its free-to-use Nextlaw Global Referral Network, signing up 291 firms to make the largest referral network by firm count in the world.
The network now has access to more than 19,000 lawyers in more than 160 countries. Scottish firms MacRoberts and Lindsays both joined, as well as offshore firms Ogier, Appleby, Carey Olsen and Walkers and more than 70 US firms.
Continue reading “Dentons Nextlaw becomes largest global referral network of more than 290 firms”
Madeleine Farman, Matthew Field and Kathryn McCann speak to those inside and outside the fence
‘A merger was definitely going to happen. That was obvious when I was at CMS four years ago,’ a former CMS Cameron McKenna partner tells Legal Business. ‘It is another great scheme; I don’t feel that the firm’s brand has improved since I left. I know from people inside that the network, although they make a great show of it working well, doesn’t really work as well as it should.’
Lloyds Banking Group panel shrinks from ten firms to eight
Last month saw DLA Piper and Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) lose out as Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) reduced its UK legal roster from ten to eight firms.
Continue reading “Norton Rose and DLA lose out as Lloyds finalises UK roster”
BP’s group general counsel (GC) Rupert Bondy, one of the most high-profile in-house leaders, is to step down from his role by the end of the year to head up Reckitt Benckiser (RB)’s global legal team as senior vice president (SVP), GC and company secretary.
Last month BP announced internally that Bondy would step down at the end of 2016 to pursue another opportunity, with no current replacement for the role.
Continue reading “Search for BP legal head begins as Bondy departs for Reckitt Benckiser”
ConvaTec’s $1.8bn float bright spot in a subdued autumn market
Linklaters and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer are advising on medical products company ConvaTec’s anticipated $1.8bn initial public offering (IPO).
Continue reading “Freshfields and Linklaters lead on largest post-Brexit IPO”
US firm takes first-time instruction from Freshfields client Phoenix
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom is in line for a windfall after taking the lead role advising on Phoenix Group Holdings’ proposed £935m acquisition of Abbey Life Assurance Company from Deutsche Bank, pocketing a significant chunk of £17m in fees in the process.
Continue reading “Skadden impresses as it takes lead on Abbey Life acquisition”
Association with Fidelity Law to lead to joint office offering Chinese law advice
Hogan Lovells is the third international law firm to enter the Shanghai Free-Trade Zone (FTZ) after agreeing an association with local outfit Fujian Xiamen Fidelity Law Firm in October.
Continue reading “Hogan Lovells becomes third firm to launch in Shanghai Free-Trade Zone”
A frenetic 2015 has given way to a subdued deal market. LB assesses the outlook and asks which of the City’s deal teams have the individuals to win lucrative top-end work… and escape the squeezed mid-market
Amid a global economy experiencing considerable turbulence, 2015 was still a fantastic time to be an M&A partner at one of the City’s top law firms. A run of record-breaking deals. Check. Easy finance. Check. London strongly positioned as a finance hub, the UK economy moving back into recovery and a newly-elected pro-business Conservative government. Check, check and check.
Melbourne office unlikely following Singapore closure
Dentons’ tie-up with Australian firm Gadens, announced a year ago, has been delayed, with Dentons confirming Gadens’ Melbourne office is now unlikely to join.
Continue reading “‘Each market is different’: Dentons’ Australian tie-up delayed”
Victoria Young reviews how global firms are positioning themselves to cash in on a market on the cusp
As the internationalisation of China’s currency continues, global firms are making much of the pioneering Yankee bond-style deals in the Chinese market, eyeing opportunities in the orient and beyond.
Continue reading “The Finance View: Global firms jostle for position in panda bond market”
Market turbulence looks likely to only send the private equity bandwagon spinning faster… for those who can get on board
Markets can charge up or down, banking crises come and go, but it seems that it will take more than a little turmoil, uncertainty or even the spectre of Brexit to stop the rising influence of private equity and sponsors in Europe’s deal markets.
Continue reading “The M&A Report: Private equity offers the clients for all seasons”
We canvassed M&A veterans for their reflections on a changing environment for advisers as Brexit and uncertainty loom over Europe’s deal markets
‘The competition aspects of these deals are becoming more involved. If the government were to throw some grit into the works it could slow things down here.’
Charles Martin, Macfarlanes
‘What you have seen over the past 18 months is a larger number of major deals fall over, such as alliburton/Baker Hughes. There is no doubt antitrust has become harder in mega M&A, due to the number of jurisdictions you now have to file in and increased scrutiny from regulators. Parties to these deals have to have the appetite to live with a long gap between announcement and closing and be prepared to make divestments of the type we have seen in AB InBev/SABMiller. There are only a handful of top global firms that can provide the EU, US and Chinese antitrust advice on these type of deals.
We are confident there will be further foreign takeovers of UK plcs given the fall in sterling. Notwithstanding ongoing uncertainty around Brexit and the US elections, we are encouraged that the M&A landscape is quite well set for a stronger second half of the year.’
Charlie Jacobs, senior partner, Linklaters
