20 September 2010
The Lawyer
Bar horizons
British legal talent has always been exportable, albeit usually limited to silks, but the growth of many foreign economies has opened up the globe to a wider range of our home-grown barristers.
BarCap’s rise to prominence sees the top firms come a courting
M&A practices see Barclays Capital as a worthy investment, says Gavriel Hollander
Brick Court hires Hogarth barrister
Brick Court Chambers has added barrister Nicholas Saunders to its ranks.
CC, Milbank and Skadden score Permira telecom deal
Clifford Chance, Milbank Tweed Hadley McCloy and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom have landed the key roles on private equity house Permira’s acquisition of Asia Broadcast Satellite holding company Kingsbridge.
CC’s fast-track LPC adds to two-tier fears
Clifford Chance has become the latest firm to launch a fast-track LPC in a move that has heightened student fears of creating a two-tier training system for aspiring lawyers.
Colt deal expands BLP’s MLS stable
Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has signed its second five-year deal with a major client to manage its legal needs.
Crunch-busting magic circle ups fees by half
Despite being hit by the worst economic crisis in decades, magic circle partner fees have risen by more than 50 per cent in the past five years.
Dozens of small businesses suffer after Halliwells’ collapse
Documents leaked to The Lawyer have revealed the full extent of collapsed firm Halliwells’ creditors.
FFW lands Kazakh energy outfit’s North Sea stake
Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW) has advised Kazakhstan’s JSC KazMunaiGas Exploration Production (KMG EP) on its acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in North Sea oil and gas fields from BG Group.
Focus: Media law: Privacy on parade
Bindmans partner Tamsin Allen hopes to get to the bottom of the newspaper phone-hacking saga with a judicial review against the Metropolitan Police. She’s not the only one on a mission
Freshfields, Links and Eversheds oversee sale of 333 Mitchells pubs
Eversheds, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters have assisted on the sale of a string of pubs up and down the country by brewer Mitchells & Butlers to Stonegate Pub Company.
Inns’ ups and downs
The Chancery bar has shown its value and resilience during the recession and is in good shape to meet the challenges of the future.
Leading UK firms in French capital take 5 per cent hit in turnover stakes
UK firms’ Paris offices endured a disappointing 2009-10, with SJ Berwin suffering the biggest drop in turnover among the top 50 highest-earning firms, falling by 25.8 per cent to e21m (£17.4m).
Lord Bingham, 1933-2010
Lord Bingham of Cornhill, who died earlier this month at the age of 76, will be remembered by barristers and lawyers alike as the greatest English judge of the past century. He will also be fondly remembered by his friends at Fountain Court for his brilliant advocacy skills and mischievous sense of humour.
Macfarlanes instructed on Four Seasons debt restructure
Macfarlanes has claimed the prize role acting for longstanding client Four Seasons Health Care on the restructuring of £800m of debt.
Moore Blatch
Southampton-headquartered firm Moore Blatch bounced back last year after a period of severe belt-tightening. Turnover exceeded expectations by around £750,000 in 2009-10, rising by 12 per cent, from £13.5m to £15.1m.
Nabarro ditches isolationism for surprise Singapore launch
Nabarro is to open in Singapore later this year in what is a strategic U-turn for the previously UK-focused firm.
New whistleblowing legislation puts US regulators on the back foot
Dodd-Frank Act paves way for a slew of claims and new entrants to the market. By Matt Byrne
Opinion: Technology is key to implementing anti-bribery measures
At a time when multinationals may feel they have bribery under control - in accordance with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) - anti-bribery regulation has come back with a vengeance in the form of the UK Bribery Act 2010, which will come into force in April 2011.
Partner rates skyrocket at top firms despite economic gloom
Discounts dwindle as magic circle rates soar to over £700; rises across the board
People moves
DWF has appointed Ty Jones as head of values and corporate responsibility.
Sea worthy: Dominic Buckwell, GE SeaCo
GE SeaCo legal chief Dominic Buckwell takes a commercial approach to his job and a careful approach as to which firms he chooses to spend his significant legal budget on.
Silky skills
Despite a view of the Inns of Court as somewhat quaint, the modern barrister provides an unparalleled service to solicitors and their clients.
The billing bounce
So much for the pressure on pricing. ?So much for a paradigm shift in the business of law.
Thompsons reveals £17k Labour donation
Thompsons Solicitors donated £17,000 cash to the Labour Party in the two weeks before the May general election delivered a hung parliament.
Tulkinghorn: Scran scam
Tulkinghorn received a stark warning as to the dangers of eating at posh restaurants last week from a particularly irate City partner.
US firms enjoy improved fortunes in French market
Two-thirds of the top US firms in France saw their revenues rise last year and, according to research by Juristes Associés, a total of 12 US firms made it into the country’s top 50 firms by turnover in 2009-10.
Vive l’indépendance
With senior lawyers quitting the muscle outfits in France to do their own thing, the trend towards boutique firms is gathering pace, says James Swift
Will and Ted’s excellent adventure
Voting for the senior partner role at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer got underway this week, with partners at the firm finding it hard to separate the two candidates.
Withers adds partner to Russian practice
Withers has expanded its Russian practice with the hire of Hogan Lovells counsel Olga Boltenko, who joins the firm as a partner.
Work Life Quiz: Steen Rosenfalck, Miller Rosenfalck
What’s your favourite restaurant? Viet Ho, off Kingsland Road in Dalston.
XXIV Old Buildings signs up Appleby litigator
Appleby litigation senior associate Keith Robinson will join XXIV Old Buildings as a member of chambers next month.
