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Consolidation watch: Dentons and McKenna Long in merger talks

Dentons and McKenna Long & Aldridge confirmed late on Monday (30 September) that they are in merger talks to create a firm with more than 3,100 lawyers around the world.

The firms are reported to be aiming to complete the deal by 1 January 2014 and in response Dentons issued the following statement to the US media:

‘Since creating Dentons earlier this year, we have been very clear in our determination to always deepen our capabilities to serve clients in the U.S. and around the world.

‘This has included discussions with firms and lawyers for whom we have great respect and share common goals. Continue reading “Consolidation watch: Dentons and McKenna Long in merger talks”

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More drama from Berlin – criticism of Hogan Lovells client led to departure by partner now leading team to rival

Surprise surrounding last week’s announcement that Hogan Lovells’ 30-lawyer Berlin arm is leaving to launch a German law practice for Morrison & Foerster has been compounded by the indications that local TMT partner Christoph Wagner was earlier asked to leave the firm for publicly criticising a client.

The decision by the 2,527-lawyer Anglo/American firm came after Wagner wrote an article in German newspaper FAZ looking at the antitrust concerns surrounding Deutsche Telekom’s decision to impose data limits on its flat rate internet connections, which German journalists have reportedly warned is a threat to the freedom of the web. Continue reading “More drama from Berlin – criticism of Hogan Lovells client led to departure by partner now leading team to rival”

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Africa expansion: Eversheds in talks to launch in five key jurisdictions

Eversheds is significantly expanding its Africa offering and is currently in discussions to establish offices in the key markets of Tunisia, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa and Kenya over the coming months.

The 1760-lawyer firm has also today (1 October) announced the launch of the Eversheds African Law Institute (EALI), which will share knowledge, training and regional and international commercial opportunities with member firms. Continue reading “Africa expansion: Eversheds in talks to launch in five key jurisdictions”

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Guest post: Grayling’s conference speech – main points and some reflections

Earlier this week, Chris Grayling MP, Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor, delivered his speech to the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester.

Like the speech of Sadiq Khan MP at the Labour Party Conference, Grayling’s speech was short. He opened by referring to a story in the Daily Mail about several young men having an easy time in prison. We were informed that, ‘within twelve hours, they were in segregation. Locked up for longer in their cells, not hanging out with their mates. Without a TV. Privileges stripped. Weeks added to their sentences after a swift disciplinary process.’ Good red meat for the party faithful. Continue reading “Guest post: Grayling’s conference speech – main points and some reflections”

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Ashurst closes in on Australian tie-up and leadership election

As Ashurst dots the Is and crosses the Ts on its merger with Australian top-tier firm Blake Dawson, a number of partners report an internal mood of resignation, despite a two-year courtship that has avoided significant tension or fallout.

As Legal Business went to press, both firms were to vote on full financial integration following the 2011 deal that aligned the pair ahead of this year’s vote. The merger will create a top 50 global law firm with revenues of well over £500m. Continue reading “Ashurst closes in on Australian tie-up and leadership election”

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The $6.4trn question – as legal advisers jostle for position, can shale gas live up to the hype?

Jaishree Kalia assesses the big hopes and big risks facing the emerging shale gas industry

Every few years a new sector or niche comes along that promises huge opportunities for law firms that can tactically position themselves. Such hyped sectors often turn out to disappoint, but there is no doubt that the shale gas industry has become the latest – and hottest – touted market.

It’s not hard to see why interest has been piqued. In a little over a decade, shale gas has transformed the energy dynamics of the world’s largest economy, now constituting over 20% of US energy production. Having turned the US into an energy exporter, it is expected to exceed 40% of US energy output by 2035. Continue reading “The $6.4trn question – as legal advisers jostle for position, can shale gas live up to the hype?”

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From a big bang to a whimper – infighting and calls for reform of regulatory framework

Caroline Hill and Sarah Downey assess the agendas in the MoJ’s review of regulation

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ)’s decision to conduct a review of the profession’s regulatory landscape comes just a little over a year since the landmark Legal Services Act (LSA) came fully into force. The irony is that barely has the radical reform been enacted that was supposed to sort out fundamental problems with professional standards and all parties seemingly now believes it’s time to once again go back to the drawing board.

Since justice minister Helen Grant announced in June that the government would look at ‘what could be done to simplify the regulatory framework and reduce unnecessary burdens on the legal sector’, the MoJ has received submissions from the City of London Law Society (CLLS), the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), the Law Society, the Legal Services Board (LSB), the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP), the Bar Council and the Bar Standards Board (BSB).

Continue reading “From a big bang to a whimper – infighting and calls for reform of regulatory framework”

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Lloyds sees knock-on effect of GC for group legal hire

In-house promotions and moves often have a domino effect across the wider legal function and Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) is no exception. The major British financial institution has recently announced that former corporate M&A head Hugh Pugsley will take over as general counsel (GC) for group legal from Kate Cheetham, who was promoted to deputy GC this January.

Pugsley, a former associate at Allen & Overy, has moved up the ranks of the 60-strong team and will now be responsible for advising the banking giant on financial reporting, M&A, corporate development, HR, and property-related issues.

Continue reading “Lloyds sees knock-on effect of GC for group legal hire”

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Barclays £5.8bn rights issue sees CC, Sullivans and Freshfields in the lead

Barclays has begun the biggest capital raising by a UK bank since 2009, under which Clifford Chance (CC), Sullivan & Cromwell and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer led on its initial £5.8bn rights issue, as the global financial institution moves to plug a £12.8bn funding gap.

A team from CC, led by London corporate partner Patrick Sarch and capital markets partner Simon Thomas, advised on English law for Barclays, while a Sullivan & Cromwell team in London advised the bank on US law, led by client relationship partners George White and John O’Connor.

Deputy general counsel Michael Shaw led the Barclays team.

Continue reading “Barclays £5.8bn rights issue sees CC, Sullivans and Freshfields in the lead”

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Profile: Michael Shaw, Barclays

The banking giant’s deputy GC discusses management challenges

Barclays deputy general counsel (GC) Michael Shaw has proved himself to be highly adaptable since joining the bank in 2009 from legacy Herbert Smith.

It was in 2010 that the outside world witnessed the knock-on effect of Barclays Capital head Jonathan Hughes stepping down, after which Judith Shepherd moved into the role, leaving vacant her position as GC of retail and business banking (RBB). For seven months Shaw stood in as interim RBB GC before Mark Chapman was appointed in October 2010.

Continue reading “Profile: Michael Shaw, Barclays”

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Life During Law: Lord Goldsmith QC

I’ve been really fortunate. I’ve had extraordinary opportunities in my career. I’ve had the opportunity not just as a hands-on lawyer, but also to do some politics, to take part in the affairs of the country… I’d like to think also that I’ve helped some people in a number of ways.

There have been a lot of memorable cases. The Afghan warlord we got convicted at the Old Bailey. I suppose Caparo in the House of Lords – a huge case on auditors’ negligence. That was a tremendous result – we happened to get the result on the day of my wedding anniversary. That was quite nice.

The favourite part of my job is being in court. It shouldn’t be but it is. I like being there, I like arguing, I like winning. It doesn’t always happen. I want to put on a good show, to do a good performance, and to solve the problem. I don’t like not solving legal problems.

Continue reading “Life During Law: Lord Goldsmith QC”

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Pulling the strings – the surprisingly successful re-invention of clerking

The relationship between barrister and clerk has long outgrown its traditional master-and-servant image as the reputation of clerks has evolved. Legal Business goes behind closed doors into the elusive world of clerking.

It’s a typically busy morning for the senior clerk at a well-known civil set of chambers. Piles of paperwork cover the desk and the phone flashes red with multiple client voicemails. He has yet to tackle the diaries of 50-plus barristers, and his caffeine levels are running abnormally low. The door to his office, covered in portraits of ancient Queen’s Counsel, swings open and there stands the head of chambers, a veteran in the field of civil law and the regular recipient of multi-million pound briefs, with a dejected look on his face.

Continue reading “Pulling the strings – the surprisingly successful re-invention of clerking”

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Great bright hopes – searching out the City rainmakers of 2020

Who will be the next generation of corporate heavyweights that top City firms will rely on to drive their businesses in the decade ahead? Legal Business canvassed a wide group of deal veterans to identify the ones to watch.

It is often said that the best of the City’s M&A partners were battled-hardened and defined by the early 1990s recession. That formative experience is often argued to have helped refine the skills and ethos of the select band of M&A heavyweights that dominated the City legal market through the last 15 years.

Continue reading “Great bright hopes – searching out the City rainmakers of 2020”

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How to improve a law firm in 17 easy steps – a blue print for innovation

While pundits are queuing up to pronounce the death of the industry’s model, Legal Business canvassed senior figures to devise some practical ideas to make a law firm work better.

You don’t have to look far in the legal profession to find causes for gloom. Battered by a sustained malaise in Western economies, more assertive clients and the threat of legal service liberalisation in the UK, a growing band of observers, general counsel and industry figures have argued that the traditional model of commercial law is fundamentally broken.
Continue reading “How to improve a law firm in 17 easy steps – a blue print for innovation”

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The in-house survey: Buy-side stories

In
our second annual in-house survey, corporate legal teams are continuing to grow amid strong demand for their counsel. How high can general counsel build their empires?

And the growth story continues. Legal Business’s second annual in-house survey confirms again that, despite the prolonged economic headwinds afflicting the UK and Western economies, in a risky and turbulent commercial environment, corporate legal teams continue to expand.

Take one finding from our research: more than two thirds of in-house lawyers report that their teams have expanded over the last five years, with 43% seeing increases of over 10%. The remainder said their team has stayed static.

Continue reading “The in-house survey: Buy-side stories”

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The legal elite dominates big-ticket mandates including Vodafone’s $130bn Verizon sell off

The autumn deal-doing season kicked off in style in September as Vodafone announced the $130bn disposal of its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless to Verizon Communications and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) sold off its drinks brands Lucozade and Ribena for £1.35bn.

Slaughter and May, led by corporate partner Roland Turnill, took the lead for Vodafone on one of the biggest corporate deals in history, working alongside Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in the US. Hogan Lovells had a secondary role advising Vodafone. Continue reading “The legal elite dominates big-ticket mandates including Vodafone’s $130bn Verizon sell off”

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Deal watch: September sees significant rise in deal activity

Lloyds privatisation

Slaughter and May and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer led the line in September advising Lloyds Banking Group on the first stage of its privatisation after being taken over by the taxpayer during the financial crisis in 2008. Slaughters, led by capital markets partner Nilufer von Bismarck, is advising UK Financial Investments on HM Treasury’s disposal of a 6% stake in the banking group, worth £6bn. Freshfields, led by corporate partner Will Lawes, advised the joint bookrunners Bank of America Merrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan Cazenove and UBS on the sale.

Microsoft’s $7bn Nokia devices acquisition

One of the most talked-about deals of the month was Microsoft’s game-changing, $7bn acquisition of Nokia’s devices and services business along with a ten-year patent licensing agreement. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, led by corporate partner Ken King, is advising Nokia on the deal, which is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2014. Alan Klein of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York is advising Microsoft.

Continue reading “Deal watch: September sees significant rise in deal activity”

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Back to school: lateral hire market picks up with renewed vigour as autumn arrives

BLP sees three partners depart; London hires hit double figures for September

The lateral hire market in the City picked up sharply in September, with the number of notable hires announced in the first few weeks of the month comfortably into double figures.

Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) saw a gloomy summer draw to a close with the departure of three significant names: head of managed legal services Patrick Somers to DLA Piper; contentious tax partner Liesl Fichardt to Clifford Chance; and commercial technology specialist Adam Rose to Mishcon de Reya.

Continue reading “Back to school: lateral hire market picks up with renewed vigour as autumn arrives”

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Eversheds, Pinsent Masons and DLA Piper lead the UK pack in The Legal 500

National heavyweights score for breadth of recommendations as CC shines in the City

Eversheds has once again emerged as the most recommended law firm in this year’s The Legal 500 UK edition, which was released at the end of September. The top-20 Legal Business 100 firm achieved 198 recommendations overall, thanks in part to its significant City and national coverage.

The three top-ranking firms in the 2013 directory are consistent with last year, when Eversheds gained 202 recommendations in total. Pinsent Masons again appeared in second place with 179 recommendations, while the world’s largest firm by revenue, DLA Piper, was placed third with 155. Two new entrants are featured in fourth and fifth places this year, largely due to significant consolidation. DWF, which rose dramatically to the top 25 of the LB100 after completing five mergers in around two years, came recommended 128 times, while Bond Pearce and Dickinson Dees, which combined to form Bond Dickinson on 1 May, managed 114 recommendations.

Continue reading “Eversheds, Pinsent Masons and DLA Piper lead the UK pack in The Legal 500”