‘One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree. “Which road do I take?” she asked. “Where do you want to go?” was his response. “I don’t know,” Alice answered. “Then,” said the cat, “it doesn’t matter.”’
Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
The above passage from Alice in Wonderland, says Daniel Jowell QC of Brick Court Chambers, is apt when planning for the possibility of the UK leaving the EU. Continue reading “2016 and all that”
Twenty years ago the idea of any person instructing the Bar other than a private practice solicitor was frowned upon. Although as qualified solicitors in-house counsel always had the right to instruct barristers, convention dictated private practice lawyers acted as gatekeepers of the Bar for companies seeking advice on litigation. But, as the rules have changed and in-house lawyers have expanded their remits, corporate legal teams have come to appreciate the benefits of direct interaction with barristers. Continue reading “Straight to the source”
Working long hours, expected to be available at all hours, and labelled a cost-centre. Such are the pressures of life in-house. The days of commerce and industry as a softer option for lawyers than the toil of the law firm associate track are rapidly drawing to a close. Continue reading “Passion plays”
A tax on City lawyers floated by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to subsidise the criminal court system has been effectively abandoned amid Treasury opposition, according to senior City sources.
Continue reading “Gove’s City levy kicked into long grass amid Treasury opposition”
In the age of the anodyne corporate law firm, you can at least say a marriage of Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) and Greenberg Traurig would be a distinct beast. If the talks are successful, it would be the first major international deal built on the foundation of real estate.
Continue reading “Comment: Merging BLP and Greenberg Traurig – unique, compelling, bloody difficult”
Squire Patton Boggs has promoted seven in the City in its latest global partnership round of 30, where it has made up the same number of partners across the globe as it did last year.
Continue reading “Squire makes up seven in the City in global promotions round”
Tech firm Bird & Bird has reappointed its longstanding leader David Kerr (pictured) as its chief executive for a further three years and elected the founder of its Italian practice as chairman.
Continue reading “Bird & Bird’s Kerr set to hit 23 years in charge following re-election”
In June 2014 the government extended flexible working rights to more than 20 million employees across the UK in a policy shift that recognised the traditional nine-to-five routine no longer dominates British workplaces. But if such attitudes are relatively new to much of the economy, lawyers in in-house roles – traditionally a more progressive environment than private practice – have long put a premium on agile working. Continue reading “Goodbye nine to five”
From court fee hikes to a mooted City law tax to legal aid cuts, the profession’s relationship with government is at a low ebb. With the Law Society’s fundraising powers under threat, is it time for a new trade union?
It was the most contentious attack on City lawyers in recent memory. A proposal by incoming justice secretary Michael Gove to tax top law firms to fund the criminal courts acted as a rallying cry to the usually placid commercial profession. But it wasn’t the Law Society, which receives £35m a year to represent the profession in England and Wales, leading the fight. Opposition was mounted by the firms themselves and a tiny body operating on nearly a hundredth of the Law Society’s budget.
Historically confined to David vs Goliath claims, a new band of dispute funders are pushing the model into new frontiers. How far can they go?
Hedge fund methodology – the process of using hard numbers to make statistical predictions – is not part of a dispute lawyer’s traditional armoury. Yet the same kind of financial calculation used by banks and asset managers is not just creeping into the disputes market, but threatening to have a significant impact on it.
Continue reading “The bigger short – third party funding bets on new markets and models”
As two of the most highly regarded leaders in the Square Mile – David Morley at Allen & Overy (A&O) and Chris Saul at Slaughter and May – prepare to hand over, it’s an apt moment to reflect on the state of leadership at leading UK law firms.
It’s not clear that what emerges from the profession is all that flattering. Governance has professionalised and become more technocratic, yes. There are more senior non-lawyer managers, though given the industry’s propensity for paying for top dollar for mediocre support staff with ill-defined authority and accountability, it’s debatable that this is a yardstick of success or sophistication.
Continue reading “Too many reasonable men? What ails law firm leadership”
In the age of the anodyne corporate law firm, you can at least say a marriage of Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) and Greenberg Traurig would be a distinct beast. If the talks are successful, it would be the first major international deal built on the foundation of real estate.
It would also be the first financially integrated US/UK tie-up of any consequence for years, given that the pair have ruled out a verein-based semi-merger. Both points look in favour of the marriage: there is a place in the global legal market for a real estate-heavy player and on the evidence of the last five years, the multi-profit centre unions have been indifferent performers.
Continue reading “BLP/Greenberg: unique, compelling, bloody difficult”
There is a reason that the slogan ‘No taxation without representation’ has echoed through history. The rally cry of the American revolution demonstrates a basic truth that institutions and figures of authority hitting up constituencies for money without broadly representing their interests are in the long run asking for trouble.
On that yardstick, the Law Society has been asking for trouble for many years and it looks like it has finally got it as the Conservative government threatens to finish the job Labour started with the Legal Services Act and end the body’s ability to levy fees on the profession.
Continue reading “From Chancery Lane to Waterloo – it’s time for the Law Society’s levy to go”
Shell external roster set to dominate reconfigured in-house department
Royal Dutch Shell has kicked off a review of its external legal roster after finalising its £47bn takeover of BG Group last month and as their existing panels come to an end. As a result of the takeover, the second-largest energy deal on record, both companies will overhaul their legal divisions.
A tax on City lawyers floated by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to subsidise the criminal court system has been effectively abandoned amid Treasury opposition, according to senior City sources.
The levy was floated by the MoJ in October last year as a means to replace revenue generated from a controversial court charge on convicted criminals that was supposed to bring in £65m to £90m annually.
Continue reading “Gove’s City levy kicked into long-grass amid Treasury opposition”
Bank’s European in-house team reshuffled as GC Leistner departs
A strong reputation for derivatives work has seen Ashurst selected to join the Magic Circle’s big four international firms on Credit Suisse’s recently finalised UK law firm roster.
Continue reading “Derivatives experience helps Ashurst join Magic Circle on Credit Suisse UK panel”
Firm aims to save clients up to 30% on disclosure
Mishcon de Reya has launched a new venture with e-discovery provider Unified and software developer kCura, agreeing a fixed-price three-year contract that it claims will save clients between 10% and 30% on large disclosure exercises.
Continue reading “Mishcon de Reya launches e-discovery business”
King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is restructuring its London teams, which has delayed the election of a new European managing partner and comes amid cash flow problems in the legacy SJ Berwin practice.
The move comes as the firm rolls out its 2020 strategy, which KWM global managing partner Stuart Fuller described as setting ‘a vision to be in the global elite for the next century’.
Firm leaders discuss selling points as deal goes to a vote
As Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) closes in on its merger with Miami-based Greenberg Traurig, both firms have targeted full financial integration as their leaders sell the deal to their partnerships.
After a four-month election, Allen & Overy (A&O)’s C-suite for the next four years was revealed last month with corporate lawyers Wim Dejonghe and Andrew Ballheimer chosen as the new leaders.
Arguably the only Magic Circle firm to keep pace with US rivals over the last five years, A&O’s partnership opted for continuity as Dejonghe, who has been managing partner for the past eight years, was named senior partner. Co-head of corporate Ballheimer joined him as global managing partner, giving the management duo at A&O – which has traditionally included a partner from the firm’s signature banking group – a distinctly corporate look.
