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The path to partnership less travelled: Freshfields disputes partner Joshua Kelly

In the second of a series of Q&As spotlighting unconventional paths to partnership, Freshfields disputes partner Joshua Kelly – who was made up this year after joining the firm in 2015 – looks back on his stint in a ‘converted broom cupboard’ as a military lawyer with the Royal Australian Air Force

What drew you to the Royal Australian Air Force?

Coming out of university in Australia, it was one of the few jobs where you could work on international law – things like the laws of war, human rights law, the law of the sea. That was what really drew me in.

And it was also just a fun-sounding job. Before starting full time, you go through four months of officer training school. I did that with 30 pilots – I was the only lawyer there, fresh out of five years of study. It was an intense programme – you train in things like ground defence, go through scenarios where you’re under pressure, sleep-deprived, and constantly being assessed on leadership. In some ways, it was good prep for big law.

What sparked your interest in international law?

Timor-Leste, formerly known as East Timor, was a Portuguese colony annexed by Indonesia in 1975, before gaining independence in 2002 when I was in high school. My mother is a mix of Portuguese, Italian, and East Timorese, and I remember as a child in Australia going to protests and being involved in the independence movement. That probably sparked some of my interest in international law and human rights.

I would’ve been about eight or nine when I first got involved. We weren’t protesting every day or anything like that, but we’d finish church on a Sunday and then go to the UN office and sit with some old ladies who were knitting Timorese blankets, or ‘tais’. It was all very peaceful – just trying to raise awareness about what was happening in East Timor.

Australia actually played quite a big role in helping Timor-Leste at that time – including the Australian Defence Force, which was part of a UN peacekeeping mission as Indonesia withdrew. So I think, if you trace things back, that definitely had a part to play.

What type of work did you do in the Air Force?

The work was incredibly varied. It ranged from writing briefings to the Minister of Defence, handling courts martial (which were often petty crimes like assaults), to negotiating international agreements and advising on operational or environmental law. It was a fantastic crash course in high-level legal work.

One of the more interesting roles was working as junior legal adviser to the Chief of the Air Force. He had his own in-house lawyer, and I supported that person. We were based in a small converted broom cupboard right next to the Chief’s office – effectively acting as general counsel for the Air Force.

The overriding theme during my time there was summed up by one of my bosses who said to me: ‘I just want three things: what’s the issue? What are my options? What are the risks?’ That gives you a very clear steer on how to relay advice – you’re forced to boil things down to their essentials.

When you joined Freshfields, was becoming partner a goal?

No, I was really just focused on the work and the team – building something I was happy to be part of. I think I even said in my interview that I’d be very happy to aim for a counsel role in due course. I didn’t really know how the whole firm structure worked at that stage of my career, and I definitely wasn’t thinking ‘I want to be a partner’ from day one.

It was more:’ this seems like a great place to do the work I’m passionate about, with nice people’. And all of that has thankfully turned out to be true.

Have you had any mentors who have helped you throughout your career?

The guy who stands out the most is Chris Taylor. He’s now the director general of military legal services in the Australian Defence Force, and was one of my bosses in the Air Force. He’s incredibly clever and brought a huge amount of dry humour and wit to every situation. It was really good to see someone who was faced with stressful situations on a daily basis manage to just see through them and find a way to, if not laugh about them, at least puncture them – and then get through it.

And then in London in particular: Ben Juratowitch KC, who was a Freshfields partner in Paris and then came over to the Bar at Essex Court; Freshfields litigation partners James Kennedy and Chris Pugh; Tony Singla KC at Brick Court; and then of course my team partners, Will Thomas KC, Sylvia Noury KC and Oliver Marsden, and the head of our tax disputes practice, Helen Buchanan. They’ve all had that right mix of being just really quite nice people, but also technically excellent – and ready to take the time to politely tell you when you’re wrong.

And of course, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without my wife!

Which cases stand out from your career?

One of the more recent public cases was for a major technology company before the European Court of Human Rights. It was a case against Russia, concerning freedom of expression and fair trial rights. We were successful in that, and it was a good example of how international law remains relevant and can be used to support human rights and advance important objectives, including for corporates.

I also acted for a company called Lonestar, a subsidiary of MTN in Liberia. They were subjected to cyberattacks and we brought a successful claim before the High Court here in the UK against those responsible for the attacks, including their competitor. It was an interesting experience: there was no real reference point for the claim, and it involved some very colourful individuals, including a hacker-for-hire who was convicted here in the UK and was receiving monthly cash payments in return for carrying out attacks against our client.

How did it feel becoming partner – and how did you celebrate?

It’s been a lot of fun. It coincided with the birth of our second child so it’s been a bit ‘on’, but lots of fun.

How did I celebrate? It was pretty low key. We have a family lunch every Sunday, and it’s either me or my brother-in-law cooking. So I went to the butcher in Spitalfields and picked up a few nice cuts of meat. I might have turned up with one or two bottles of wine that were slightly better than usual – that was it. Very in keeping with the family’s desire to keep me grounded — no fanfare.

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The path to partnership less travelled: Travers Smith’s Elissavet Grout

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Revolving Doors: Paul Weiss taps Quinn for disputes partner as Fried Frank hires another Goodwin lateral

Paul Weiss has hired commercial, financial and competition disputes partner Leo Kitchen from Quinn Emanuel.

Kitchen, a Legal 500 next-generation partner for banking litigation, has moved after six years at Quinn Emanuel, becoming partner in 2022, having previously spent five and a half years at Slaughter and May.  He brings expertise in high-profile competition disputes and contentious restructuring matters.

The hire comes after Paul Weiss launched its London litigation practice in April with the hire of Akin’s Richard Hornshaw, who joined as head of the firm’s European litigation group.

Paul, Weiss chairman Brad Karp welcomed the hire, saying: ‘Leo’s expertise in complex commercial and financial disputes will be a major asset to our expanding UK litigation practice.’

Also in London, Fried Frank has hired veteran real estate partner David Evans from Goodwin. He brings extensive experience in joint ventures, M&A and real estate funds. Evans is the latest in a string of Goodwin lawyers to join the firm, following restructuring partner Geoff O’Dea earlier this year and private equity partners Christian Iwasko, Michelle Tong and Priya Rupal at the start of last year.

White & Case finance partner Sudhir Nair has joined DLA Piper’s London office as a partner in its international finance team. He brings extensive experience in cross-border and domestic structured, real estate and infrastructure financings.

Nair moves after nearly seven years at White & Case, having previously worked at Baker McKenzie and Linklaters. His exit roughly coincides with that of debt finance partner Peter Mason, who left White & Case’s London practice to join Proskauer Rose, as part of the firm’s global finance build-out. 

Perkins Coie has added Clifford Chance technology and data regulation lawyer Arnav Joshi as a partner in its London office. He joins after five years at Clifford Chance, where he was promoted to counsel in 2024.

‘Arnav’s extensive knowledge of UK and EU tech regulation, combined with his experience advising global technology leaders, makes him a tremendous addition to our expanding London presence,’ said Andrew Grant, firmwide chair of Perkins Coie’s technology transactions and privacy law practice.

Gowling WLG has hired Osborne Clarke’s banking and finance head Madeleine Clark into its real estate finance team in London. Clark has moved after 14 years at Osborne Clarke and brings over 20 years’ experience advising on development and investment loans across a wide range of asset classes.

Meanwhile, Addleshaw Goddard has strengthened its construction and engineering disputes team with the hire of Charlie Aitchison from Vinson & Elkins. Joining as a partner, Aitchison was previously a counsel.

Turning to in-house moves, Steven Cooklin, the CEO and founder of AIM-listed insolvency litigation finance firm Manolete Partners, has stepped down.

He is succeeded by Mena Halton, who has been promoted from her role as managing director and has been with the firm for 11 years.

Cooklin founded the company in 2009 and guided it through its London IPO in 2018. He described his tenure at Manolete as the ‘pinnacle’ of his 40-year career in the City.

In Germany, Simmons & Simmons has bolstered its corporate real estate practice with the hire of four partners and a team of associates from Goodwin.

Transactions experts Marc Bohne and Moris Vettermann, finance partner Jochen Schnepper, and tax and structuring specialist Felix Krüger will all join the firm’s Frankfurt office. The move comes after Goodwin’s June announcement that it will close its Frankfurt office this autumn and wind down its German real estate practice.

Commenting on the move, Simmons & Simmons managing partner Emily Monatiriotis said: ‘Bringing this first-rate team into Germany is a key part of our pan-European strategy and international expansion plans.’

In Hong Kong, CMS has recruited a seven-lawyer infrastructure and real estate team from BCLP, led by partners Glenn Haley and Wayne Ma.

The move follows the firm’s July hire of BCLP’s former co-head of Asia real estate and infrastructure, Ilan Freiman.

BCLP,  a Tier 1 ranked firm in Legal 500’s Hong Kong real estate rankings, announced its plans to withdraw from Asia operations earlier this year; a decision that entailed the closure of its Hong Kong and Singapore offices.

CMS joint managing director for Asia and the Middle East, Adrian Bell, said: ‘The market is experiencing a boom in infrastructure investment, and this expansion of our practice will allow us to help clients capitalise on these exciting opportunities.’

In Luxembourg, A&O Shearman has picked up two funds and private capital lawyers from Clifford Chance: Kristof Meynaerts has joined as head of the firm’s Luxembourg funds and asset management practice, Serverina Käppeli has joined as a partner, having previously been a counsel at Clifford Chance.

The hires come after A&O Shearman saw the departure of Luxembourg investment funds head Jean-Christian Six and funds partner Yannick Arbaut to Simpson Thacher in November last year for the US firm’s Luxembourg office opening.

Turning to the Czech Republic, Eversheds Sutherland has expanded its team with the hire of 10 lawyers following its merger with real estate and litigation boutique Kropáček LEGAL. The team comprises partner Pavel Kropáček and nine associates. Kropáček founded the firm in 2013.

Eversheds said that the move showed its ‘commitment to strategic growth across Central and Eastern Europe’. The move comes shortly after Fieldfisher opened offices in Warsaw and Krakow in May and Addleshaw Goddard acquired Linklaters‘ Warsaw office earlier this year.

Gibson Dunn has hired experienced capital markets partner Najla Al-Gadi from Latham & Watkins into the firm’s Riyadh office. Her practice spans initial public offerings, secondary equity offerings, public company representation, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate governance matters. Al-Gadi has joined after 11 years at Latham.

Finally, in Northern Ireland TLT has expanded its real estate team with the hire of Jonathan O’Hagan to its Belfast Office. O’Hagan joins the group from DWF, where he was a legal director. He is the fourth lawyer to join TLT’s real estate group as a partner this year.

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‘We see London as a gateway’: Katten City chief on the strategy shift that doubled UK revenues

‘Twenty years ago, we set up in London as a financial services boutique.’ This comment from Katten London managing partner Christopher Hitchins (pictured) is perhaps self-deprecating – but it’s not far off.

The Chicago-headquartered firm first opened in London in 2005 via a combination with five-lawyer hedge fund boutique MW Cornish Solicitors. And while the City base started from solid foundations, in its early years, growth was modest.

However, the office has shifted gears in recent years, with turnover doubling over five years to reach £23.2m for the financial year ending 31 January 2025, driven by a strategic shift toward financial services, transactional work and closer alignment with the firm’s US platform.

Hitchins, who has led that shift after taking over leadership of the London base in January 2021, explains: ‘While we were successful in both servicing existing clients and developing strong relationships with UK-based clients in that area, we want to do the same across other practices too. And we believe there’s an opportunity to do so.’

The firm, which now has almost 50 lawyers in London, has also made a clutch of recent partner hires, bringing over Curtis Mallett investment management partners Ryan Hansen and Thomas Laurer and tax partner Daniel Lewin in March 2024, followed by intellectual property partner Nathan Smith, who joined from Dechert this January.

Now, Katten is ready to take its London office to the next phase.

Much of the London office’s more recent success can be traced back to summer 2023, when Hitchins began working with Chris DiAngelo, who had spent a decade as Katten’s New York managing partner from 2013 to 2023.

‘The aim was both to get a sense of what London was trying to do and the ambitions of the London partners, and to match that with what the firm was trying to do more broadly.’

‘We wanted to reach a consensus on our understanding of what the opportunity was for our firm in London, and the ambitions of the London partners, and to match that with what the firm was trying to do more broadly’, says Hitchins.

Hitchins and DiAngelo consulted with partners in London and senior US partners with client links to London, and presented their findings to the firm’s executive committee in 2024. ‘The results of that meeting were very positive, for both London and the wider firm’, says Hitchins. ‘First, we reiterated a strong commitment to be in London, in particular in the core markets that we see as our signature strengths in the US, primarily finance and financial services, and related practices including corporate, private equity, M&A, and litigation.

‘And second, a commitment to double down on the strengths that we have in financial services in London, and to try to replicate our success there across practices where the firm has an international client base and need.’

To achieve this, the firm set about making operational improvements to its London office. Hitchins explains: ‘We decided that we needed to integrate the London lawyers into the firm’s structures. Before then, the financial services group had been fully integrated, but the other groups less so.’

Katten is organised around practice groups, with lawyers working between offices to coordinate activities. The reforms saw the firm’s lawyers in London brought into this firmwide practice group structure.

Hitchins continues: ‘We identified lawyers in key practice groups and gathered them into a London development team, which has morphed, as of May this year, into a UK LLP management board.’

As well as six UK partners, that board includes five partners from the US, according to filings on Companies House. Alongside DiAngelo sits Wendy Cohen, a financial market and funds partner who succeeded DiAngelo as New York managing partner in 2023, as well as global insolvency and restructuring practice chair Steven Reisman, also in New York.

Rounding out the board on the US side are Mark Grossman, Chicago-based business transactions head and Legal 500 Hall of Famer for midmarket M&A, and Seth Messner, a structured finance and securitisation partner who took over as DC managing partner in 2025.

‘The board is a conduit between the executive committee and London’, says Hitchins. ‘Its role includes ensuring that more business is driven to London through global client teams, that talent is nurtured and managed by the practice groups, and therefore that we can offer career progression to our people in the same way as we do in the States, and that we’re all synced up on lateral hiring in accordance with a practice group’s strategic goals – and that if there’s a perceived opportunity to make a lateral hire at office-level based on complementary practices and client base, we can feed that back to the practice groups and synchronize from there.’

Hitchins chairs the UK management board and feeds its discussions back to both the non-board London partners and to firm CEO Noah Heller, who he meets with every two weeks. ‘The shift has been towards synchronization’, he says. ‘We know how the firm thinks, how the partnership thinks, how the leadership thinks. We know what success looks like. We’re much more plugged into it now, as we’re part of these conversations, hearing from the CEO, from the board, and from the practice group leaders.’

Looking ahead, Hitchins aims to deepen those connections – to further integrate the London office, and to generate opportunities both locally and for the wider firm.

Hitchins notes success on the latter point: ‘We’ve increased the amount of work that we export to our US offices. That primarily comes from our financial services group. It’s been very healthy for us to show that we can generate work for the US.’

Those connections also enable Hitchins to better promote London within the firm: ‘We see London as a gateway for international opportunities. And the words ‘gateway’ or ‘international opportunities’ spark discussions that may not have happened if you weren’t in the room.’

Hitchins’ vision of those opportunities is not to transform what the firm is, but to bring London into line with the firm’s success elsewhere.

‘We’re not looking for global domination’, he says. ‘We’re comfortable in who we are. We’re looking for ways to improve our service to our clients, and in particular to provide services that they need, that they may be buying elsewhere, and that right now they may not appreciate that we can offer.’

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A&O Shearman announces first post-merger results as turnover hits $3.7bn

Allen & Overy

A&O Shearman has posted its first combined financial results since its transatlantic merger last year, with revenue for 2024-25 hitting £2.9bn ($3.7bn) against profit per equity partner (PEP) of £2m ($2.6m).

The results, the first since the A&O and Shearman & Sterling tie-up went live in May 2024, come after legacy A&O last year posted a 3.4% increase in turnover to £2.2bn ($2.76bn) for its last financial year before the Shearman merger, while PEP soared by more than 20% to £2.2m.

Legacy Shearman’s revenue, meanwhile, fell 7.7% to $837m for the 2023 calendar year – its last full financial year before the merger – while PEP fell 18% to $2.478m.

A&O Shearman said in a statement that legacy financials were not comparable with the new combined figures, due to the different financial years and accounting methods, with A&O’s results last year also inflated by a strategic partnership with Inflexion relating to aosphere – a deal which the FT reported as having a value of around £200m.

The firm argues that ‘on a like-for-like basis, A&O Shearman’s PEP for FY25 is higher than the prior year PEP of both legacy firms individually.’

Commenting on the results, the merged firm’s global managing partner Hervé Ekué said: ‘In our first year as a merged firm, we have delivered strong results while making important investments in our business, including reshaping the firm to ensure we are optimally positioned to meet client needs.

‘We have created a significantly enhanced proposition for our clients: when global businesses face their most pressing strategic needs, they need counsel that can deliver seamlessly across markets and industries. That’s exactly what we’ve built.’

According to the firm’s statement announcing the results, highlights over its first year as a single firm include the addition of 33 internal partner promotions and 16 strategic lateral hires.

However, in September 2024 the firm announced that it was set to cut 10% of its partnership, close in South Africa and end its consulting business following a ‘broad strategic review’.

This January, LB reported that more than 100 legacy A&O and Shearman partners had left or retired since the merger of the two firms was announced in May 2023, with research finding that, at that point, at least 105 partners had left since the tie-up was announced, of which the overwhelming majority (84) were from legacy A&O, with the remaining 21 legacy Shearman. The departures tracked included those moving to other firms as well as retirements or other exits detailed in UK Companies House filings.

Highlight mandates during the past financial year have included roles advising Liberty Global on its $3.2bn Sunrise Communications spin-off and dual listing, and Prosus on its €4.1bn acquisition of Just Eat Takeaway.com. 

The firm also started rolling out a suite of agentic AI agents, built in partnership with Harvey, that tackle complex legal workflows, and now has AI experts in every major jurisdiction. It also delivered almost 120,000 hours of pro bono work worldwide across the year. 

Last month Linklaters announced an 11% increase in revenue to £2.32bn, against a 15% hike in PEP to £2.2m, marking the first time it had exceeded the £2m threshold. Meanwhile, Clifford Chance saw global revenue climb 9% to £2.4bn, with PEP edging up more than 3% from last year’s figure of £2.04m to£2.11m. 

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Legal Business Awards 2025: shortlist unveiled

Freshfields, Latham & Watkins, Burges Salmon and Osborne Clarke are among the firms vying for the coveted Law Firm of the Year Award at the 2025 Legal Business Awards.

With the shortlist unveiled today, the quartet join Cleary, Russell-Cooke, Simpson Thacher and Taylor Wessing competing for the honour, with Freshfields senior partner Georgia Dawson also among contenders for Management Partner of the Year.

The winners will be crowned on 30 September in a ceremony set to be hosted by award-winning comedian Katherine Ryan at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel.

Other high-profile awards to be handed out on the night include US Law Firm of the Year, which sees firms including Greenberg Traurig, Milbank, Paul Hastings, Paul Weiss, Quinn Emanuel and Sidley Austin in contention for the award, which recognises progress in the firms’ London offices.

Meanwhile, Ashurst, Baker McKenzie, Hogan Lovells, Weil and Paul Weiss are among those shortlisted for Competition Team of the Year, with the corporate line-up including Travers Smith, Linklaters and Slaughter and May.

Top in-house names recognised with places on the shortlist include BAE Systems group GC Ed Gelsthorpe, Rolls-Royce GC Mark Gregory and Unilever chief legal officer Maria Varsellona, with in-house teams in contention for awards including PepsiCo, Resolution Life, Rightmove and BT Group.

This year’s awards will be the 28th ceremony from Legal Business, with the winners selected by a more than 30-strong judging panel including well-known names from corporate legal teams and former private practice partners.

Judges include VodafoneThree GC Andrew Yorston, Smith & Nephew group GC Helen Barraclough, Starbucks EMEA GC Huma Allana van Reesch, News UK GC Angus McBride and Rio Tinto legal governance and corporate affairs COO Chris Fowler.

The panel also includes former Law Society president I. Stephanie Boyce, former Weil London head Mike Francies and former Travers Smith managing partner David Patient, as well as editors from Legal Business and the Legal 500.

In total, more than 130 organisations, including law firms, sets and corporates, have been nominated, with this figure including almost 90 law firms. Cleary, Freshfields, Latham, Taylor Wessing, Kirkland and Hogan Lovells have the most individual nominations, with at least five each.

Click here (or read below) to see the full shortlist. For more information about the awards click here, and to book your table click here.

Legal Business Awards 2025 Shortlist

Barrister of the Year
Timothy Killen, 2TG
Daniel Saoul KC, 4 New Square Chambers
Richard O’Dair, 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square
Jason Beer KC, 5 Essex Chambers
Jonathan Hough KC, 4 New Square Chambers
Fiona Butler, Browne Jacobson
Dan Sarooshi KC, Essex Court Chambers
Sophie Hurst, Kings Chambers
Aidan O’Neill KC, Matrix Chambers
Patrick Gibbs KC, Three Raymond Buildings

Boutique Law Firm of the Year
Alius Law
Allectus Law
CANDEY
Hawkswell Kilvington
Hughes Fowler Carruthers
London Law Collective
Newfields
Provenio Litigation

Chambers of the Year
3 Verulam Buildings
4 New Square Chambers
4 Stone Buildings
5 Essex Chambers
7KBW
Essex Court Chambers
Landmark Chambers
Matrix Chambers

Commercial Litigation Team of the Year
Covington
Freshfields
Hogan Lovells
King & Spalding
Kirkland & Ellis
Mishcon de Reya
Quinn Emanuel
Stephens Scown
Taylor Wessing
Trowers & Hamlins
Weil Gotshal & Manges

Competition Team of the Year
Ashurst
Baker McKenzie
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Freshfields
Hogan Lovells
Paul Weiss
Slaughter and May
Weil Gotshal & Manges
Willkie Farr & Gallagher

Corporate Team of the Year
Baker McKenzie
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
DLA Piper
Freshfields
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
Latham & Watkins
Linklaters
Morgan Lewis
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Skadden
Slaughter and May
Travers Smith

Energy/Infrastructure Team of the Year
Ashurst and Government Legal Department, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero Legal Advisers
Bracewell
CMS
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
Latham & Watkins
Milbank
Orrick
Watson Farley & Williams

ESG Programme of the Year
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
CMS
DLA Piper
Eversheds Sutherland, Clyde & Co, Dechert and Squire Patton Boggs
Freshfields
Mayer Brown and Matthew Parfitt of Erskine Chambers
Pinsent Masons
Weightmans
Weil Gotshal & Manges

Finance Team of the Year
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Freshfields
Hogan Lovells
Kirkland & Ellis
Latham & Watkins
Macfarlanes
Mayer Brown
Milbank
Paul Weiss
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett

GC of the Year
Neil Harrison, Aviva
Ed Gelsthorpe, BAE Systems
Sonya Branch, Bank of England
Mark Maurice-Jones, Nestlé
Amanda Gerrity, Octopus Energy
Kendall Langford, Patron Capital
Claire Singleton, Resolution Life
Mark Gregory, Rolls-Royce
Liz Tanner, SSE
Maria Varsellona, Unilever
Andrea Harris, WPP

In-House Team of the Year
Anglo American
Banco Santander
Barclays and Tesco Bank
BT Group Plc
Goldman Sachs Legal Division
Newcastle United Football Club
PepsiCo UK
Resolution Life
Rightmove
Rolls-Royce

International Arbitration Team of the Year
Debevoise & Plimpton
Hogan Lovells
King & Spalding
Kirkland & Ellis
Pinsent Masons
Three Crowns
Trowers & Hamlins
WilmerHale

Law Firm of the Year
Burges Salmon
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Freshfields
Latham & Watkins
Osborne Clarke
Russell-Cooke
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Taylor Wessing

Legal Technology Team of the Year
American Express
Burges Salmon
Clyde & Co
Greenberg Traurig, Immunefi and the London Chamber of Arbitration and Mediation
Hogan Lovells
Luminance
Macfarlanes
Osborne Clarke and Canary Wharf Group
RPC
Taylor Wessing

Life Sciences Team of the Year
Cooley
Covington
Eversheds Sutherland
Kirkland & Ellis
Morgan Lewis
Pinsent Masons
Sidley Austin
Trowers & Hamlins

Management Partner of the Year
David Pollitt, DAC Beachcroft
Lee Ranson, Eversheds Sutherland
Georgia Dawson, Freshfields
Rich Youle, Skadden
Deborah Finkler, Slaughter and May
Lesley Larg, Thorntons Law
John Wood, TLT

Marketing Initiative of the Year
Eversheds Sutherland
Infinite and DAC Beachcroft
Taylor Wessing
Trowers & Hamlins
Vinson & Elkins
Weightmans
Davitt Jones Bould
Attwells

Most Transformative In-House Team of the Year
ClearBank
HCLTech
Lenovo Solutions and Services Group
Low Carbon Contracts Company
Monzo Bank
Vodafone
Volt
Zellis Group

Private Client Team of the Year
Brabners
Russell-Cooke
Stevens & Bolton
Taylor Wessing
Womble Bond Dickinson
Charles Russell Speechlys
Payne Hicks Beach
Farrer & Co

Private Equity Team of the Year
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Kirkland & Ellis
Latham & Watkins
Paul Weiss
Ropes & Gray
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Skadden
Willkie Farr & Gallagher

Private Practice Lawyer of the Year
Des Collins, Collins Solicitors
Fiona Maclean, Latham & Watkins
Diala Minott, Paul Hastings
Agnes Koko, Eversheds Sutherland
Aisling Zarraga, Linklaters
Nick Rumsby, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Mark Austin, Latham & Watkins
Richard Jeens, Slaughter and May

Real Estate Team of the Year
Ashurst
BCLP
CMS
Dentons
DLA Piper
Gowling WLG
Greenberg Traurig
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
Pinsent Masons
Taylor Wessing
Travers Smith

Regional/Offshore Firm of the Year
Backhouse Jones
Brabners
Carey Olsen
Carson McDowell
Stephens Scown
Stevens & Bolton
Thorntons Law

Restructuring Team of the Year
Akin
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Freshfields
Fried Frank
Greenberg Traurig
Kirkland & Ellis
Macfarlanes
Paul Hastings

Rising Star In-House Counsel of the Year
Nick Kling, ArcelorMittal
Shahmir Khan, Bridgepoint
Gareth Jones, Canopius Group
Jessica Wicker, Close Brothers Group
Rovena Nagy, Farfetch
Nurefsan Karakoy, Interconnector
Sam Barnes, PepsiCo
Sam Al-Ani, Rightmove
Lynda Horgan, SoftBank Investment Advisers
Isaac Eloi, The Orchard

US Law Firm of the Year
Greenberg Traurig
Katten
King & Spalding
McDermott Will & Schulte
Milbank
Paul Hastings
Paul Weiss
Quinn Emanuel
Sidley Austin

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‘A satisfactory year’: Travers sees revenue dip as PEP holds steady

Travers Smith’s 2024-25 revenue has slipped 2% to £210m for the year ending 30 June, down from £215m last year.

Profit per equity partner remained at  £1.3m for a second consecutive year, while overall profit dipped marginally to £74.1m from £77m.

The results come after a strong performance last year saw revenue rise by 10% while PEP soared by 18%.

However, managing partner Edmund Reed told Legal Business that the PEP figure still represented a firm record, equivalent to a 5% increase from last year once rounding is taken into account.

Reed pointed to market volatility and told LB that the latest results should be viewed in the context of both market conditions and last year’s strong growth.

‘The previous year, we had a big step up in performance. We jumped in terms of revenue, we jumped in terms of profitability. We were pleased to have largely matched the previous year’s performance. What makes it particularly satisfying is that, unlike the year before, which featured a couple of exceptional mandates, this year’s performance reflected more generalised momentum across the firm.’

He acknowledged that  PEP holding steady against the slight dip in total profit reflected, in part, a decrease in the number of equity partners, with the firm driving up partner performance.

He said:  ‘We have raised the bar on performance over a period of time and some partners have chosen to ply their trade elsewhere.’

Travers was relatively active in the lateral recruitment market over the last financial year, adding restructuring and insolvency partner Mandip Englund from Fried Frank in April, private equity lawyer Jeremy Dennison, who rejoined as a partner after seven years as general counsel at Livingbridge, and seasoned funds lawyer John Daghlian, who joined as a senior consultant in March, having most recently practised as a partner at Akin Gump.

However the firm also saw a number of departures over the 12-month period, including three practice heads: incentives and remuneration head Mahesh Varia, who joined A&O Shearman in January; technology and commercial transactions head Dan Reavill, who moved to White & Case in March; and leveraged finance head Matthew Ayre, whose move to Goodwin was announced last month.

Reed said that new arrivals had strengthened the partnership and that the firm would continue to look for strategic partner hires. Of the departures, he said: ‘We have had some partners who have departed. We probably will see some partners who continue to depart, but overall we are happy that our partnership is strengthening and we’re heading in the right direction. We’re investing in the areas where we want to invest in and we’ll continue to push forward.’

Meanwhile, the firm opened a small competition-focused outpost in Brussels, with the move coinciding with the shuttering of its Paris office.

Travers also made up nine new partners in its 2025 promotions round, the largest cohort since 2022; and worked on more than 100 pro bono matters, including racial justice work with JUSTICE  which was named UK Pro Bono Initiative of the year at the Legal 500 2025 ESG Awards.

Asked to name practices which enjoyed strong years, Reed said: ‘Public company takeovers continue to be an area where we are particularly active, and it has been quite busy in the public markets. Another area that has been busy for us relates to our asset management business, including some of the more complex transactional work within that space.

Work highlights include advising Assura plc, a UK healthcare real estate company, on its high-profile takeover by Primary Health Properties; advising Mitsubishi Estate on its acquisition of a majority interest in Patron Capital; and advising on a series of UK public takeovers, including offers for Assura plc, Care REIT plc and Alliance Pharma plc.

The firm also ranked as the most highly recommended law firm in the top 50 UK firms, with a net promoter score of 80% in recent research from  thousands of clients by the Legal 500.

Reed added that the new financial year had started strongly for the firm: ‘We’re really excited about the year ahead. We have a plan, we’re moving forward, and it’s been a very satisfactory year.’

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Addleshaws posts fifth consecutive year of double-digit revenue growth

Addleshaw Goddard has posted double-digit revenue growth for the fifth consecutive financial year, marking a successful first 12 months in charge for managing partner Andrew Johnston.

Revenue grew 11% to £550.9m for the year after Johnston took the helm of the firm last May, while profit per equity partner crept up by 1.6% from £984,000 to reach £1m. Profit rose from £210.5m to £224.1m, an increase of 6%.

Addleshaws significantly boosted its global presence during the 12-month period with the opening of a new office in Madrid in May 2024 and the acquisition of Linklaters’ Poland office in February. As a result, the partnership has grown by 9% to 444, with global headcount nearing 3,000, including 59 partner hires and promotions.

Since the end of the financial year the firm has also opened an office in the Abu Dhabi Global Market, its fifth base in the Middle East.

Johnston said it had been ‘another strong year’ for the firm. ‘We are pleased with the financial results, as well as the progress that we have made in evolving the firm’s growth strategy,’ he said. ‘Our year-on-year revenue and profit growth, as well as our robust cash position, has allowed us to continue to invest significantly in our people, offices and innovation.’

Johnston took over as managing partner from John Joyce, who had held the position since 2014. He was elected at the firm’s partner conference in November 2023, which also saw the announcement of the firm’s AG2030 strategy, which includes an ambition to double in size by the turn of the decade.

‘Since unveiling our AG2030 strategy in November, we have entered the Central and Eastern Europe market through the addition of Linklaters’ Warsaw office, opened a new office in Abu Dhabi and have continued to invest in the UK and Ireland with exciting new offices for our people,’ Johnston added.

Work highlights during the year included advising Nationwide Building Society on its £2.9bn acquisition of Virgin Money, a lead role on the Guardian’s sale of The Observer, and acting for Applied Nutrition on its London listing, the largest consumer IPO since 2021.

Elsewhere, TLT has also pushed revenue to new heights, posting a 7.5% turnover hike to £187m, up from £178m last year – a figure annualised from 11 months of results following the firm’s accounting year-end shift from 30 April to 31 March.

‘Reaching £187m in revenue reflects the extraordinary commitment, talent and ambition of our people,’ said managing partner John Wood. ‘We continue to grow and make significant investments to deliver a long-term growth strategy, whilst also staying true to our values.’

Major developments for the firm during the year included the addition of an eight-partner, 29-lawyer team from Broadfield (formerly BDB Pitmans) with notable strengths across energy, infrastructure, public law and planning.

PEP, however, dipped 8% to £601,000, effectively returning the national firm to the figure of £600,000 it posted two years ago in 2022-23.

Client highlights over the year included winning a place on the BT Group legal panel, being reappointed to the National Legal Services Framework, and settling a phone-hacking claim against MGN Limited.

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Quartet of transatlantic firms get VIP access as Soho House goes private in $2.7bn deal

A quartet of international law firms have taken key roles on a take-private deal which has seen international private members club chain Soho House delist from the New York Stock Exchange.

The chain is being acquired by a group of equity investors led by New York-based MCR Hotels, which will acquire all shares not owned by significant shareholders.

The consortium will pay $9 per share to holders of common stock, a premium of around 83% over the closing stock price, valuing the chain at $2.7bn (£2bn).

Sidley is acting for Soho House & Co, with a team including London finance partner Ben Wright, capital markets practice chief Sam Gandhi and New York M&A and private equity partners John Butler and Ayo Badejo.

Fellow US firm Fried Frank is serving as legal counsel to a special committee of independent directors formed by Soho House’s board of directors late last year, with New York M&A partners Alison McCormick and Philip Richter leading the Wall Street firm’s team, working alongside top-tier Delaware law firm Morris Nichols Arsht & Tunnell.

Apollo Global Management, which is set to provide debt and equity financing of around $800m for the deal, is being advised by Gibson Dunn, which is fielding a team led by New York capital markets partner Michael Saliba, with London-based tax co-chair Sandy Bhogal and US partner Jennifer Sabin handling tax aspects. 

Further equity capital will also be provided by a consortium led by actor-turned-investor Ashton Kutcher, who will also join the company’s board on completion of the transaction.

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer has also taken a role on the deal, advising British businessman Richard Caring – the owner of the Ivy restaurant chain – on his investment and 21% stake in the company.

HSFK’s work was conducted primarily by a US team bringing together a mix of lawyers from legacy Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin following their transatlantic merger this June, including equity capital markets head Todd Lenson, private equity partners Arlene Ortiz-Leytte and Daniel Zimmerman, tax partner Avi Reshtick and special counsel Jeff Taub, alongside senior M&A partner Alex Kay in London.

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Four firms take slice of the action as Kingsmill owner buys Hovis for £75m

A quartet of law firms have advised on the £75m acquisition of Hovis by Associated British Foods (ABF), a deal which is set to combine two of the UK’s biggest bread brands.

A&O Shearman advised Kingsmill owner ABF on the transaction, will see the FTSE 100 company acquire sliced bread competitor Hovis from private equity firm Endless, which has owned the brand since 2020.

In a statement, ABF said that the combination of Hovis with its UK bakery business, Allied Bakeries, would drive ‘significant costs synergies and efficiencies’ and create ‘a profitable UK bread business’, adding that the deal had been prompted by a decline in demand for sliced packaged bread in recent years.

Consumer and retail sector lead Annabelle Croker led the A&O Shearman team advising ABF, supported by corporate and M&A senior associates Anthony Bowen and Laura Milward-Lynch and associates Toluwa Agboola and Charles Ng, while Macfarlanes handled regulatory and antitrust aspects of the deal, led by competition partner Cameron Firth.

Meanwhile, Walker Morris advised Endless, led by corporate partner Debbie Jackson and competition partner Sarah Ward with support from associates Matt Gale and Joel Davies. The Leeds firm is a regular adviser to Endless, and recently worked with the private equity firm – which is also based in Leeds – on its exit from business supplies distributor evo earlier this year.

Freshfields handled competition aspects of the Hovis deal for Endless, with Alastair Chapman, the firm’s global head of antitrust, competition and trade leading the firm’s team.

A&O Shearman has previously advised ABF on a number of acquisitions, including balsamic vinegar producer Acetum in 2017, US natural food producer Anthony’s Goods in 2019 and nutrients developer Fytexia Group in 2022. However, in 2023 the company instead turned to Addleshaw Goddard for advice on its acquisition of dairy tech firm National Milk Records.

On its 2020 acquisition of Hovis, Endless was advised by US firm Dechert, while Hovis was represented by Travers Smith.

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New research shows in-house legal tech adoption surging as Gen AI gains ground

A survey of more than 150 GCs has highlighted the extent to which technology is transforming in-house legal teams.

GC Pulse 2025, which was conducted by Legal Business in association with Thomson Reuters, has revealed that 44% of corporate legal departments are now using legal technology frequently or all the time — a sharp rise from 34% in 2024.

The survey found much of this growth in usage is being driven by generative AI, with legal teams integrating it into their daily workflows faster than ever before.

Crucially, while GCs remain under growing pressure to lead their teams and oversee matter management,  as well as regulatory risk and compliance, all while sticking to tight budgets, heightened awareness of AI means broader corporate support for tech investment for the legal team is also growing.

Nearly one-third (32%) of the GCs surveyed said they now found it easy or very easy to secure approval for technology purchases. Eighty percent of respondents expect to devote as much as 20% of their legal budgets to technology this year, up from 68% in 2024, with AI expected to drive much of this increase.

Max Freeman-Inglis, head of legal operations at Alliance Pharma, said securing budget for the legal function rarely posed a serious challenge, with the team already able to demonstrate metrics to measure the success of some implementations.

He added: ‘Our C-suite are huge on AI – they love it, see the benefits, and there’s a real push to use it. We started with the pure data piece: uploading contracts and getting the data sorted. Now, we’ve got a fully automated system for non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). What used to take two to three weeks now takes two to three hours. That’s an easy metric to show the board.’

The survey also found that perception of AI as a reliable legal resource has nearly doubled within the GC community, with 40% of respondents now expressing trust in the technology, compared to 21% last year. Only 3% of legal professionals maintain that AI is not yet dependable; down sharply from 11% in 2024.

Despite this increased faith, implementation of AI remains more measured. Although the survey found that 86% of GCs plan to maintain or increase AI-related spending, only 11% have fully integrated generative AI tools into their operations. When asked where they saw the biggest use case opportunities for AI to enhance their work, GCs pinpointed automation, due diligence and contract lifecycle management (CLM) as areas for growth.

Alex Graydon, associate general counsel at Thomson Reuters, said: ‘Over the last two years, Gen AI has been the buzzword everyone’s talking about. But automation is still very much alive. We’ve had a document automation product since around 2015, which allowed us to automate and release self-serve NDAs to the business, and we’ve expanded that automation model.

‘For example, our legal front door, built on HighQ, is a landing place for the business to request legal support. We use it for work intake: asking a series of questions, collecting answers, allocating lawyers, managing workflows, and reporting data. But we can now layer on AI to this to extract insights and value. For those just starting their tech transformation journey, it’s worth remembering automation and combining these tools with Gen AI can be powerful, but automation of workflows and document creation remains extremely valuable for many businesses.’

Looking ahead, the survey points to agentic AI – autonomous systems capable of handling complex, multi-step legal processes – as the next frontier.

Commenting on the how AI is transforming the profession, Alessandro Galtieri, deputy GC at Colt Technology Services, draws a parallel with a previous tech revolution as he concludes: ‘Five years from now, a lawyer who doesn’t use AI will be like a lawyer today who doesn’t use email.’

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The GC Legal Tech Pulse 2025 report, produced by Legal Business in association with Thomson Reuters, offers a comprehensive look at how in-house legal teams are embracing technological change, drawing on a survey of over 150 general counsel and senior lawyers. Access the full GC Pulse report here and click here to watch a webinar discussion of the report’s findings.

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Slaughters, Latham and HSFK lead on National Grid’s £1.5bn LNG sale

Slaughter and May, Latham & Watkins and Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer have all taken lead roles on Centrica’s £1.5bn acquisition of one of the UK’s largest liquefied natural gas terminals from National Grid.

Centrica is acquiring the Isle of Grain terminal in Kent alongside Energy Capital Partners (ECP), which is part of Bridgepoint Group, via a 50/50 joint venture.

Slaughters is advising Centrica on the deal, with a team including corporate partners Robert Innes and Natalie Cook, energy and infrastructure partners Oliver Moir and tax partner Sarah Osprey, with partners Philippa O’Malley and Duncan Blaikie handling pensions and intellectual property respectively.

After taking into account approximately £1.1bn of project finance debt, Centrica’s 50% share of the total equity investment will be valued at approximately £200m.

Latham is advising ECP on the acquisition, with London corporate partners David Walker and Beatrice Lo leading alongside finance partners JP Sweny and Alexander Buckeridge-Hocking.

The US firm also advised on the project’s debt financing, which totals around £1.5bn, and ECP on its shareholder arrangements with Centrica.

HSFK is advising National Grid, with the firm’s team being led by corporate partners Charles Steward, Caroline Rae and Reza Dadbakhsh. The role comes after HSFK last year acted for National Grid on its £630m divestment of its electricity system operator to the UK Government

The Isle of Grain terminal is located off the Thames estuary and can process 15 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas each year, which equates to about a fifth of the UK’s demand for gas.

The deal is expected to close before the end of 2025, subject to regulatory approval.

The sale comes on the back of another major energy infrastructure development last month, with funding finalised for the Sizewell C nuclear plant. That £38bn deal has seen the UK Government take a 45% equity stake, with the remainder split between Centrica (15%), EDF (12.5%), Amber Infrastructure (7.6%) and Canadian investors La Caisse (20%).

Slaughters and HSFK also acted on that deal, advising Centrica and La Caisse respectively, with other firms including DLA Piper, Freshfields and Linklaters taking key roles.

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South Asian Heritage Month: ‘My experiences have shaped me – that adds value in terms of what I bring to the firm’

Twenty years ago, Sajida Hussain approached the reception desk of an assessment centre and said she was there for an interview. Despite wearing a suit, Hussain was asked if she was in the right place. ‘To me it felt like they saw what I looked like,’ she says, referring to her ethnicity and hijab, ‘and it felt like, from their perspective, I didn’t deserve to be there.’

As a young university student, Hussain already felt out of place, and though she knows the comment was likely not malicious, it amplified what she was already thinking. ‘It doesn’t put you in good stead for your interview when you’re trying to make a good impression,’ she explains.

Hussain emphasises that people have largely been incredibly receptive to her identity, but this brief encounter is something Hussain still shares as a learning experience decades later. It wasn’t until the last few years that Hussain, now a legal director at Addleshaw Goddard, began to reflect on the lack of South Asian representation within the sector.

During the last four weeks of South Asian Heritage Month, which began in 2020, the same year that Hussain joined Addleshaws, Hussain has seen her colleagues enjoy Bhangra dancing, traditional henna art and South Asian cuisine; things her younger self could have scarcely believed possible in a corporate law firm.

A mock trial during her school years got Hussain interested in the law, before Ally McBeal crystallised her ambitious goal of making it to a global firm. ‘I’ve never been scared of a challenge and, for me, getting into an international firm was a challenge,’ she says.

However, being the first person in her family to go to law school meant she struggled with training contract applications. A senior individual in a prominent law firm began mentoring Hussain, which eventually helped her land a training contract at DAC Beachcroft. Now, as the co-chair of AG Embrace Manchester (Addleshaws’ ethnicity network) Hussain is eager to pay forward the goodwill she received and do what she can to increase visibility and representation of Muslim and South Asian lawyers.

Hussain adopted the co-chair role at Embrace because it was ‘the right thing to do’, but initially remained hesitant to share her personal experiences, not wanting to be judged or pitied. It wasn’t until a couple of years ago, during Addleshaws’ reverse mentoring scheme, where colleagues from underrepresented backgrounds speak to partners and board members about their life experiences and journey’s into law, that she began to open up. ‘Sometimes I wish I would have been a little braver in terms of telling my story; people want to learn about your background, ethnicity, heritage and what a person’s individual experiences are,’ she says.

Hussain soon realised that lots of people could benefit from hearing her story: ‘If I went through these experiences, then it’s possible that others have too. There are a lot of people out there who still don’t feel like they can bring their true identity to work, but there’s no reason why they should feel like that; I’m trying to lead by example.’

Mentorship can take many forms depending on what someone needs. ‘Sometimes you need a coach, sometimes you need a sounding board, sometimes you simply need someone to vent to when facing challenging events. For example, I walked into a room where I was the only ethnically diverse person and someone gave me a weird look. Unless you have been in that situation, it is hard for you to understand what a “weird look” means or feels like. It’s just frustrating that such things still sometimes happen but thankfully it’s less than 10 or 20 years ago. Luckily,’ Hussain says, ‘I’ve got an amazing support network of allies.’

With a visible presence on LinkedIn, Hussain is now returning the favour. She regularly receives messages from juniors about issues she struggled with, such as whether to wear a hijab, how to tell colleagues you’re fasting, or whether to attend networking drinks with alcohol. ‘There’s part of me which feels this is really good and [I’m] making a difference,’ she reflects, ‘but there’s also part of me which feels sad because sometimes I come across people still grappling with the same challenges I went through 20 years ago – it tugs at your heartstrings.’

There is no right way to answer such questions, Hussain emphasises. ‘The starting point is that everyone is an individual,’ she says, and this is, she believes, the key value of building an inclusive culture from the ground up: ‘My experiences have shaped me to be who I am and that has added value in terms of what I bring to the firm, the practice and my expertise, because I think about things differently. I think that’s largely because of all the blockers that I’ve had to go through, that I’ve had to start thinking laterally. And I do think that’s an added value advantage that not many people can offer.’

A key part of creating a varied culture begins with recruitment, Hussain says, as she highlights that Addleshaws has been challenging recruiters to put forward the best candidates, regardless of their background. ‘People who come with different learned experiences can be more creative and offer different perspectives and solutions.’

But visual representation is a two-way street, and it is crucial that there is more representation on the side of the people conducting the interviews. ‘I know this can be a key factor when someone is trying to pick which firm to work for,’ Hussain says.

Despite the current pushback against DEI from some quarters, Addleshaws is standing firm, according to Hussain. ‘Addleshaws always has a strong and powerful message when it comes to DEI, regardless of what is happening in the world,’ she says. ‘It is important to focus on the things that firms and individuals can control and it’s about doing the little things that make a difference to future generations,’ Hussain adds.

When organising work social events, Hussain says Addleshaws casts the net wide in terms of accommodating a variety of needs, considering factors such as dietary requirements, alternatives to alcohol and timings that suit colleagues with childcare responsibilities.

‘My vision for the next 10 or 20 years is to get to a place where everyone is comfortable in being their true authentic self, regardless of whether you’re neurodiverse, ethnically diverse or what your religious beliefs are. The key is getting buy-in and getting investment from senior leadership, including at board level – there’s only so much you can do at the junior end without senior support behind you. At Addleshaws, our strategy starts with the board and filters down.’

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Proskauer lands White & Case lev fin partner as City finance hiring spree continues

US firm Proskauer has continued its City finance build-out with the hire of White & Case leveraged finance partner Peter Mason.

The hire marks the latest phase in Proskauer’s strategy to grow its private credit capabilities in the capital, and comes on the back of a flurry of hires last year, including Philip Bowden, the former co-head of banking at Allen & Overy.

Mason, who is joining Proskauer’s global finance practice in London, started his career at Freshfields before joining White & Case as a partner in autumn 2023.

A leveraged finance specialist, he advises on complex cross-border transactions in both Europe and the US, alongside real estate deals and restructurings. Recent matters he was involved in at White & Case included advising creditors on the financing for the £350m acquisition of Alliance Pharma.

Bowden – who now co-heads Proskauer’s global finance practice alongside Justin Breen and Andrew Bettwy in New York – said that the practice was expanding ‘in response to increasing client demand,’ and that the firm was looking to grow its platform to ‘deliver a full suite of leveraged finance solutions’ around the world.

Mason’s hire is the latest in Proskauer’s expansion of its global finance team, with the firm adding a total of eight partners to the practice over the last year.

The buildout began in earnest in July 2024, when the firm sealed the hires of A&O Shearman duo Bowden and Megan Lawrence, followed not long afterwards by three additions from Cahill Gordon & Reindel’s London office – Jake Keaveny, who is now head of European capital markets, Warren Newton and Court Tisdale.

The recruitment continued throughout late 2024 and early 2025, with structured finance specialist and former A&O Shearman and Milbank partner John Goldfinch joining in November, and credit-focused restructuring expert Clare Cottle moving over from Akin in March this year.

More recently, financial services regulatory partner Anna Maleva-Otto joined from Schulte Roth & Zabel ahead of her former firm’s merger with McDermott Will & Emery.

Proskauer now has around 180 lawyers in London, according to its website, including 55 partners.

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Eversheds Sutherland pushes PEP to £1.4m as revenue sees another year of growth

Eversheds Sutherland London office

Eversheds Sutherland has posted across-the-board increases for the 2024-25 financial year, with profit per equity partner (PEP) closing in on the £1.5m mark.

The results, which encompass the firm’s business outside of the US, include a 3% revenue increase to £768.7m, while PEP saw the steepest hike, rising 8% to £1.4m, with net profit up 6% to £185.7m.

Eversheds Sutherland (International) contributes around two thirds of the total turnover for the firm as a whole, which took in revenues of $1.63bn (£1.2bn) for the 2024 calendar year. The firm operates as a verein, combining legacy firm Eversheds and Sutherland Asbill & Brennan following their 2017 transatlantic union.

The 2024-25 results signal an improvement from the year prior, when PEP grew by less than 1% and revenue inched up by 2.5.%.

Keith Froud, who took over as chief executive of the international business from Lee Ranson this May, said in a statement: ‘These results build on our excellent track record, with year-on-year revenue and profit growth for the past eight years.’

‘The firm’s global strategy has served us very well. I was very clear with the partners when I was elected that my focus will be to accelerate that to the next stage.’

Froud is a firm lifer, starting his career at legacy Eversheds in 1993, serving as international head of company and commercial from 2011 to 2017 before becoming international managing partner when Ranson became chief executive in 2017, shortly after the US merger went live.

Key matters handled by the firm during the past financial year included advising Annington Property on the £6bn sale of an estate to the Ministry of Defence, one of the largest property transactions in UK history.

This year the firm made up 23 lawyers to its partnership, 52% of who are women.

Pinsent Masons also today (13 August) posted its 2024-25 financials, with revenue climbing 4.7% to £680m, while PEP edged up by 0.5% to £797,000.

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Trading places: Leading litigator leaps to Latham as Simpson Thacher bulks up in Boston

Simpson Thacher has continued to build out its Boston office, adding M&A partner William Lay from Kirkland & Ellis. Lay spent seven years at Kirkland advising on M&A and private equity transactions, including nearly two years as a partner.

His hire comes after the firm opened in Boston in May 2024, adding more than six lateral partners in the months since launch, as increasing numbers of international firms move to build their presence in the city.

Simpson Thacher’s M&A head Eric Swedenburg said:  ‘His addition reflects the continued momentum of growth in our Boston office and our broader strategy to continue expanding Simpson Thacher’s transactional capabilities in key markets.’

Over in New York, Latham & Watkins has hired acclaimed trial litigator David Marriott (pictured). A Legal 500-ranked leading trial lawyer, Marriott joins from Cravath, where he spent nearly three decades, making partner in 2003.

Latham chair and managing partner Rich Trobman said in a statement: ‘The addition of Dave, a formidable talent and leading trial lawyer known for winning the hardest cases, makes perfect sense as we focus on delivering sophisticated legal advice that enables our clients to see around corners, beat down challenges to achieving their business goals, and further hone their competitive position.’

Marriott joins as a partner in both the litigation and trial department and the antitrust and competition practice. His arrival marks the sixth antitrust partner the firm has brought on globally since February.

The five earlier hires were: Alfonso Lamadrid, who joined in Brussels from Garrigues in May; Tilman Kuhn, who joined in Düsseldorf from White & Case in April;  former deputy assistant attorney general Andrew Forman in Washington DC in June; David Brenneman from Morgan Lewis in Washington DC in May; and Meaghan Thomas-Kennedy, who returned to the firm’s San Francisco office in February from Apple, where she worked in the antitrust litigation division as senior legal counsel from 2022 to September 2024 and then as principal counsel.

Elsewhere in Manhattan, Simpson Thacher has hired tax partner Ari Zak from Dechert. Zak joins after 13 years at Dechert, where he made partner in 2015, and brings particular expertise advising on issues relating to the taxation of investment funds and their investors.

New York UHNW-focused firm Sterlington has hired a private wealth team from Morgan Lewis, led by partners Emalee Welsh, Daniel Carmody, and Daniel Cooper, who joins Sterlington as private wealth team head.

Meanwhile, Broadfield (formerly BDB Pitmans) has announced the launch of its first office in the US, appointing five partners in New York as co-founding partners of Broadfield US LLP.

The hires include employment litigation and regulatory compliance partner Michael Volpe from Venable, and M&A, venture capital, and strategic investments partner Christopher Hagenbuch from Dentons, as well as M&A partners Michael O’Brien and Adele Hogan from financial services-focused New York firm Otterbourg. Also making joining is Trevor Bradley, a litigator who was an attorney at Connecticut-headquartered US national firm Robinson+Cole.

The new office is the firm’s second international opening outside the UK, following a February launch in Hong Kong that saw it bring over Sidley APAC investment funds group head and executive committee member Effie Vasilopoulos as Asia Pacific lead and Broadfield Asia managing partner.

The firm followed up with a clutch of hires in July, bulking out the office with restructuring and insolvency partner Gordon Davidson, also from Sidley, and Kirkland & Ellis Asia arbitration head and litigation co-head Fergus Saurin.

Finally in New York, McGuireWoods hired M&A senior associate Bharath Mohan from Paul Weiss as a partner.

Over on the West Coast, Arnold & Porter has opened in Seattle, launching its new office in the city with a slate of hires from K&L Gates.

The new office will be led by litigator Pallavi Mehta Wahi, who joins as chair of Western US strategic growth, having previously spent 19 years at K&L Gates, including as Seattle office managing partner since 2015.

Joining her in Seattle are corporate, healthcare, and technology partner Annettee Becker and employment partner and class action litigator Patrick Madden.

The firm has also announced a further raft of hires from K&L Gates in Seattle, bringing over real estate partners Marisa Bocci and Kari Larson, labour and employment partners Mark Filipini, Ryan Groshong, and Todd Nunn, and litigators Ashley Gammell and Aaron Millstein.

The move brings Arnold & Porter’s total office count to 16. Of these, 11 are located in the US, with four on the West Coast – Los Angeles, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, as well as the new Seattle office.

Also making the move to Arnold & Porter from K&L Gates are Rosemary Alito, a labour and employment partner who will be based in the firm’s Newark office, and litigation partner Daniel Glassman, who joins in Los Angeles.

Finally, Womble Bond Dickinson has significantly expanded the Nashville office it launched in 2022, bringing in a 20-lawyer litigation team from local  firm Neal & Harwell.

The team includes 15 partners: Ben Aaron, Tom Dundon, Phil Elbert, Ron Harris, Callie Hinson, Jim Kelley, Bill Ramsey, Isaac Sanders, Jim Sanders, Nathan Sanders, Mariam Stockton, Jim Thomas, David Thompson, Liz Tipping, and Jeffrey Zager.

Eighteen of the 20 lawyers will join Womble’s business litigation group, with the remaining two joining its finance, bankruptcy and restructuring practice.

The hires make up the bulk of the attorneys at Neal & Harwell, which is set to close on 31 August after co-founding partner Aubrey Harwell left to join New Orelans-founded national firm Adams & Reese in May.

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DLA and DWF crack $50m sale of Fabergé eggs maker

DWF and DLA Piper have advised on the sale of renowned jeweller Fabergé to a US tech investment firm for $50m.

DWF advised the seller – Gemfields, a British mining and gemstones company – on the transaction, with a team led by corporate partner James Wilson, supported by corporate director Jemil Visram and tax partner Tom Rank.

Wilson, who joined DWF in October 2022, was also part of the Reed Smith team that advised Gemfields on its $142m acquisition of Fabergé.

On the buyer’s side, DLA advised SMG Capital, which is owned by tech entrepreneur and venture capitalist Sergei Mosunov. The firm’s team was led by corporate partner Alexander Kolmakov, with tax partner Matt Davies and legal director Gemma Grunewald providing additional support.

Fabergé is best known for its diamond-encrusted jewelled eggs, famously crafted for the Russian Romanov royal family.

Gemfields, which is listed on both AIM and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, owns some of the largest precious stones mines in the world, including the Montepuez Ruby Mining operation in Mozambique and the Kagem emerald mine in Zambia.

The transaction began in November last year, but paused while Gemfields carried out a rights issue in June which raised $30m. Under the terms of the deal, $45m was paid to Gemfields on completion of the sale, with the remaining $5m to be paid through quarterly royalty payments of Fabergé’s revenue at an 8% rate.

Gemfields are ‘concentrating on their core business and streamlining their operations to focus on the mining side of the business,’ said DWF deal team leader Wilson, who added that alongside the recent successful rights issue, Gemfields had significantly strengthened its balance sheet.

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Pinsents posts modest revenue increase as PEP stalls

Pinsent Masons grew revenue by just under 5% during the last financial year, with the increase in fee income coming against a second year of broadly static profits per equity partner.

Revenue climbed 4.7% year-on-year to £680m, up from last year’s figure of £649.6m, with the rate of growth slightly down on last year, when turnover climbed 7%.

PEP, meanwhile, edged up 0.5% to £797,000, with managing partner Laura Cameron attributing the flat results to an increase in equity partner numbers. The firm’s total partner count stood at 502 for the last financial year, including 212 full equity partners. This compares with 187 equity partners in the 2024 LB 100.

Last year Pinsents reported a marginal decline in PEP of less than 1% to £793,000, with PEP now back to where it stood in 2023.

Cameron (pictured) told Legal Business she was pleased with a ‘really strong year’ against a backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty and continuing economic headwinds. But the managing believes market conditions will improve:  ‘I’m actually really positive about the future, positive about this coming year. I think there are lots of opportunities. We are seeing interest rate cuts so I’m very positive and I know fellow managing partners feel the same.’

She highlighted infrastructure, real estate and financial services as standout performers across the year, with each hiking revenue by double digits. Key client wins during the year included an appointment as sole legal provider for Heineken in the UK and advising longstanding client MFG on its £2.5bn acquisition of more than 700 Morrisons petrol and EV development sites.

Pinsents’ growth over the 2024-25 financial year included adding 13 lateral hires, as well as making up 24 new partners internally.

It also opened a new office in Riyadh  on 1 March, shortly after announcing plans to open a new office in Shenzhen in China. The Shenzhen base, which will be the firm’s third in mainland China in addition to one in Hong Kong, is scheduled to open later in 2025.

Cameron said multijurisdictional work made up almost 20% of the firm’s revenue during the last financial year, with this percentage expected to increase over time.

Beyond traditional legal work, Pinsents started working with V7 GO, a tailored AI programme that improves workflow for clients, which has already yielded efficiencies, according to the firm.

The firm has also hired its first director of transformation, Neil Green, and a new chief technology officer, Tracy McDermott, to oversee innovation and tech developments.

‘We are an innovative law firm,’ said Cameron. ‘We’ve always been at the front end of that space, and we want to continue to be there, developing our technology and also actually developing and investing in our people.’

News of Pinsents’ financial performance comes after insurance leader Clyde & Co saw revenue climb 3% to £854m, with net profit increasing by just under 2% to £177.5m.

The results, which represent a 27th consecutive year of growth for the firm, saw North America as the firm’s fastest growing region by revenue, now accounting for 25% of fee income. The UK accounts for 46% of revenue, the Middle East and Africa 11%, APAC 9%, Europe 7% and Latin America 2%.

The firm’s expansion strategy saw a merger with Dallas-based firm Tillman Bachelor, a partnership with G Herrera Abogados & Asociados in Columbia and the addition of 59 new partners, 35 of which were promoted internally.

Elsewhere, Fieldfisher has reported a year of strategic expansion and modest growth. Total firmwide revenue (including verein offices) rose by 1% to £385m, while integrated firm revenue grew by 10% to £364m. PEP climbed by 3% year-on-year to £1m.

The firm reported revenue growth in all departments and across the firm’s European network, with double-digit increases in newly opened offices in Austria and Italy, as well as in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands.

Managing partner Robert Shooter, who was re-elected for a further three-year term from April 2025, commented: ‘This has been a period of strategic transformation and investment in our firm. We have expanded our European presence, adding new offices in Austria, Italy, Poland and Portugal to our network in the last two years. We have also made significant investments in our premises in Hamburg, Berlin and Dublin, with the Birmingham office move and the refurbishment of our London headquarters taking place later this year. Against this backdrop, we have achieved growth across all offices and practice areas.’

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Clifford Chance and Latham lead on Metlen’s £6bn London listing

Clifford Chance and Latham have picked up key roles on the largest listing of a European company in the UK since 2017.

CC has advised Greek energy and metals company Metlen Energy & Metals on its £6bn London Stock Exchange debut, which is the largest primary listing in London so far this year.

The company, which operates in over 40 countries, redomiciled to the UK, with the transaction including a primary placement on the LSE and a secondary listing on the Athens Stock Exchange.

CC’s team was led by London capital markets head Simon Thomas, supported by a team including senior associate James Koessler and associates Radhika Sharma and Inês Teixeira.

Other CC partners involved in the deal include employment partner Amy Bird, restructuring partner Timothy Lees, tax partner Nicola Hemsley and litigators Michael Lyons and George Kleinfeld.

Latham picked up the international legal adviser role for the joint UK financial advisers and sponsors, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Global Markets. The US firm fielded a team led by  London corporate partners James Inness and Anna Ngo, and counsel Koushik Prasad.

Metlen expects to be admitted to the FTSE 100 as early as September 2025, with its market capitalisation currently standing at around €6.7bn (£6bn ). If this happens, it will become the first company in over a year to directly enter the index through a primary listing.

Metlen’s shares will continue to be denominated in euros, making it one of the first companies to use new rules that allow non-sterling shares to be included in the FTSE UK indices.

Commenting on the transaction, CC’s Thomas said:  ‘This is a hugely important transaction for the London market, being the largest listing of a European business in London since 2017. In addition, Metlen will become the first company to enter FTSE’s UK indices with shares denominated in Euros, signalling the continued attractiveness of the UK for global companies to list.’

Late last month Legal Business reported that ECM partners were backing London for an IPO rebound, despite activity levels falling to a 30-year low over the first half of this year.

Industrial giant Metlen’s market cap more than tripled between 2021 and 2024 and it is Greece’s largest home-growth company.The transaction  also generated roles for a number of Greek firms, with Bernitsas Law acting for Metlen, Karatzas & Partners acting for the UK sponsors and Papanikolopoulou & Partners advising the Greek financial advisers.

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Kirkland, Simpson Thacher lead as Claire’s files for second bankruptcy in seven years

Kirkland & Ellis and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett are advising as fashion accessories retailer Claire’s filed for bankruptcy in the US for the second time in seven years.

According to the Chapter 11 petition filed in Delaware, Claire’s has estimated liabilities of between $1bn and $10bn. The retailer previously filed for bankruptcy protection in early 2018, emerging later that year following a restructuring advised on by Weil Gotshal & Manges.

Claire’s operates approximately 2,750 stores across North America and Europe, according to its website, with around 280 of those in the UK.

Legal Business understands that the multi-office Kirkland & Ellis team advising Claire’s includes US restructuring partners Joshua Sussberg, Alexandra Schwarzman and Allyson Smith, alongside London-based restructuring partners Hannah Crawford, Kon Asimacopoulos and Mallika Abidi.

Kirkland litigation partners Joshua Greenblatt, Michael Sciaccotta, Melanie MacKay and Jeffrey Goldfine are also listed on the Delaware court docket for the proceedings.

Simpson Thacher, meanwhile, is advising JPMorgan Chase Bank as administrative agent for the asset-based lenders to Claire’s, with a team including New York restructuring partner Elisha Graff and Houston banking and credit partners Brandan Still and Bryce Kaufman.

Claire’s is being advised on Canadian law by domestic firm Osler Hoskin & Harcourt, with Alvarez & Marsal engaged as restructuring advisor.

The filing comes at a challenging time for the retail sector. Discount chain Poundland was recently sold to private equity firm Gordon Brothers for a nominal sum widely reported to be around £1, while high street fashion retailer River Island has proposed a restructuring plan that would see it shutter underperforming stores.

In a statement, Claire’s CEO Chris Cramer said the decision was ‘difficult, but a necessary one,’ adding that the bankruptcy had been driven by factors such as ‘increased competition, consumer spending trends and the ongoing shift away from brick-and-mortar retail’, as well as the company’s debt obligations.

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The Client Profile: Arm legal chief Spencer Collins on humble starts and career successes

I had a humble start in life – and the hunger I developed from that gave me an edge. After a few years working on the business side at some technology companies, I decided I wanted to be a lawyer – mainly because I enjoyed negotiating and running projects. I decided to study law on a part-time evening basis whilst holding down a full-time job at a multinational technology company. I threw everything at it – leaving the house at 7am to go to work and getting home around midnight after university most days.  

The first key milestone occurred during my second year at university. I landed a two week diversity work placement at Allen & Overy (now A&O Shearman). I was treated very well by A&O and it gave me insight into a world that was very different than the world I was from – and I wanted more.

On my first day, I attended an evening function and was told ‘off the record’ by a partner that the placement ‘will not lead to a job or anything, but just enjoy the experience’. I wasn’t having any of it. I left the function early to go home to apply for a training contract at the firm!

My hard work paid off – I ultimately managed to land the training contract and my career took-off from there. I qualified in the M&A group, working on multiple high profile deals, and eventually landed a secondment from A&O to Fenwick & West in California.

Another milestone in my career was when I landed a secondment to SoftBank at their then recently launched $100bn SoftBank Vision Fund. It was an unprecedented opportunity that was only going to come by once in my career, as the founder and CEO of SoftBank, Masayoshi Son (Masa), had put together the biggest tech-focused fund in history. I hit the ground running and quickly started playing a leading role in some of the most high profile and complex deals, including a $7.7bn investment in Uber.

The stars really aligned for me at SoftBank – my prior experience in business, law and technology came together at once. When I was offered a permanent role at the end of my secondment, I jumped at the chance of joining SoftBank full time.

My time at SoftBank was crazy but I loved every minute. The pace, the workload, the characters, the sums involved – everything was off the scale! Backgrounds didn’t matter – hard work and ability were what counted. I started by building out a European legal team, before joining the front-office as an investor and sitting on numerous boards.

My next task was to set-up and help manage a new fund in the Middle East as its GC. Then Masa invited me back to the Vision Fund and promoted me to managing partner and GC of both Vision Funds (a second Vision Fund had since been launched). 

Being given the opportunity to join the front-office at the Vision Fund was huge – it gave me a seat at the table and expanded my network and my skillset. I was no longer ‘just a lawyer’. Working with Masa and being entrusted by him to manage and deliver on many of SoftBank’s most important projects was a career game-changer. 

I first got to work with Arm and its now CEO, Rene Haas, during its proposed $40bn sale to Nvidia by SoftBank. I immediately gelled with the company and developed a great rapport with Rene and the rest of the management team. When the Nvidia deal was called off and Masa decided to return Arm to the public markets, I was offered the role of EVP and chief legal officer at Arm and tasked with playing a leading role on the proposed IPO. It was too good an opportunity to miss.

I officially joined Arm in 2022 and today, I’m fortunate enough to run the legal, compliance, Co-Sec, trade compliance, government affairs and corporate development departments globally. I also sit on the executive committee and work closely with its members and the CEO on a daily basis.

There were many highlights of the Nvidia deal – it was a very important, high-profile transaction that was heavily scrutinised by regulators. At the early stages, managing the leak risk was key and the deal team on the SoftBank side was incredibly lean as a result. It was the leanest internal team I have ever worked with on any transaction, let alone one of this scale – and I was carrying a lot of responsibility personally. Just getting to the signing of the transaction on terms that were acceptable to SoftBank was a challenge – Nvidia is a first-class outfit and they negotiate hard – but so do I, and we got it done with mutual respect. 

Leading a deal of this magnitude and importance for SoftBank elevated my standing within the organisation but the biggest benefit for me was the understanding I developed of Arm’s business and the semiconductor industry. I had no idea at the time that I would go on to become Arm’s next GC, but I was involved in the regulatory process and my learnings from that have benefitted me immensely since joining Arm. 

Ultimately the deal didn’t clear the regulatory hurdles, but in true SoftBank and Masa style, there was no dwelling on what could have been – we accepted the outcome and immediately pivoted to an IPO, and the rest is history! 

Given Arm’s importance to the UK tech scene, the topic of where Arm would list after seven years as a private company was always going to garner attention. Coupled with the political landscape (a general election was fast approaching) and the then growing pressure around UK vs US listings, it wasn’t a surprise that interest was taken at the very highest levels. Not only did we have the various exchanges in the US and UK pitching us, it’s also public knowledge that we had numerous conversations at the highest levels of the British government and the FCA.  

Arm is a British company and we are very proud of that fact. The decision to list in one jurisdiction versus another is entirely independent from that. We had an obligation to our shareholders to choose the best path forward for the company and its stakeholders. Based on extensive research and the advice we received from our advisers, it was decided that we would conduct a single primary listing on NASDAQ.

I worked with the teams of no fewer than three Prime Ministers, including directly with Rishi Sunak, and I didn’t enjoy breaking the news that we had decided to list in the US. I remain a proud Brit and I desperately want the UK to be successful. Arm’s HQ remains in the UK, as do the majority of our employees and our intellectual property, but a small percentage of our shares are listed in the US where the majority of our customers and investors are based.  

Many lawyers apply the law and their advice in a way that suggests legal issues trump everything else. In my experience, that drives business people mad. Sometimes the law and/or regulation is the most important component of a particular situation or project and a GC’s advice needs to reflect that – but where it is not, the advice should reflect that.

In my role as GC at Arm, much of my advice is business or practical advice rather than pure legal. If I stuck to pure legal advice, my phone wouldn’t ring half as much as it does – and that would definitely not be a good thing! I see myself primarily as a business adviser with legal knowledge and the ability to use the law and regulation to facilitate the business objective at hand. There are occasions where I will jump in front of an issue and just say ’no’, but I only do that when no really is the right answer – not just the easiest answer. 

It’s important to understand the environment you work in as well as possible. You must understand the sector, the stakeholders, the major shareholders, the business strategy, the company’s strengths and weaknesses, the political landscape, the leadership team, the board of directors and especially the CEO! Shying away from these components rarely ends well.  

You never get a second chance to make a first impression. At each of A&O, Fenwick & West, White & Case, SoftBank and Arm, I have always delivered on what I was brought in to do. On each occasion I have worked tirelessly to get the job done and, in my experience, after doing that no-one questions your ability to get the next one done – they trust you to deliver. On the flipside, if you start behind the eight ball, you rarely get back out in front.  

 I’ve seen too many in-house counsel stagnate and complain about a lack of opportunity, growth or a clear career path – make your own! In a law firm you have much better visibility on your career path and promotion timelines, etc. When you move in-house, much of that goes out the window. You must to make your own way and demonstrate your relevance and value-add.

Take on additional responsibilities and stretch yourself. Our careers can be short. I would rather try and fail than ultimately retire knowing that I underachieved and had more to give.