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Clyde & Co advises Olswang on claim arising from £460m Esporta sale

Clyde & Co’s professional financial disputes team led by rated team head Sarah Clover is advising Olswang on a multi-million pound claim stemming from the £460m acquisition by a Halabi family trust of fitness club chain Esporta from private equity firm Duke Street Capital.

Olswang in 2006 fielded a cross-disciplinary team to advise the Ironzar III trust on the high-profile acquisition, led by corporate partners Graham Barber and David Roberts.

The fitness group fell into financial difficulty and was placed into financial administration in 2007, taken over by its lender Societe Generale in a debt-for-equity-swap in 2009 and in 2011 Virgin Active acquired its 55 sites for £77.6m. Continue reading “Clyde & Co advises Olswang on claim arising from £460m Esporta sale”

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Asia-Pac continues to challenge new entrants as DLA Piper freezes Australia salaries

The impact of the Australian downturn has once again been thrown into sharp relief after DLA Piper’s staff in the region were told not to expect pay rises and some partners to expect a drop in pay as the office failed to meet its targets.

As first revealed by RollOnFriday, an email from chief operating officer and stand in local managing partner Andrew Darwin told staff ‘for many…there will be no increase in base salary this year and for others there will only be a modest increase.’

Local partners, meanwhile, were told: ‘many partners will have no increases or, in some cases, a reduction in their remuneration.’ Further savings are also expected to be made on expenses. Continue reading “Asia-Pac continues to challenge new entrants as DLA Piper freezes Australia salaries”

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Guest Post: Legal education review – why everyone is happy and no one is smiling

So the first round of the Legal Education and Training Review (LETR) is complete. Julian Webb et al’s report is out and the dust can begin to settle. The research phase faced a number of problems. There are four I would emphasise:

  • a wide, ill-defined brief, not susceptible to original research on the resources devoted to it;
  • a long-term neglect of all interested parties to research the links between education, training, regulation and competence; and,
  • a political situation which looks a bit like the Game of Thrones, without the erotica; and,
  • a regulatory framework that owes at least as much to history and politics as it does to the public interest. Continue reading “Guest Post: Legal education review – why everyone is happy and no one is smiling”
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Government spending review brings legal aid cuts and privatisation closer as MoJ’s budget cut by 10%

The government’s plans to cut criminal legal aid and privatise parts of the court services appeared to edge one step closer yesterday following Chancellor George Osborne’s Comprehensive Spending Review, under which The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) will see its budget slashed by 10% over the next 18 months. Continue reading “Government spending review brings legal aid cuts and privatisation closer as MoJ’s budget cut by 10%”

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Nicholas Medcroft joins Wilberforce Chambers as Erskine makes key hires and two leading sets take on new head

Nicholas Medcroft has joined Wilberforce Chambers from Outer Temple Chambers in a week that has also seen Erskine Chambers welcome a three-barrister asset recovery team and leading sets 4 New Square and Essex Court Chambers take on a new head.

Medcroft is said by Legal 500 to be ‘the first person to turn to when it comes to matters relating to financial crime and banks.’ Specialising in professional negligence, business and banking, financial services and commercial fraud, he has worked on large scale litigation including acting for the Financial Reporting Council, alongside Fountain Court’s Tim Dutton QC, in the case against audit firm Deloitte over the collapse of the MG Rover Group. Continue reading “Nicholas Medcroft joins Wilberforce Chambers as Erskine makes key hires and two leading sets take on new head”

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Deal watch: CMS, Matheson and Akin Gump act on high-profile international deals

As international M&A catches the headlines, CMS Cameron McKenna has advised a consortium owned by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing on a HK$9.7 billion dollar acquisition of the Netherlands’ largest waste management group AVR Afvalverwerking.

CMS London corporate partner Charles Currier and Amsterdam partners Martika Jonk and Cecilia van der Weijden led the multi-disciplinary team advising Cheung Kong Infrastructure Consortium (CKI). Last year CKI acquired MGN Gas Networks for $1bn, also advised by CMS. Continue reading “Deal watch: CMS, Matheson and Akin Gump act on high-profile international deals”

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Revolving Doors: Field Fisher hires Taylor Wessing’s David Kent as Irwin Mitchell and TLT make key hires

Taylor Wessing’s long reputed head of inward investment David Kent is to join Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW) in a week that has also seen Irwin Mitchell and TLT make strategic partner hires.

Kent is a corporate partner specialising in advising emerging growth and listed companies from the US, Canada and Europe on structuring, establishing and operating businesses in the UK and Europe, mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures, technology transfers, distribution and licensing agreements. Continue reading “Revolving Doors: Field Fisher hires Taylor Wessing’s David Kent as Irwin Mitchell and TLT make key hires”

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Travers senior lawyers to be paid for interruptions to family life as firm adopts more merit-based model

Travers Smith has become the latest City firm to overhaul its lockstep for senior associates in a bid to incentivise and reward lawyers for their hard work and interruptions to family life as they approach partnership.

Led by managing partner Andrew Lilley and pensions partner Paul Stannard, a 10-month review has concluded that Travers should continue to operate a strict lockstep for junior and mid-level associates, under which they receive an annual bonus at the end of the year. However, a new, more merit-based system will now be introduced for senior lawyers, including an additional one-off payment for those that have experienced disruption in their personal lives and increased flexibility from the lockstep structure for associates with six years’ post qualification experience (PQE). Continue reading “Travers senior lawyers to be paid for interruptions to family life as firm adopts more merit-based model”

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Kennedys unveils 9% turnover increase and signals further expansion to its network

Kennedys has today announced a turnover increase of 9% after a year of both lateral hires and organic growth, with revenues up to £117m from £109m in 2011/12.

The results do not reflect the firm’s recent merger with aviation firm Gates and Partners on 1 June this year, which is expected to add £10m to the City-based insurance specialist’s bottom line. Continue reading “Kennedys unveils 9% turnover increase and signals further expansion to its network”

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Coming on like 2009 – Weil Gotshal becomes the first major NY firm to announce job cuts this year

So far the wave of redundancies that have rippled through the UK legal profession has not been replicated across the Atlantic but that may be about to change with news on Monday (24 June) that Weil Gotshal & Manges is to cut around 170 staff.

The New York-based law firm announced the move internally in a package of cuts expected to impact on 60 associates, around 7% of its non-partner lawyer ranks, and 110 support staff, citing what it described as the ‘new normal’ of low growth.

In addition, Weil is to cut the compensation for some partners and the firm said it would be ‘de-emphasising’ its complex commercial litigation practice in Houston and Boston. Continue reading “Coming on like 2009 – Weil Gotshal becomes the first major NY firm to announce job cuts this year”

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Corporate: Alibaba and Kabel Deutschland deals land roles for Freshfields, Linklaters and Hengeler Mueller

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters have landed two major corporate mandates advising Alibaba on what Reuters describes as ‘the most anticipated IPO since Facebook’ and Vodafone on its €7.7bn (£6.6bn) acquisition of Germany’s largest cable TV operator respectively.

Amidst much market speculation over roles and particularly the levels of fees that will be commanded, Freshfields is understood to be advising the China e-commerce giant on an IPO reportedly valued at as much as $100bn (64bn), with Hong Kong equity capital markets partner and Greater China head Teresa Ko understood to be leading the team. Continue reading “Corporate: Alibaba and Kabel Deutschland deals land roles for Freshfields, Linklaters and Hengeler Mueller”

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Three years in the making: Legal education and training review unveiled

A report touted as the most comprehensive review of legal education in the UK since the Omrod report of 1971 has finally been published today (25 June), three years after it was first announced.

The Legal Education and Training Review (LETR), which was undertaken on behalf of the Bar Standards Board (BSB), ILEX Professional Standards and the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), looks at the educational requirements for entering the profession, continuing education including the obligations of law school providers and the impact of the Legal Services Act. Continue reading “Three years in the making: Legal education and training review unveiled”

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Nabarro points to bonus and high performance uplift as it freezes junior lawyers pay

Nabarro has defended its decision to freeze the salaries of its trainees, newly-qualified (NQ) lawyers and those with one to two years post-qualification experience (PQE), promising that those who shine at any level will receive a 5% increase on their salary and benefit from the firm’s generous bonus scheme. Continue reading “Nabarro points to bonus and high performance uplift as it freezes junior lawyers pay”

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Middle East: Dentons ends period of upheaval in Kuwait with decision to close local office

Dentons’ partnership has voted in favour of shutting its Kuwait office following a review, bringing to an end a turbulent chapter in the region.

The firm, which has had an office in Kuwait since 2008, only in January entered into a new association with local lawyer Jamal Ahmed Al-Shehab, replacing its association with International Legal Group. Continue reading “Middle East: Dentons ends period of upheaval in Kuwait with decision to close local office”

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All or nothing: Only a handful of DBAs entered into as confusion reigns over hybrid model

‘It’s an extraordinary thing – hundreds of lawyers should have entered into Damages-Based Agreements (DBAs) by now.’

So says Leslie Perrin, former managing partner and senior partner of Osborne Clarke who is now chairman of litigation funding group Calnius Capital, with around £40m of capital to invest in litigation.

Instead, DBAs, which came into force under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and entitle a lawyer to claim a percentage of their client’s damages by way of fees, have failed to take off at all and Perrin adds: ‘The confusion around the regulations has been such that I don’t think more than a handful of DBAs have been entered into all across the country. Continue reading “All or nothing: Only a handful of DBAs entered into as confusion reigns over hybrid model”

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In-house: Facebook and Diageo fill top GC roles

Social networking giant Facebook and global drinks brand Diageo both this week announced appointments to fill their top legal positions.

Facebook confirmed yesterday (20 June) that it has appointed Colin Stretch to succeed company general counsel (GC) Ted Ullyot as vice president and general counsel from 5 July, following Ullyot’s announcement in May that he would be stepping down. Continue reading “In-house: Facebook and Diageo fill top GC roles”

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Lawyers On Demand launches new pay-as-you-go model as demand increases for flexible staffing

As senior private practice and in-house lawyers increasingly turn to flexible staffing options to manage their costs, Berwin Leighton Paisner’s (BLP) Lawyers on Demand (LoD) has extended its offering in the marketplace by adding a pay-as-you go, remote services model.

The new service, LoD on Call, will operate alongside the firm’s existing secondment model, now rebranded LoD on Site, which launched in 2007 and spun out from BLP in June 2012. Both are aimed at helping corporates and law firms to cost effectively manage the inevitable peaks and troughs in workflow. Continue reading “Lawyers On Demand launches new pay-as-you-go model as demand increases for flexible staffing”

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Comment: Don’t push your luck with partnership

Do law firms take partnership for granted? They really shouldn’t as the model has served them so well. Just consider the case. Partnership aligns management and ownership. This has helped large law firms to avoid the patchy governance and rewards-for-mediocrity seen at public companies over the last 20 years and drives partners to a pure form of performance pay. It is inherently long-term and as such has a strong record in promoting independence and ethical standards. And given that law isn’t a capital-intensive trade – at least once you cross the Rubicon of international expansion – partnership is workable (if not ideal) from a financing point of view. Continue reading “Comment: Don’t push your luck with partnership”

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Insurance: Mills & Reeve takes up last of DLA’s defendant insurance team as CMS snares RPC head

Mills & Reeve and CMS Cameron McKenna boosted their offerings at opposite ends of the insurance spectrum this week, taking staff from the Birmingham office of DLA Piper and the City office of RPC respectively.

Top 50 UK firm Mills & Reeve acquired a nine-strong defendant insurance practice from DLA, marking the conclusion of DLA’s withdrawal from the typically lower margin area of law, as first announced by the top 10 firm last year.

Continue reading “Insurance: Mills & Reeve takes up last of DLA’s defendant insurance team as CMS snares RPC head”