I finally got round to reading this report from John Maule on the Legal Services Board research pages. It sells itself a little short with the title: Helping Legal Services Consumers Make Better Decisions: Methods to Identify and Respond to Legal Problems, because it also looks at professional decision making and strategic decision making. There’s an interesting section on what might make law firms bad at strategic and management decision making.
Government body’s report criticises ‘slow’ move from elitism in legal sector
The top jobs in the legal sector are still dominated by private schools, with ‘patchy evidence of Law, Medicine and Accountancy attempting to widen their search for talent’, according to a report published today by the Social Mobility and Child Poverty (SMCP) Commission.
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Law Society foresees return to pre-recession growth for industry by 2015
The Law Society has forecasted the UK legal industry will return to pre-Lehman levels of growth by next year, according to a report published by the regulator yesterday (28 August).
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Withers wins roles representing property investors suing banks over swaps
Property tycoons are preparing to hit UK’s courts over allegations that some of the UK’s leading lenders mis-sold hedging products including those involving LIBOR.
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‘A true asset’: Travers Smith private equity star Phil Sanderson set to join Ropes & Gray
City firm Travers Smith has lost heavyweight private equity partner Phil Sanderson who is set to join US firm Ropes & Gray.
Baker & McKenzie to open legal services outpost in Belfast
Baker & McKenzie has become the latest law firm to open a legal services office in Belfast as greater differentiation between high and low value work appears within mandates.
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Revolving doors: US sees spate of lateral hires
Lateral hires last week have seen Mayer Brown, DLA Piper and Reed Smith make key hires in their US practices, while a Bingham McCutchen partner exits to go in-house.
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Scottish firms: Burness Paull awards staff 10% bonus while Shepherd and Wedderburn grows construction team
Scottish firm Burness Paull is awarding a 10% bonus to all its eligible employees across the firm’s three offices in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow following a strong set of annual results which saw a 20% rise in turnover and a 25% increase in profit.
Clydes hires Kennedys aviation heavyweight as it builds practice
Clyde & Co has hired Kennedys’ aviation liability and insurance star David Johnston with further lateral hires expected.
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Dewey liquidators confirm payout while Cobbetts’ payments are postponed
As the fallout from the demise of Dewey & LeBoeuf continues, liquidators of the UK arm are assessing paying an interim dividend to unsecured creditors of the City office having finished disbursements to secured and preferential creditors. Continue reading “Dewey liquidators confirm payout while Cobbetts’ payments are postponed”
Freshfields NY corporate partner joins King & Spalding as former Amsterdam chief joins boutique
With Magic Circle firms still vowing to break ground in the US legal market, Manhattan-based corporate partner Matthew Jacobson has left Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and joined top-40 US firm King & Spalding while in the Netherlands, well-respected Robert ten Have has joined Rutgers & Posch.
Paul Hastings and Weil Gotshal & Manges lead on German bank acquisition
US firms Paul Hastings and Weil, Gotshal & Manges have won lead roles on the OCEAN Holding acquisition of German mortgage bank Düsseldorfer Hypothekenbank, from the US investor Lone Star, in what is the largest German bank takeover since the economic downturn.
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Magic Circle duo advise on LSE’s £938m rights issue as part of £1.6bn Frank Russell acquisition
Magic Circle firms Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters, alongside some of the leading US firms, have advised on the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) rights issue for £938m to help fund a £1.6bn acquisition.
Wachtell, Skadden and Goodwin Procter take lead roles on Bank of America’s $16.6bn settlement
Wachtell, Lipton Rosen & Katz; Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Goodwin Procter have taken the lead roles on Bank of America’s $16.6bn settlement with the US Department of Justice (DoJ), federal agencies and six US states.
Another partner exit at Weil’s London office
Weil Gotshal & Manges’ head of European high yield Gil Strauss has become the most recent prominent partner to leave the firm, after several high profile London office exits within the last year, with his decision to re-join Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
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Quindell hires new legal chief as legal services division posts huge growth
Alternative business structure (ABS) Quindell has posted a huge revenue increase in the first half of 2014 with its Legal Services Division bringing in £179.6m, 139% up on H1 2013.
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Accounts for Dechert’s UK LLP show revenues and profit falling
Profits at Dechert’s UK LLP dropped 21% from £35m to £27.7m for the 12 months to 31 December 2013, according to filings recently made to Companies House, with total revenue falling to £67.7m from £70.0m.
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Edwards Wildman posts 10% turnover slide in UK with latest LLP accounts
Having endured a difficult time in recent months with the exodus of multiple partners from its London office, US firm Edwards Wildman has also seen financial challenges in the UK as evidenced by its latest LLP accounts which recorded a 10% drop in turnover to £25.1m from £27.8m, alongside a 21% drop in profit available for discretionary division among members to £7.6m.
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Clydes continues to grow ME practice while Jones Day hires in Singapore
Following a string of international lateral hires over recent months, Clyde & Co continues to bolster its team in the Middle East with Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) Islamic finance specialist Adil Hussain joining the firm.
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Ex-Clydes partner settles whistleblowing case
After a long-running dispute between Clyde & Co and former partner Krista Bates van Winkelhof, the firm has finally settled the whistleblowing case outside of court.
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