A sign of the growing third party funding market, Harbour Litigation Funding has raised a significant £230m investment fund to bankroll disputes as it looks to capitalise on rising demand.
Revolving doors: Eversheds, Reed Smith and Gibson Dunn all make key hires while Stevens & Bolton boosts its construction practice
Both LB100 and Global 100 firms made senior appointments last week, bringing in both current and former team heads to bolster their offerings. Eversheds hired TLT’s head of financial regulation while Reed Smith took on DLA Piper’s Singapore head of restructuring and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher hired Weil, Gotshal & Manges’ former US private funds co-head. Meanwhile, Stevens & Bolton hired Charles Russell Speechley partner Stephen Rockhill as it focused on its construction practice.
Guest post: Pricing Power… and how to convert it into profit
The growth of professionals in Law Land with the word ‘pricing’ in their title has been explosive over the past couple of years. It’s a trend we applaud loudly and fervently, so perhaps it’s worth a primer on how it’s done in the major leagues: When B2B companies with thousands of SKU’s (Stock Keeping Unit) and tens or even hundreds of thousands of individual prices engage in ‘pricing-excellence’ programs.
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Reshuffles: Norton Rose Fulbright finalises restructure as it reviews practice areas
Norton Rose Fulbright has carried out a reshuffle of its management positions including creating a new global business head and scrapping its deputy managing partner role as it moves forward with plans to revamp its tax practice’s and smaller departments’ strategies.
In court: Gibson Dunn partner found to have ‘deliberately’ misled court
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner Peter Gray has been found by Mr Justice Flaux to have ‘deliberately misled’ the High Court regarding evidence presented in a case between the Republic of Djibouti and Abdourahman Boreh, one of the African country’s wealthiest citizens.
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Calling in the regulator: Willkie Farr investigation prompts client to report itself to the SFO
A report delivered by Willkie Farr & Gallagher into expenses payments at struggling oil explorer Afren has led the client to notify itself to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the findings. Continue reading “Calling in the regulator: Willkie Farr investigation prompts client to report itself to the SFO”
Dealwatch: Clifford Chance, Linklaters and Latham advise on $7.7bn Pirelli sale to ChemChina
Clifford Chance (CC), Linklaters and Latham & Watkins are advising on the $7.7bn bid by China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) to buy Italian tire-maker Pirelli, a deal that will give Chinese investors a significant foothold in Italy’s manufacturing industry while signalling continued Chinese investment into Europe.
Guest post: Despair and not a lot of hope … what the coalition has done to UK justice
Rarely, if ever, has a British government engaged in such an assault on justice than the present coalition. The brunt of the assault applies to England and Wales since justice matters are mostly devolved to Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Asia: BLP launches international arbitration practice in Hong Kong with local team hire
Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has launched an arbitration practice in Hong Kong with the hire of a nine-strong team from local boutique Haley & Co, in a bid to ‘create a powerful international arbitration and real estate offering in the region’.
In-house: Barclays’ Asia GC set for EME investment bank role following Handling’s departure
Barclays has appointed Simon Croxford as general counsel (GC) for Investment Banking for the Europe and Middle East region (EME) following the departure of Erica Handling.
Guest post: What can IP offer Africa – and what can Africa offer IP?
A handsome book recently arrived on my crowded desk, demanding attention: it’s Innovation & Intellectual Property: Collaborative Dynamics in Africa, edited by scholars Jeremy de Beer, Chris Armstrong, Chidi Oguamanam and Tobia Schonwetter. Published by the UCT Press in association with the IP Unit of the Faculty of Law, University of Cape Town (that’s what ‘UCT’ stands for) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), it’s one of those lovely books that you don’t have to buy since you can read it online or download it in its entirety – all 431 pages of it – by accessing its website here.
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Senior appointments: A&O names Muzilla as US corporate finance head after Wickenden steps down
Allen & Overy (A&O) head of US corporate finance Jim Wickenden has left the firm, leading to the appointment of high-yield partner Kevin Muzilla as the new head.
In-house: Bank of England appoints ex-CC partner Sonya Branch as its new general counsel
The Bank of England (BoE) has appointed former Clifford Chance (CC) competition and regulatory partner Sonya Branch as its new general counsel (GC), following the retirement of Graham Nicholson.
Tackling evasion: Government set to create strict liability for offshore tax evasion despite Law Society concerns
The government has announced today (19 March) it is to establish a strict liability offence for offshore tax evasion – despite concerns expressed by regulatory bodies including the Law Society.
Significant mandates: Freshfields acts for the Bank of England as SFO investigates money-market auctions
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is representing the Bank of England (BoE) as the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) launches an investigation regarding money-market auctions which the bank carried out during the financial crisis.
Comment: Life after Sir Nigel – They built it, now what?
DLA Piper’s new head Simon Levine jokes about avoiding becoming the David Moyes to his high-profile predecessor’s Alex Ferguson, but you could make a stronger case that Sir Nigel Knowles’ (pictured) transformative track record at DLA Piper is closer to making him the firm’s Tony Blair.
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Protecting the brand: British American Tobacco instructs Herbert Smith Freehills for plain packaging challenge
British American Tobacco (BAT) has gifted Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) with a major disputes mandate, and instructed the firm as the tobacco giant challenges the UK government’s plans to bring in plain cigarette packaging.
A €6.6bn purchase: Linklaters and Milbank advise on Borealis’ Swedish Fortum Distribution deal
Linklaters and US firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy have picked up key instructions on the €6.6bn purchase of Fortum Distribution, the owner of Fortum’s electricity distribution business in Sweden, by Borealis Infrastructure Management.
Budget 2015: Legal reaction to the government’s pre-election plans for pensions, tax and the oil industry
In his final Budget before the general election in May, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has today (18 March) set out his tax and spending plans to MPs, with an agenda including further reforming the pension industry, raising £5.3bn from the banking sector, tackling tax avoidance and evasion, and supporting the North Sea oil industry.
Consolidation: Latham set to shut Abu Dhabi and Doha offices as it refocuses efforts in Dubai
Latham & Watkins has internally announced today (18 March) that it will close two offices in the Middle East by the end of the year, shutting down its outposts in Abu Dhabi and Doha, and relocating staff to its Dubai operation.