Baker & McKenzie and DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary are fighting it out to take control of Coudert Brothers. Coudert’s long-established Chinese practice remains the jewel in a depleted crown but the two firms are also keen on the firm’s Russian practice and the corporate practice in its New York headquarters. DLA Piper refused to […]
Lord Nicholas Phillips of Worth Matravers is to become the new Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales. He will take over the role from 1 October, replacing Lord Woolf following his planned retirement from the role at the end of September. Lord Justice Anthony Clarke will subsequently take over Lord Phillips’ current role as […]
Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom’s London office has shored up its relationship with private equity house Doughty Hanson by landing the lead role in the £1bn flotation of its UK food manufacturing arm RHM. Corporate partner Allan Murray-Jones is leading Skadden’s team on the floatation, which is planned for next month and will be […]
Bevan Brittan has reported a profit rise of 2.5 per cent for the last financial year, despite having seen revenues jump by one fifth. The interim results are the first for the firm since its split from Ashfords. The legacy Bristol, Birmingham and London arm of the former Bevan Ashford, has reported a 20 per […]
Linklaters property partner Sir Robert Finch is leaving the firm once more, this time to take-up the role of chairman of Liberty International, the FTSE 100 shopping centre company. Finch rejoined Linklaters in February after serving as Lord Mayor of the City of London during 2004. However, he will now officially retire from the firm’s […]
White & Case’s London head has stood down amid a comprehensive restructure of the firm’s London management. London chief operating partner Neil Upton resigned from the post effective from 31 May to spend more time on client work. He will continue in his role as head of the London energy practice. During his short tenure, […]
Swedish firm Vinge has announced the appointment of its first non-lawyer CEO to the Stockholm office. Bertil Hult will take over from the two existing managing partners, Fredrick von Baumgarten and Peter Morawetz, on 15 August 2005. The firm’s two other Swedish offices will continue to be managed by partners Olof Jisland and Peter Oscarsson. […]
Charles Russell is preparing to launch in Oxford at the same time as the firm is looking for new premises in London. The firm’s new Oxford office will officially open in two months. It will focus on information technology, bio-science, publishing and higher education. Corporate commercial partner Peter Elliott, who joined Charles Russell from Blake […]
Peter Charlton has emerged as Clifford Chance’s new global head of corporate. Voting closed today, which saw the London head defeat Italian managing partner Nick Wrigley in the firm’s first contested election for the post. Charlton takes over as corporate head from David Childs, who is now chief operating officer at the magic circle firm. […]
Ince & Co has appointed its first-ever business development partner. Offshore oil and gas specialist David Steward took up the role on 1 May.Steward, who plans to continue fee earning, said the firm recognised there had not been “sufficient harmony” in its attempts to raise the profile of its six core groups. “There needs to […]
The Law Society has appointed chairs for its two new boards, in preparation for the implementation of Sir David Clementi’s recommendations for the reform of legal regulation. Former Law Society president Peter Williamson becomes chair of the Regulation Board, which will oversee the policy and operations of the society’s regulatory function. Shamit Saggar, professor of […]
Blackstone Chambers’ David Pannick QC has been instructed by the Commission for Racial Equality to intervene on a high profile racial discrimination case against the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The Commission is intervening on behalf of an 81-year old widow, Diana Elias, who is bringing a claim against the MoD after it refused to pay […]