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LB100: relative revival for City elite in 2016 as a range of smaller players excel

The big four Magic Circle firms have posted their strongest performance in this year’s Legal Business 100 (LB100) since the recession, despite a subdued market overall. Although average revenue for the top 25 is down 3% to £622m, the combined revenue of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Linklaters, Clifford Chance and Allen & Overy (A&O) stands at £5.33bn, up 4% on last year, while average profit per equity partner (PEP) jumped 5% to £1.33m.

A&O managing partner Andrew Ballheimer said: ‘The year has seen mixed markets around the world. In that context these are another set of solid results which highlight our people’s ability to spot opportunities for growth.’

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SABMiller legal team faces autumn redundancies as £79bn AB InBev deal closes

credit suisseAs brewing giant SABMiller’s global general counsel (GC) John Davidson prepares to stand down in 2017, up to 35 staff in the UK-based legal team are to be made redundant.

In 2015, the world’s second-largest brewer became the focus of a takeover approach fromAnheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) (at press time valued at £79bn). Since the deal was signed, a review was held and the company’s structure overhauled in August.

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Tchenguiz brothers’ legal bill hits £5.1m in court battle against Grant Thornton

The drawn-out legal battle between property billionaires, Vincent and Robert Tchenguiz, and those they hold responsible for the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)’s botched investigation into their business dealings has proved a costly affair. It has emerged they have already paid out a collective £5.1m legal bill to date in their £3bn litigation against Grant Thornton and others, surpassing the SFO’s £4.5m settlement to the pair two years ago.

First filed by Vincent Tchenguiz after a settlement with the watchdog in 2014, the pair allege defendants, includingGrant Thornton, conspired to pass information, dishonestly, to the SFO in order to instigate and encourage an investigation by the watchdog into his relationship with collapsed Icelandic bankKaupthing, and that they did so for their own commercial gain.

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LB100 Focus: Don’t look back in anger: Ashurst leadership tries to rally partners but the drift continues

Five years on from its controversial Australian combination – and after a punishing 2015/16 – the storied City firm is still far from finding the form it needs in a competitive global market

‘We had known that the firm had been struggling for a while but we didn’t know, and certainly weren’t expecting, a 20% decrease to our [profit per equity partner] PEP,’ a recent Ashurst leaver tells Legal Business.

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Eversheds consults on new management structure

Lee Ranson clear favourite to take chief executive role

Eversheds has begun talks to forge a new leadership team as the firm strives to avoid a divisive contest after current chief executive Bryan Hughes steps down next May. Current managing partner Lee Ranson is expected to take Hughes’ role in a management structure with two other partners.

Legal Business understands that current international managing partner Ian Gray’s post will change or a new role may be created, while global company commercial head Keith Froud is likely to be appointed as the new managing partner by Ranson.

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RPC Consulting targets £50m turnover in plans to challenge Big Four

New software boosts expansion plans for firm’s start-up

RPC’s insurance management consulting arm is pursuing significant expansion as it bids to hit a £50m turnover target within the next five years.

RPC Consulting managing partner Rory O’Brien said the start-up had been boosted by its acquisition of financial modelling tool Tyche last year, which has led to new deals with high-profile insurance clients.

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The LB100: The second quartile – Short changed

After years of strong growth, the City’s mid-tier saw more mixed results in 2016

With Brexit looming large over the UK legal market, many of the second 25 of the LB100 have lost momentum. Outpacing the growth of leading players ranked in the top 25, last year firms including Macfarlanes, RPC and Nabarro defied critics who suggest the City mid-tier are in structural decline. This year, however, many firms have posted subdued results.

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Brexit effect hits home as mid-tier reveals job cuts and pay freezes

Large mid-tier firms in the UK were some of the first to feel the sting of the UK’s decision to leave the European Union, with Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), Trowers & Hamlins, Addleshaw Goddard and Gowling WLG all putting their summer salary reviews on hold.

In July, BLP postponed all UK staff pay reviews to November 2016.

The decision came on the back of a sluggish financial performance for 2015/16, with fee income falling 2% to £254m in 2015/16. The firm said in a statement: ‘Following market uncertainties arising out of the recent EU referendum vote, BLP has decided that the responsible and prudent thing to do is to defer making UK salary decisions for a further four months.’

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Linklaters PE team scores first-time instruction from BC Partners

Linklaters landed its first mandate from private equity (PE) house BC Partners at the end of July, with PE partners Alex Woodward and Vincent Ponsonnaille leading on a $1.6bn deal for a majority stake in Israeli furniture makerKeter Plastic.

BC, which has traditionally usedDickson Minto, turned toLinklaters as it trumped rivals The Carlyle Group and CVC Capital Partners to acquire an 80% stake inKeter from the Sagol family. Woodward and Ponsonnaille worked alongside Linklaters finance partners Brian Gray and Kathryn Merryfield, and tax partner Édouard Chapellier.

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Fighting back – a golden opportunity to take on the Big Four in tax services

Bakers City head Alex Chadwick argues that law firms are increasingly primed to take core tax work off Big Four rivals

As the international tax framework becomes subject to increased scrutiny and legal change, the demand for strategic global advice has never been stronger. In the UK, law firms have traditionally played second fiddle to the Big Four accountants when advising on tax. Today, however, law firms with the right infrastructure are incredibly well positioned to take more of a leading role in the tax affairs of their clients. This is down to a combination of greater regulation of audit services, tougher restrictions on the provision by accounting firms of non-audit services, such as tax, valuation and legal services and deregulation of the legal profession.

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Tokyo deal wave anticipated following SoftBank’s £24.3bn ARM takeover

Lawyers working on the £24.3bn ARM Holdings takeover by Tokyo-based telecoms group SoftBank expect more M&A deals to come out of Japan after Slaughter and May, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Davis Polk & Wardwell and Morrison & Foerster (MoFo) scored roles on the deal.

Slaughters advised its long-term client, chip designer ARM, on the largest-ever acquisition of a European tech business. Senior partner Steve Cooke led on the deal alongside corporate partner Chris McGaffin and Brussels competition partner Jordan Ellison. Davis Polk worked alongside Slaughters advising ARM, with a team including managing partner Thomas Reid and London-based corporate partner Reuven Young.

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A Brexit veto? The best-laid plans for Scotland’s future in the UK and in the EU

Brodies’ Christine O’Neill looks at the constitutional and legal position north of the border

It might be premature to say that the dust has settled on the result of the EU referendum. Although the initial shock of the outcome has worn off, there has been ongoing upheaval with a change of prime minister, the abrupt ending (and revival) of several political careers and the launch of a leadership challenge within the opposition.

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The Last Word – Place your bets

‘People want to be in a firm that is winning better work and achieving better results. There’s been a shift in expectation levels.’

Juan Picón, DLA Piper

From post-Brexit investment to the threat of accountants, LB100 leaders tell us how the cards are stacked


Moving quickly

‘As a firm which is investing outside the UK, the cost of investment has gone up, but the returns have also gone up, so you’ve got to put a premium on being able to identify the right opportunities and be able to get return back quickly. When times are uncertain people often try to hang on to cash.’

Peter Hasson, chief executive, Clyde & Co

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The Legal Business 100 2016

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No more Taylor Who? Flair and a bit of vision take Taylor Wessing to next step but what now?

Matthew Field and Victoria Young talk to Taylor Wessing head Tim Eyles and assess the firm’s prospects

‘When Tim Eyles took over there was a sea change,’ says one Taylor Wessing partner of their firm’s high-profile UK managing partner. ‘What you need as a leader is clear vision and Tim’s vision of how important it is to be global and focused and to have a culture that recognises achievement is key.’

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Deal watch: Corporate activity in July and August 2016


US ELITE LEAD AS VERIZON TAKES YAHOO! FOR $4.8BN

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz are among a host of US firms advising on Verizon Wireless’ much-anticipated acquisition of Yahoo!. Wachtell, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Covington & Burling and Winston & Strawn are acting for Verizon. Skadden, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Weil, Gotshal & Manges are advising Yahoo!, while Cravath, Swaine & Moore is acting for the strategic review committee of Yahoo! as its independent legal adviser.

 

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