In a sign that the Magic Circle firm has renewed confidence in its traditional M&A stronghold, Linklaters has promoted nine corporate lawyers to the partnership, nearly 40% of the 23-strong round, spread across the City, Shanghai and its European offices.
Redundancy watch: Six partners and 10 staff set to leave Ince & Co
Following a round of redundancies last year which saw 33 roles cut, Ince & Co is restructuring its partnership and support staff with six partners and ten secretarial staff set to depart.
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Partnership promotions: Norton Rose Fulbright makes up 51 in largest promotions round since merger
Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) has today (27 April) announced a total of 51 lawyers were made up to partner across the US, Canada Europe, Asia and Africa in what constitutes its largest promotions round since its 2013 combination.
130,382: Solicitors numbers rise led by in-house expansion while training contract numbers continue to slide
The Law Society today (27 April 2015) published its Annual Statistics Report 2014, showing that while the number of solicitors rose, returning to growth in 2014 after dipping in 2013, and those graduating with a law degree reached record highs, the number of training contracts continued to fall.
Revolving doors: European hires as HSF recruits in Germany and Bird & Bird focuses on Denmark while Ogier hires from Kirkland
King & Wood Mallesons real estate team hire from Eversheds may have made the headlines last week, but there were plenty of notable hires elsewhere. Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) bolstered its Frankfurt office which it launched in 2013 with a finance partner from K&L Gates while Bird & Bird welcomed a new partner in Denmark and Ogier added to its dispute resolution team in the Cayman Islands with a hire from Kirkland & Ellis’ London office.
Dealwatch: Travers, HSF and Paul Weiss advise on $2.1bn Pace sale
Travers Smith, Herbert Smith Freehills and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison have all landed roles on the $2.1bn sale of Pace to Arris as another UK company gets acquired by the US.
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A €350bn asset manager: Slaughters and Links lead on Santander and UniCredit’s asset management merger
Slaughter and May and best friend firm Uría Menéndez plus Davis Polk & Wardwell in the US were instructed by Santander to combine its asset management arm with Linklaters-client Unicredit’s Pioneer Investments to create one of Europe’s biggest asset managers.
Winning work: Addleshaws picks up lead role on Tate & Lyle’s joint venture break up
Addleshaw Goddard has secured a lucrative mandate from British-based multinational Tate & Lyle, a client traditionally associated with the Magic Circle firm Linklaters.
Partner promotions: Stephenson Harwood makes up five in London as Ince promotes City duo and one in Dubai
Stephenson Harwood and Ince & Co are the latest firms to announce their partner promotions, with the former making up five partners in London while Ince made up two in the City and a third partner in Dubai.
‘A significant phase of renewal’: King & Wood Mallesons takes real estate team from Eversheds
Three months after persuading Eversheds‘ heavyweight real estate trio William Naunton, Clive Jones and Cornelius Medvei to stay in Big Law and not launch their own boutique, King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has hired a team of Eversheds partners as it seeks to reshape its London office.
Partner promotions: Herbert Smith Freehills makes up 21 to partner in 43% female round
For the second time since its UK-Australia merger in 2012, the bulk of partner promotions at Herbert Smith Freehills have come from Asia Pacific, while a record 43% of those being made up are women.
Significant mandates: Slaughters, Paul Weiss and Hengeler act as Deutsche Bank fined $2.5bn
Famed for its work on blockbuster M&A, Slaughter and May had five partners working around the clock as Deutsche Bank received a $2.5bn fine from regulatory authorities in the US and UK over investigations into its role in the manipulation of interest rates Libor and Euribor between 2005 and 2010.
Consolidation: DWF to merge with City-based insurance practice Watmores
The acquisitive DWF shows no signs of slowing down with the announcement today that it is to acquire niche insurance practice Watmores Solictors.
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Succession planning: Lloyds GC Whittaker steps down with deputy Cheetham picked as successor
Lloyds Banking Group group general counsel (GC) Andrew Whittaker (pictured) is stepping down from his role after two years and leaving the bank, where he will be succeeded by deputy GC Kate Cheetham in the top legal role.
Partner promotions: Olswang makes up five in an expanded all-female round
Olswang has continued the trend of firms improving their partnerships’ gender diversity by promoting a five-strong all-female round after promoting only men in the previous two years.
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Mounting departures: CC sees further German exits as capital markets partner leaves for SZA Schilling
Clifford Chance (CC) has this week seen another exit from its German operations with longstanding capital markets partner Markus Pfüller leaving for the Frankfurt office of local firm SZA Schilling Zutt & Anschutz.
Office closures: Paul Hastings picks up Fried Frank’s Asia head in Hong Kong
Rival firms have been keen to pick up talent following Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson’s exit from Hong Kong and Shanghai, with Paul Hastings being the latest firm to benefit from the closures.
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Guest post: The Conservative Party manifesto and human rights
The Conservative Party manifesto states that the terms of British EU membership will be renegotiated and an in/out referendum held. The Human Rights Act will be ‘scrapped’ and replaced by a British Bill of Rights. As for legal aid, the document merely informs us that they would continue to review our legal aid systems, so they can continue to promote access to justice in an efficient way.
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Guest post: Ed can enter No. 10 without Nicola’s keys
This election looks a close-run thing – very close run indeed. As I write, polls and forecasts suggest strongly that no party’s going to get near a majority. There’s a lot of talk about what could happen after May 7th. And an idea’s beginning to take hold that, in a hung Parliament, Ed Miliband would need some sort of advance promise of support from the Scottish Nationalists before the Queen would appoint him Prime Minister.
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Building the team: Withers boosts Connecticut office with 11-strong hire from US outfit
After undertaking a signifcant push into the Asia-Pacific market since the start of this year, Withers has now enhanced its corporate, litigation and IP law capabilities in the US with the hire of an 11-strong team, comprising five partners and six lawyers, to its Greenwich, Connecticut office.