‘What’s your ambition son?’
‘Well dad, I’d like to be a plausible adviser’
‘Good boy. And then one day you might even be a trusted adviser too.’
Continue reading “Guest post: WTF is a trusted adviser and how did GCs come to strive for it?”
‘Differing practice interests’: strategic tensions emerge as 11 Stone Buildings votes to dissolve
London commercial and chancery chambers 11 Stone Buildings (11SB) is set to dissolve on 30 October 2015.
Gibson Dunn strikes again to land HSF’s global head of capital markets
Herbert Smith Freehills’ global capital markets chief, Steve Thierbach, is set to leave the firm for Gibson Dunn & Crutcher as part of a double swoop by the US firm, with capital markets partner also Christopher Haynes departing, HSF has confirmed.
Continue reading “Gibson Dunn strikes again to land HSF’s global head of capital markets”
Freshfields head of Islamic finance to leave for Morgan Lewis
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer global head of Islamic finance Tarek El-Assra has quit the firm to join Morgan, Lewis & Bockius as a partner, as the Morgan Lewis targets the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia
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Comment: The NYLon law firm – outmoding a Global Elite and Magic Circle firm near you
If there is one big trend in the analysis of Legal Business in recent years it is the encroaching existential threat represented by US-bred law firms.
Microsoft general counsel promoted to president and chief legal officer
Brad Smith, Microsoft’s general counsel, has been appointed as the company’s president and chief legal officer in a rare move that will see the lawyer take a broader role.
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US law firms take advantage of early retirement myths at City leaders, argues report
New research suggests US firms are picking up top talent by taking advantage of the misconception that UK firms exit their partners in their late 50s.
Revolving doors: TLT and SPB expand in the regions while Ashurst bolsters its finance practice
The UK’s regional hubs saw a spree of hiring as TLT strengthened its corporate practice in Manchester after a law firm’s collapse and Squire Patton Boggs bulked up in Leeds. Meanwhile, Ashurst enlarged its finance practice in Europe with the addition of two new partners and Fladgate recruited an employment partner.
Legal watchdog overhauls handbook to green light apprenticeships as it ushers in ‘inconceivable’ changes
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has inched closer to controversial apprenticeship qualifications while green lighting a raft of changes to the SRA handbook.
In-house: Network Rail corporate legal chief stands down after almost a decade
After nearly ten years of service at Network Rail including helping to restructure the body’s legal team and transfer to the public sector, corporate legal chief Natalie Jobling is standing down.
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Comment: The Dirty Conversation – hard choices for leading US firms as the Boomers clock out
With the first wave of the Baby Boom about to turn 70, firms are asking the hard question, earlier and earlier. Guest writer Aric Press discusses the best way to have the Dirty Conversation.
Guest post: Luxury lawyering and the Bergdorf effect – getting your price right
A week or two ago, we were having drinks here in New York with two senior corporate partners at an AmLaw-25 firm that is quite self-aware enough to know it’s not in the realm of the super-elite, and the topic turned to pricing.
Continue reading “Guest post: Luxury lawyering and the Bergdorf effect – getting your price right”
‘A hole in the market’: Scott + Scott opens in the City with plans to exploit conflicts and cash in on competition class actions
In anticipation of a boom in competition-based disputes as the Consumer Rights Act comes into force, US firm Scott+Scott is planning to kick-start its City offering by pursuing banks found guilty of manipulating the foreign exchange market in a multi-million pound lawsuit.
In-house: Lloyds Bank hires JP Morgan EMEA litigation head as new disputes chief
JP Morgan’s Europe, Middle East and Africa head of litigation Wilson Thorburn has been appointed by Lloyds Bank as its new litigation chief.
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Life after Kaplan: Ince & Co picks BPP while Mills & Reeve lets its trainees decide
BPP has picked up Ince & Co as a client while Mills & Reeve is allowing trainees to pick for themselves following Kaplan’s announcement it will close its law school.
‘The final piece of the jigsaw’: DAC Beachcroft launches Miami office targeting Latin America
DAC Beachcroft has opened an office in Miami, led by a former AIG lawyer, as it looks to strengthen its Latin American offering by connecting local insurance clients to the rest of its network.
Q&A: John Quinn talks competition, class action and China
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan was the talk of the town when it took on some of the world’s largest banks in post-crisis related litigation. The concept paid off for a firm which this year posted revenues just over $1bn with profits per equity partner reaching just under $5m – the second highest recorded in the Global 100. However, as crisis-related disputes reach their tail-end, founder and managing partner John Quinn (pictured) speaks to Legal Business about the firm’s current growth plans.
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Addleshaws enters booming contract lawyer market with AG Integrate
As it continues its revamp in the hope of becoming a top 20-firm by 2019, Addleshaw Goddard has launched a contract lawyer offering labelled AG Integrate, targeting both clients and as a service to supplement its own workforce.
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Comment: Leadership by soundbite is fuelling a well-being crisis for in-house counsel
As a consultant spending most of my professional time working with general counsel (GCs), so concerned have I become at the pressures and strain on the mental health of in-house counsel, that this summer I authored a report on what I see as the crisis in well-being in-house.
Dealwatch: Sullivan & Cromwell’s City office and CC advise on nearly £6bn worth of deals
Sullivan & Cromwell’s City office has been busy this summer winning roles on two headline deals announced yesterday [8 September], working alongside Clifford Chance (CC) on both Cinven’s £2.3bn sale of pharmaceuticals group Amdipharm Mercury Company (AMCo) and advising Goldman Sachs on Mitsui Sumitomo’s £3.5bn Amlin purchase.