Policy Exchange has produced an interesting report – Clearing the fog of war: saving our armed forces from defeat by judicial diktat.
Continue reading “Guest blog: Human Rights and the Battlefield”
Significant hires: KWM lands JP Morgan’s Asia-Pacific vice chairman
Eager to convince Western investment banks, hedge funds and private equity houses that it has the lawyers to handle the most complex mandates in Asia, Hong Kong-headquartered King & Wood Mallesons has hired JP Morgan’s Zili Shao as co-chairman of its China management committee.
Continue reading “Significant hires: KWM lands JP Morgan’s Asia-Pacific vice chairman”
US expansion: Dentons and McKenna Long set to combine
Having just announced its combination with Chinese firm Dacheng in January, a deal which will establish a 6,600 lawyer giant operating under a Swiss verein structure, Dentons has moved to bolster its US capabilities with a combination with Atlanta-based McKenna Long & Aldridge.
Continue reading “US expansion: Dentons and McKenna Long set to combine”
A 30% drop: Co-op Legal Services sees revenue slide by £10m
Co-operative Group Legal Services (CLS) has seen its revenue decline by almost a third to £23m in 2014 from £33m in 2013 due to a drop in ‘personal injury income following regulatory changes to referral fees’.
Continue reading “A 30% drop: Co-op Legal Services sees revenue slide by £10m”
Winning work: TLT picks up Halliwells dispute as Irwin Mitchell loses out
TLT has been gifted with a key mandate to defend a group of 26 former Halliwells partners in a dispute with the firm’s liquidator, as well as the appeal of a further case involving nine other former partners, after Irwin Mitchell was dropped from both cases.
Continue reading “Winning work: TLT picks up Halliwells dispute as Irwin Mitchell loses out”
Partner promotions: Ashurst 20-strong round includes 45% females while Macfarlanes reduces round to five
Ashurst has this morning (8 April) announced its 20-strong partner promotion round, which will take effect from 1 May 2015, with 45% of the new partners female while Macfarlanes reduced round of five comprises 40% women.
A £47bn deal: Slaughters and Freshfields win key roles on Shell’s acquisition of BG Group
Slaughter and May and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have both won key roles advising on Royal Dutch Shell’s £47bn acquisition of BG Group – likely to be one of the biggest M&A deals this year.
In-house: Graham Vinter set to retire as BG Group appoints a new GC
In-house heavyweight Graham Vinter is set to retire as the general counsel (GC) of BG Group later this year, with Norwegian aluminium manufacturer Sapa’s GC, Tom Melbye Eide, lined up to take on the role from 1 September.
Continue reading “In-house: Graham Vinter set to retire as BG Group appoints a new GC”
No judicial experience required: Judiciary rolls out diversity initiative for deputy High Court judge roles
In a move to boost diversity within judicial ranks, the judiciary has begun piloting a new initiative to allow candidates from ‘non-traditional backgrounds’ to apply for positions as deputy High Court judges without gaining judicial experience first.
‘Committed to the Russian market’: Chadbourne & Parke hires BLP energy partner to manage Moscow office
After shutting down its Kiev operations last summer, Chadbourne & Parke has boosted its presence in Russia with the hire of energy partner Andrei Baev from Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) as Moscow managing partner.
Dealwatch: Bakers and A&O deliver as FedEx looks to buy TNT for €4.4bn
Baker & McKenzie and Allen & Overy (A&O) have both won places advising on US delivery service FedEx’s €4.4bn agreement to buy Dutch rival TNT Express as the company looks to boost its European capabilities and global footprint.
Continue reading “Dealwatch: Bakers and A&O deliver as FedEx looks to buy TNT for €4.4bn”
Seeking £3.4bn in damages: Clifford Chance and Travers Smith lead on HP High Court contest with Autonomy founders
Clifford Chance and Travers Smith have taken lead roles advising on the £3.4bn dispute between Hewlett-Packard (HP), and Autonomy founder Michael Lynch and its former chief financial officer Sushovan Hussain regarding allegations of fraudulent accounting.
Partner promotions: Trowers promotes nine as Debevoise makes up third of six-strong round in the City
Continuing the trend of bumper partner promotions by law firms this year, Trowers & Hamlins has made up more than double the number of lawyers it did in 2014 with nine joining the partnership, while Debevoise & Plimpton, which has missed London out in recent years, made up a third of its round in the City.
Guest post: Parliament dissolved – the fight for power at Westminster commences
On 30th March, Parliament was dissolved. The coalition government remains in place pending the outcome of the General Election on 7th May and it may remain in place for some time beyond the election (see later). At present, the opinion polls suggest that no political party will gain an overall majority over all other parties in the House of Commons.
Continue reading “Guest post: Parliament dissolved – the fight for power at Westminster commences”
Guest post: How do law firms stay alive?
As the global financial crisis bit, and (in England and Wales at least) the regulatory landscape shifted for law firms, there was a sense that the coming years would see the collapse of a significant number of firms. That doesn’t seem to have happened.
Targeting London: Locke Lord duo depart to launch boutique Foran Glennon in the City
Just three years after helping to launch Locke Lord in the UK, insurance litigators Damian Cleary and Gavin Coull have departed to launch US firm Foran Glennon Palandech Ponzi & Rudloff in the City.
International hires: A&O makes first lateral in South Africa as Freshfields bulks up in Hong Kong with Links partner
Allen & Overy (A&O) has bolstered its project finance offering in its sub-Saharan practice with its first lateral partner hire in South Africa, turning to Linklater-ally firm Webber Wentzel. Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer also turned to Linklaters in building its Hong Kong office with finance and energy partner Thomas Ng.
In court: Gibson Dunn faces interim payout over Djibouti court case
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher has been hit with a £880,000 charge, which it must pay jointly with the Republic of Djibouti, for the freezing order obtained on businessman Abdourahman Boreh’s assets in 2013.
Continue reading “In court: Gibson Dunn faces interim payout over Djibouti court case”
Partner promotions: Skadden makes up one in London from 15-strong round
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom has increased its promotions round again with 15 new partners being made up though it sees just one being brought up through the ranks in London.
Continue reading “Partner promotions: Skadden makes up one in London from 15-strong round”
Building the team: Proskauer Rose hires Simmons M&A partner as it targets City PE market
Matt Rees, an M&A partner at Simmons & Simmons focusing on private equity, has resigned from the firm to join Proskauer Rose later this month.