From bumper pay cheques to internal politics and an extremely competitive lateral recruitment market, 2024 hasn’t been short of legal headlines.
But what do partners really think about what’s been happening? Here are some of Team LB‘s favourite anonymous quotes of the year, from partners who weren’t afraid to speak their mind. Continue reading “‘$20m isn’t much once you deduct the essentials’ – LB’s best quotes of the year”
From high-profile managing partners to leading GCs and barristers, the LB team interviewed dozens of the leading names in law about everything from mental health, to women in law to strategy in 2024. Here are our most popular interviews of the year.
The Private Equity Elite: Meet all the top general counsel in PE
What does it take to run the legal team at the world’s most profitable deal shops? Georgina Stanley and Cameron Purse spoke to 24 of the top London private equity GCs to find out about how they built their careers and how they thrive in the notoriously tough and hectic world of private equity.
This July marked Richard Youle’s first year as Skadden London head – Elisha Juttla spoke to him about scaling up, breaking down strategies, and fostering ‘Skadden Spirit’.
LB Management Partner of the Year Wim Dejonghe on mergers, money and his plans for life after law
This September, Wim Dejonghe was named Management Partner of the Year at the Legal Business Awards, capping off a distinguished 23-year career at Allen & Overy ahead of the firm’s merger with Shearman & Sterling – revisit Alex Ryan’s exclusive interview with Dejonghe on mergers, money, and his future plans.
Kirkland & Ellis’ Sara Pickersgill on trading opera for infrastructure law – Harry Vercoe caught up with her this January to discuss everything from career changes to why The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe holds key lessons for every City lawyer.
Vinson & Elkins London head Nick Henchie on mental health, seeking support, and supporting the next generation of lawyers – Elisha Juttla spoke to him for Mental Health Awareness Week about recognising struggles and the importance of openness in the legal profession.
Freshfields’ Mark Sansom on motorsports, email gaffes and competing on the global stage
Freshfields London managing partner Mark Sansom on motorsports, email blunders, and competing on the global stage – Georgina Stanley sat down with him this September to discuss his passion for racing, the lessons learned from turning down Oxford, and the importance of owning up to mistakes.
Life During Law: Richard Lever
Goodwin private equity partner Richard Lever on The Godfather, Jürgen Klopp’s leadership, and why disco’s still his jam – Legal Business caught up with him this February to talk career twists, unforgettable deals, and what makes him tick outside of law.
Life During Law: Scott Hopkins
Skadden corporate heavyweight Scott Hopkins recently hung up his skates after a long career at the US firm – Alex Ryan spoke to him in April about his journey from the hockey rink to the world of law, how martial arts shaped his approach to deals, and why timing, strategy, and a good tune were key to his success.
Ed Barnett this year took the reins as Latham & Watkins’ new City head – Anna Huntley caught up with him to talk about surviving partner exits, revving up recruitment, and how he plans to keep Latham ahead of the game in London’s high-stakes legal race.
‘We have a remit to build’- ex-Latham team open up on Sidley’s bold City lev-fin play
In their first interview since leaving Latham & Watkins, Jayanthi Sadanandan and Sam Hamilton spoke to Elisha Juttla in October about their plans to transform Sidley Austin’s leveraged finance practice into a powerhouse for private equity clients.
‘Doubling down’: CC’s London PE head sets out strategy as buyout partners predict uptick
Spencer Baylin stepped up as Clifford Chance’s new London private equity head in December following Christopher Sullivan’s high-profile exit – Elisha Juttla caught up with him in March to discuss his vision, doubling down on client relationships, and plans to grow the team as the PE market heats up.
In September, Hg GC Samantha McGonigle spoke to Georgina Stanley about her journey from private practice to in-house, the fast-paced challenges of private equity, and the importance of building a strong network.
‘I work with the best M&A lawyers in the world’ – Carlyle’s Heather Mitchell
In September, Heather Mitchell, Carlyle’s global GC for Investments, sat down with Georgina Stanley and Cameron Purse to chat about steering her powerhouse M&A and risk team. As Carlyle scales up, Heather revealed how creativity, collaboration, and thinking outside the box are her secret weapons for handling growth.
From a mining town to City partner, Greenberg Traurig’s Kathryn Garbett spoke to Elisha Juttla about overcoming gender bias, championing the next generation of women in law, balancing motherhood, and navigating a male-dominated legal world.
‘There are not many cases like this’ – the lawyers in Olympic boxer Imane Khelif’s corner
In a case that sparked a global debate on gender and eligibility, this year Withers represented Olympic boxer Imane Khelif. Tom Cox spoke with Libby Payne about representing Khelif pro bono after her disqualification from the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships, while also discussing the need for clearer, fairer policies to protect athletes’ rights and privacy.
‘A PE firm is one of the most interesting places for an in-house lawyer’ – Cinven GC Babett Carrier
Georgina Stanley and Cameron Purse spoke to Babett Carrier this September about her journey from private practice to GC at Cinven, why private equity is the ultimate destination for in-house lawyers, and how she leads with a focus on risk, teamwork, and a passion for business.
Life During Law – Simon Levine
Simon Levine is handing over the baton as managing partner at DLA after a decade in the top role – Anna Huntley spoke to him this October about his leadership style, ripping up scripts and how running a law firm is a lot like running a mafia crew — without the killing.
Life During Law – Penny Angell
Elisha Juttla sat down with Hogan Lovells UK managing Penny Angell in October to discuss her love for negotiation, her evolving leadership style, and the time she picked beer over shoes in a high-stakes deal.
Following the announcement of Herbert Smith Freehills’ proposed merger with Kramer Levin, CEO Justin D’Agostino spoke to Anna Huntley about the deal’s strategic edge, its impact on HSF’s global reach, and why more mergers could be on the horizon.
‘Non-binary people aren’t going away, no matter how much hate is expressed towards us’
In June, Oscar Davies, the first openly non-binary barrister, spoke to Amy Ulliott about breaking barriers, the challenges of being a role model, the importance of allies, and why equal rights should be seen as complementary, not conflicting.
Bankim Thanki KC on epic trials, great movies and clients doing a runner
Fountain Court’s Bankim Thanki KC spoke to Alex Ryan in April about his journey, epic trials, the lessons learned along the way, and why, despite over two decades in silk, he still saw his legal career as ‘extended work experience.’
‘I liken myself to an octopus with many tentacles in different places’ – Apollo’s Seda Yalcinkaya
In September, Apollo’s GC Seda Yalçinkaya, one of the lawyers named in LB’s Private Equity Elite, discussed balancing high-stakes deals, managing multiple roles, and pushing for diversity, particularly for working mothers.
‘With an open checkbook, they’ll likely target top talent’ – Davis Polk London scale-up turns heads
Breaking into the lateral hiring war, Davis Polk recently made waves in London with four new partner hires in just six months. In November, Anna Huntley caught up with the firm’s senior leadership to discuss their strategy for attracting top talent, ramping up private capital, and reshaping the firm’s presence in the City.
Richard Medd’s tenure as Browne Jacobson managing partner began in the spring of 2020, amid the chaos of the early months of Covid. While many would view such timing as unfortunate, Medd sees it differently: ‘Looking back, there were advantages to starting at that time. The whole world was starting again, which gave me a chance to implement my ideas.’
Continue reading “Moving up the food chain: Browne Jacobson on rapid growth and remaining inclusive”
‘As a firm, we are driven, ambitious and innovative, and we thrive in competitive markets like London,’ says Latham & Watkins’ new City head Ed Barnett, as he sits down to discuss his first 100 days in the role and his vision for the future of the office.
Since taking over from Stephen Kensell in September, Barnett – who joined the US firm from Allen & Overy eight years ago – has had his hands full; juggling not only his M&A practice and new leadership role but also managing an out-of-character knock to Latham’s London play – a series of high-profile partner exits.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif made headlines around the world when her Olympic bout against Italy’s Angela Carini ended after just 46 seconds, prompting a heated public debate about gender and eligibility in women’s boxing.
Khelif had been permitted to fight at the Olympics despite being disqualified from the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in March 2023, after the IBA claimed she had not met the female category eligibility criteria.
Carini’s post-fight comments about Khelif’s strength, combined with renewed media interest in the earlier disqualification, sparked a culture war frenzy, with everyone from Elon Musk to the UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls weighing in on the controversy.
Behind the scenes, a multidisciplinary team from Withers, led by Milan-based sports head Luca Ferrari and including London employment and sports specialist Libby Payne and disputes partner Andrew Fremlin-Key, had been working pro bono for Khelif for many months, helping her to challenge her disqualification.
Legal Business caught up with Payne (pictured) to discuss working with an athlete caught in the eye of a storm.
When did you start working with Imane Khelif?
We started working with Imane in March 2023, just after she was disqualified from the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships. One of Imane’s managers knew our head of sports, Luca Ferrari – when this issue came up, he knew he needed a really good sports lawyer, and so he picked up the phone to Luca and asked us to help. We were only too happy to oblige.
Are you free to give your opinion on the on the IBA disqualification?
At the point at which Imane was disqualified, there were no rules about gender in qualification or eligibility criteria and there was certainly no testing protocol or well-defined policy such as the one World Athletics has. I would describe the decision to exclude someone without having a policy in place as being very open to challenge.
What is it like having such a high-profile client?
It’s not an unusual situation for us to have high-profile clients who are under the media glare, but I don’t think I’ve had a client who’s had the same amount of coverage for such a sustained period as Imane did. Whenever we advise a high-profile client, we are aware of the potential for press intrusion and that is a factor we take into account when advising.
Do you have any issues with Imane’s press coverage?
The big thing that I think people have misunderstood is the difference between an individual whose gender or sex has been questioned, who it’s reported has either chromosomal or hormonal differences, and someone who is transgender. The two issues are both complex, but they’re very different, and I think that conflating those two completely separate issues has been really unhelpful because they need different approaches and different considerations.
What is your opinion on some of the commentary surrounding the case?
I do think that some of the things that have been said about her really shouldn’t have been said. There’s been a lot that was ill-informed, and I think there’s a lot of people who perhaps if they had a full understanding of what happened, would probably really regret what they had said. There’s so much focus now on protecting athletes and their mental health. And for whatever reason, that all seems to have gone out of the window.
Do you think there will be a clear-cut resolution to cases like this?
That’s difficult to answer. Do I think governing bodies will need to have a think about how they deal with situations where there are questions raised about the gender of a competitor and potential differences in sex development (DSDs)? I think they probably do need to have an answer to that question, at least in terms of how they respond to those questions even if not a policy or criteria. Will that be the same answer across all sports? I’m not sure it will be.
At the moment, the only sport I’ve seen with what I would call a comprehensive policy is World Athletics. You may or may not agree with the rules it contains, but it is comprehensive. The new IBA policy isn’t comprehensive at all – I think it’s a couple of sentences.
Do you think this case will lead to a greater understanding of the issues involved?
Perhaps the biggest disappointment of the whole thing is that we’ve seen athletes in a similar position before. Everyone knows about what happened to Caster Semenya, and there’s a whole range of other athletes who have faced similar issues. For me, there were a lot of lessons that really could have been learned from those cases about how to treat athletes who are subject to such questions about their gender and eligibility. It’s shame that we need to have more women go through this type of situation in order for people to listen.
Conducting tests or procedures without consent and outing someone in quite a public way (e.g. at an event, as has happened before) is not how these things should be done. There are absolutely better ways of approaching these issues. To have athlete’s private medical information discussed in the newspapers feels very intrusive.
Has Withers handled any similar cases to Khelif’s?
We do a lot on the equality and discrimination side, and those issues are quite common through a lot of what we do. I think Imane’s case is pretty, but not exclusively, unique. There are not many cases like this.
Does Withers often do pro bono work with athletes?
We do a lot of pro bono sports work, and we probably don’t talk about it enough. In the sport space, you’ve got this dichotomy between doing fantastic work for professional footballers and other high-profile, well-remunerated clients. But at the other end of sport, you’ve got Olympic athletes who don’t get paid anything and need grants to fund their training, but who have complex and interesting legal matters that can alter the course of their career. I tend to have one sports pro bono matter at any moment in time.
How did you get into sports law?
I’ve always loved sports. For many years I was a fencer and I also love cycling, I love tennis, and I volunteered at the Olympics in Athens for three weeks. So, it’s always been my passion. The wonderful thing about Withers is that it’s very entrepreneurial. When I started here 11 years ago, my boss, employment head Meriel Schindler, asked me: ‘What do you really like? I said, ‘I really love sports’. And she said, ‘let’s try and find you some sports work, and you can grow the practice in that area’. And that is what’s happened.
Are all the team into sports?
We’re all really into sports and talk about it all the time. We’ve all got different things that we can bring to the party. London employment associate Lana Armstrong is a big netball player. Milan senior associate Stella Riberti and our practice head Luca are both really keen on sports, and I should also mention Littleton Chambers barrister Lydia Banerjee, who worked with us on this matter. She’s also very passionate about sport and also worked pro bono. For counsel that’s a big thing to do, and I’m very grateful to her for giving her time.
Legal 500 Hall of Famer Satnam Tumani, previously head of the SFO’s anti-corruption and bribery unit and a longstanding partner at Kirkland & Ellis, recently moved to boutique firm Edmonds Marshall McMahon. He spoke to LB about his brief to build a new practice, the contrasts between Big Law and boutique law, and his nostalgia for the days of letter-writing
Sidley Austin private equity partner Lyndsey Laverack on changing attitudes towards mental health in the legal profession and how women are making inroads into practice areas traditionally dominated by men
Legal Business (LB): Looking at the finances of the firm over the past five years, you are one of the LB100’s top performers. What’s the secret?
John Joyce, managing partner, Addleshaw Goddard: We’ve always had a good business. It lost its way, undoubtedly, and all we’ve done is refocus our efforts. We reintroduced focus on what the firm needed to be doing: international growth, quality work, the clients we look after and deliver in a proper way for, a sector approach… it was just bringing them all together. Continue reading “The Addleshaws Interview – The rebound guy”
The office has made a series of bold lateral hires in the last three years. What is behind this?
Suhrud Mehta (SM), co-London managing partner, Milbank: At one level you could say it has been bold and at another level you could say it just made perfect sense for us to make these moves in areas in which the firm has historically been strong. Until the right people came along, we were not prepared to take the plunge. Taking capital markets first, the focus there was to combine the strong reputation we have in leveraged finance with an equally strong capital markets practice that existed at Shearman & Sterling under Apostolos Gkoutzinis. To take a big slug of that and bolt it on to our existing leveraged finance business here was a very powerful thing to do. The combination has been electric. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Taking the plunge”
Richard King (RK), managing partner, Stevens & Bolton: I’m in my third year as managing partner and speaking as a manager, rather than a litigator, the highlight is our ongoing evolution. There’s a real sense that we’ve never stood still, and yet, for all that we’ve evolved, the foundations have been there from the beginning. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Punching above weight”
‘I mistakenly thought severe anxiety was a good thing’ – Vinson’s London head on opening up about mental health
‘We know which lanes we want to run in’: Latham’s new City chief on pay, practice priorities and partner moves
‘Co-founding an investment firm was the biggest learning curve of my career’ – Hg GC Samantha McGonigle
‘As the only woman in the room, I would be asked to pour the tea’ – how legal life has changed for women