Slater and Gordon has acquired a further two UK law firms, adding a projected £18.7m to annual revenue, and revealed plans to build its UK business to 45% of total financial year 2014/15 revenues.
James Roome: ‘There’s a crisis in law but not the one many claim’
Ever since the start of the financial crisis you haven’t had to look very far to find expert opinion pieces predicting the end of growth for law firms. The observer will tell you that this is because of the commoditisation of transactional services, the pressure of client expectations of price, staffing and delivery, new entrants in the market, cyclical downturns in the economy, challenging career paths, anti-social hours and so on.
Continue reading “James Roome: ‘There’s a crisis in law but not the one many claim’”
Trainee retention: Slaughter and May keeps on 88% of its spring 2015 qualifiers
Slaughter and May has become the third Magic Circle firm to announce the retention level of its spring 2015 qualifying group, with 37 of the 42-strong intake set to remain at the firm.
Continue reading “Trainee retention: Slaughter and May keeps on 88% of its spring 2015 qualifiers”
‘Satisfactory’: King & Wood Mallesons LLP sees 10% drop in UK office revenue
Filings at Companies House by King & Wood Mallesons LLP (KWM LLP) have revealed that the firm’s UK office saw a 10.7% fall in turnover in the year to 30 April 2014.
Continue reading “‘Satisfactory’: King & Wood Mallesons LLP sees 10% drop in UK office revenue”
Investing in London: Kirkland hires Linklaters real estate M&A head
Kirkland & Ellis has hired Linklaters‘ head of real estate M&A Matthew Elliott, who leaves the Magic Circle firm after 17 years, in a bid to boost its private equity offering within the real estate sector.
Continue reading “Investing in London: Kirkland hires Linklaters real estate M&A head”
Revolving Doors: A&O and HFW focus on the continent as Gateley and Arthur Cox hire in the City
Both Allen & Overy (A&O) and Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW) made hires to strengthen European offices last week, while Gateley hired two partners to bolster its London offering and Arthur Cox turned in-house.
In-house: Reckitt Benckiser group GC Mordan looks to review and formalise panel
Reckitt Benckiser (RB) is making plans to carry out a UK panel review, with Bill Mordan, senior vice president and group general counsel (GC), also looking to formalise the company’s current panel arrangement.
Continue reading “In-house: Reckitt Benckiser group GC Mordan looks to review and formalise panel”
Leadership changes: Dentons’ UKMEA chief and HFW managing partner to stand down
Just weeks after announcing its audacious entry into the Chinese legal market with local firm Dacheng, Dentons has confirmed that longstanding UKMEA chief executive Matthew Jones will not seek re-appointment in his managerial role when his term ends in March. Insurance-focused Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW) also announced a leadership change today (9 February), appointing a new managing partner to take over from George Eddings.
Continue reading “Leadership changes: Dentons’ UKMEA chief and HFW managing partner to stand down”
Nearshoring: Freshfields plans Manchester low-cost hub
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has become the latest law firm to plan the launch of a low-cost services hub in Manchester as it seeks to move the majority of its support services team out of its London office.
Continue reading “Nearshoring: Freshfields plans Manchester low-cost hub”
Lawyers on tap: Addleshaw Goddard to establish flexible resourcing capability
Addleshaw Goddard (AG) is looking to establish a flexible resourcing capability by creating a pool of qualified lawyers and paralegals to backfill gaps in services left by lawyers seconded to clients or where extra capacity is needed for discrete assignments.
Continue reading “Lawyers on tap: Addleshaw Goddard to establish flexible resourcing capability”
Investing in London: Cooley sets City agenda with turnover targets and committee appointments
Having made its audacious entrance into London’s legal market in January, US tech giant Cooley has begun rolling out the agenda for its new 55-lawyer UK practice, including appointing two City lawyers to its management committee, a further two to its compensation committee, and setting a revenue target for the team.
Setting up a panel: Eight firms secure spots on newly created FSCS roster
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has placed eight firms, including Slaughter and May, Herbert Smith Freehills and King & Wood Mallesons, on its newly created legal panel as it seeks a more structured approach to recouping investor losses.
Continue reading “Setting up a panel: Eight firms secure spots on newly created FSCS roster”
Strangling the golden goose – Nigel Boardman on why English law needs reform
Slaughter and May‘s Nigel Boardman, James Shirbin and Andrew Blake argue that English law needs drastic reform to remain internationally competitive.
Continue reading “Strangling the golden goose – Nigel Boardman on why English law needs reform”
Into Africa: Shearman & Sterling plans first African office opening
US law firm Shearman & Sterling is preparing to open an office in Egypt, marking the firm’s first foray into Africa with plans for an international arbitration and projects practice.
Continue reading “Into Africa: Shearman & Sterling plans first African office opening”
Comment: Global Law Summit misses the mark and a big opportunity
Here at Legal Business we like to set the agenda, so we’re feeling ahead of the game in pointing out shortcomings with this month’s Global Law Summit, the government-backed initiative to celebrate the 800-year anniversary of Magna Carta and British traditions of the rule of law.
Continue reading “Comment: Global Law Summit misses the mark and a big opportunity”
Global ambitions: Dentons opens in Jo’burg as accounts show profit jump
Dentons has continued its rapid expansion with the addition of a new South African office in Johannesburg, while accounts filed at Companies House by Dentons UKMEA LLP have revealed the firm saw a substantial rise in profits as it lowered operating costs and improved turnover.
Continue reading “Global ambitions: Dentons opens in Jo’burg as accounts show profit jump”
Growing the team: Mayer Brown hires DLA Piper’s head of structured trade finance
Mayer Brown, as it eyes an increase in cross-border asset-based lending (ABL) throughout Europe, has boosted its City banking and finance team with the hire of Alex Dell, DLA Piper’s structured trade and receivables finance head.
Continue reading “Growing the team: Mayer Brown hires DLA Piper’s head of structured trade finance”
Winning in court: Mishcon de Reya avoids potential £10m plus claim as case dismissed
A $3.7m claim against Mishcon de Reya for dishonestly assisting a ‘crook’ client who used money meant to refinance a hotel resort in Orlando on a playboy lifestyle, including a £170,000 Maybach car and a £33,000 diamond bracelet, has been dismissed at the High Court.
Global Law Summit misses the mark and a big opportunity
Here at Legal Business we like to set the agenda, so we’re feeling ahead of the game in pointing out shortcomings with this month’s Global Law Summit, the government-backed initiative to celebrate the 800-year anniversary of Magna Carta and British traditions of the rule of law.
The event has been attracting mounting controversy, including last month a scatter-gun attack in The Telegraph (who knew that Telegraph Media Group were such staunch socialists?) and wider criticism of elitism (some fair, some not).
Continue reading “Global Law Summit misses the mark and a big opportunity”
Pinsents and the confidence dividend – successful law firms need a spring in their step
There are lots of factors that are supposed to have a major role in the success of a law firm that on closer examination are hard to sustain. Issues in this camp include remuneration models, culture, strategy and a specific practice mix. What this list has in common is that there is no right answer – all that matters is what you are doing is appropriate to what you are trying to achieve and the markets that you are working in (and even then it’s less central than supposed). You can be lockstep, eat-what-you kill, collegial or aggressive – it works for some and flops for others. Just look at the extent that the Magic Circle has elevated one particular model of lockstep into some half-baked sacred tenant, with disastrous consequences.