12 September 2011
The Lawyer
Axa tie-ups spark Asia-Pacific panel rejig
Axa has kicked off a review of its Asia-Pacific legal panel following April’s $13bn (£8.14bn) tie-up deal between Axa Asia Pacific, Australian wealth manager AMP and French insurer Axa SA.
Bakers seals Chinese buy of Brazilian metals outfit
Baker & McKenzie has advised a consortium of five Chinese companies on its acquisition of a $1.95bn (£1.2bn) stake in leading Brazilian metals company Companhia Brasileira de Metalurgia e Mineracao (CBMM).
Birmingham Council lands NHS panel spot
Birmingham City Council’s legal department has become the latest public sector team to boost its income with external work after landing places on at least three panels of a new NHS legal framework.
Clydes forced to reveal contact details of Ablyazov fraud client
Clyde & Co has been ordered by the High Court to disclose the contact details of a client who was found to be in contempt of court and in breach of asset disclosure orders.
Combined Welsh councils unveil new-look panels
Beachcroft, Bevan Brittan, Cobbetts and Weightmans were the key winners on two major public sector legal panels in Wales.
Eversheds helps Amber Green to helm of green energy fund
Eversheds has advised the Amber Green Consortium on its appointment to manage the £100m London Energy Efficiency Fund (LEEF) on behalf of the Mayor’s London Green Fund (LGF).
FBC Manby Bowdler
It is three years since West Midlands firms FBC Solicitors and Manby Steward Bowdler joined forces and a post-merger restructuring is finally starting to pay off.
Focus: Social mobility - Prime target
City firms are putting their clout behind the first profession-wide scheme to offer work experience to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. But the vision doesn’t end there - the next step is to take it to the nation
Market update
With wide-ranging legal reforms on the table, the Irish profession is set for a shake-up, says Joanne Harris
Mishcon bags FFW, Travers duo
Mishcon de Reya has boosted its partnership with the addition of Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW) IP partner Lewis Cohen and Travers Smith banking partner Michael Bardell.
Move closer
The opening of the Rolls Building could lead to closer cooperation between court divisions, predicts Bridget Lucas
National Grid sparks offenders’ creativity
Thousands of struggling writers dream of this. After months of swigging endless cups of coffee, tapping away ferociously on your computer while precariously bouncing a small child on your lap - your first book hits the virtual shelves of Amazon and becomes an overnight sensation.
Ogier secures first ILP on Jersey for Invescap
Offshore firm Ogier has advised real estate investment company Invescap Holdings on the establishment of the first-ever Jersey incorporated limited partnership (ILP).
On the move
Mark Adams has joined the London office of McClure Naismith as a new partner in the firm’s property unit.
Primed for life
There aren’t many feelgood stories in the law, but the Prime initiative is definitely one of them.
Reform tops Russia and CIS debate agenda
Regulatory reform is top of the agenda for lawyers and their clients across the CIS region at the moment, as the continued strength of the local economy is keeping inbound and outbound investment high.
SJ Berwin scores Dubai partner with Clydes swoop
SJ Berwin has raided Clyde & Co’s Middle East practice to hire partner Hamish Walton in Dubai.
Slaughters puts emphasis on China after chief’s exit
Slaughter and May has rejigged its Greater China practice as veteran finance partner George Goulding retires.
Social worker: Michelle Kennedy, Badoo
Michelle Kennedy, head of legal at social networking site Badoo, thrives on the legislative and global challenges of the growing business. By Caroline Butcher
Sprecher close to Martineau merger
Martineau and Sprecher Grier Halberstam are edging closer to a merger deal as partners prepare to cast their votes this month.
Stuck in the middle
Mid-tier law firms in Ireland have had to react quickly to the financial crisis to stay afloat. Joanne Harris reports
Taking a chance
Recent case law provides helpful advice for litigation funders in weighing up the risks of taking on a case, say John Wardell QC and Andrew Mold
The light stuff
A recent rights to light case demonstrated how property rights are treated differently than contractual rights. John McGhee QC reports
Trowers down to one associate in Saudi office
Just days after Trowers & Hamlins announced Abdullah Mutawi as its new strategic head for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the firm has admitted it is down to one secondee associate in its ailing Saudi Arabia office.
Tulkinghorn: Sandal bearers
SJ Berwin partners were clearly making a nostalgic revelation about their school days when the firm decided to opt for the slogan ’SJB H RE’ as part of a branding onslaught.
UK litigators cash in on rise in international work
Official court statistics for England and Wales showed a drop in the number of claims filed in the High Court last year, and a drop in the number of days sat by High Court judges.
When it comes to pay, women must push equality issue
New research by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has found that the gender pay gap for female executives has grown this year and that on current figures it will take almost 100 years for women executives to catch up with the pay of their male peers - 50 years longer than reported a year ago.
Wilson Sonsini spearheads US charge to increase muscle in Brussels
US firms are beefing up their presence in Brussels in a bid to provide antitrust expertise for clients on both sides of the Atlantic.
Work Life Quiz: Richard Kenyon, Field Fisher Waterhouse
What was your first-ever job? On a small production line in our next-door neighbour’s garage, making cardboard tops for buckets of washing powder. These days it would be called child labour, but back then it was called pocket money.
