28 April 2008
The Lawyer
A&O appoints new banking chiefs
Allen & Overy (A&O) has appointed two new joint managing partners of its banking practice, after voting finished yesterday evening (30 April).
A&O bags £4bn HBOS rights issue
HBOS has called in magic circle firm Allen & Overy to advise on its £4bn rights issue.
A&O boss Morley falls victim to email scam
Allen & Overy's new senior partner David Morley has been targeted by email scammers looking to con money from unsuspecting recipients.
A&O counsel role boost for flexible workers
The opportunity to steer her legal career along a non-traditional path has been a positive experience for Allen & Overy (A&O) counsel Victoria Wells.
A&O creates new Abu Dhabi boss post
Allen & Overy (A&O) has elected Ibrahim Mubaydeen as new managing partner of its Abu Dhabi office.
A&O's BlackBerry patent win soured as costs inquest criticises hours tally
The backlash from A&O's £5.2m bill for work shows how you can win a court battle but lose the ensuing PR war.
Addleshaws damned for spam
Addleshaw Goddard has ruffled more than a few firms' feathers after touting for work off the back of the Office of Fair Trading's investigation into the construction industry.
AEG Live hikes legal team with promotion and BPI capture
Music promoter AEG Live, which has artists such as Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake on its books, has created the new role of general counsel and promoted one of its in-house lawyers to the position.
Anything you can do…
Last week Tulkinghorn reported on a team of CMS Cameron McKenna technology and media lawyers cycling to Paris and back for charity. It sounded tiring and difficult and reminded Tulkinghorn of something like hard work.
Asters woos two partners away from Kiev rivals
Ukrainian firm Asters has hired two partners from Kiev rivals Sergiy Koziakov & Partners, as the legal market in Ukraine heats up.
Attorney General: Lord Goldsmith: For the defence
He's put BAE Systems behind him, but the former Attorney-General Lord Goldsmith's new role with Debevoise & Plimpton finds him contemplating a return to the courtroom
baby talk
Linklaters litigation partner Tom Lidstrom may have a baby face but Tulkinghorn feels that one of the UK's leading private healthcare providers may have taken it a little too far.
Bird & Bird bucks trend with bumper pay rises
Bird & Bird bucks trend with bumper pay rises" /Bird & Bird has announced a 19 per cent jump in its first year trainee solicitor salaries at a time when other firms are looking to freeze pay rates.
BLG promotes record numbers to partnership
Barlow Lyde & Gilbert (BLG) has promoted a record eight of its associate directors to the partnership, with all but one being made up in London.
BLP makes up 13 to associate director
Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has promoted 13 lawyers to the role of associate director (AD), the largest number since the role was first created by the firm in 2006.
Bond life
When Tulkinghorn thinks of Travers Smith he imagines lawyers in their offices and meeting rooms poring over documents and doing deals. It is not an image that gets his blood pumping.
Bristows retains 100 per cent of trainees
Bristows has retained 100 per cent of its trainees this year, with all eight young lawyers accepting jobs at the IP firm.
Brodies promotes six to partnership
Scottish firm Brodies has promoted six associates to its partnership, bettering last year’s figure of five.
Brodies woos Semple Fraser partner
Scottish firm Brodies has bolstered its restructuring and insolvency practice with the hire of Semple Fraser partner Rachel Grant.
Browne Jacobson reports record year
Browne Jacobson has announced fee income of £35m - its highest turnover yet. The Midlands-based firm grew by 10 per cent on last year's turnover of £31.9m.
Burness raids DLA for Edinburgh construction duo
Scottish firm Burness has raided DLA Piper’s Edinburgh office for two construction partners, including one of the few remaining Bird Semple partners at the firm.
CEE rivals hunt Linklaters clients and staff
Firms in central and eastern Europe are gearing up to cherry pick Linklaters’ clients and lawyers, as the magic circle firm reviews six offices across the region.
Celia Gardiner: Watson Farley & Williams
Who would you least like to be stuck in a lift with and why?The person who shot Oscar Romero.
Chadbourne acts on Pepsi's russian buy
Chadbourne Parke and Clifford Chance are the main legal advisers on PepsiCo's $1.46bn (£730m) bid for control of Russia's leading juice company JSC Lebedyansky.
Charlotte: destination du jour
New York probably doesn't have to worry too much yet, but Charlotte is on the map now in a way it wasn't before. America’s second-largest financial centre is getting a reputation as the destination du jour for the world's more ambitious law firms.
Cleary bags Citigroup equity hat trick
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has advised on Citigroup's third equity offering so far this year.
Clifford Chance Italy promises no associate job cuts
Clifford Chance Italy has moved to reassure associates there will be no job losses as a result of the credit crunch.
Clifford Chance rejigs Paris management team
Clifford Chance Paris managing partner Yves Wehrli has been appointed for a third successive stint as office chief, while the French executive committee is reshuffled.
Clydes closes LA office for Frisco venture
Clyde & Co has closed its Los Angeles (LA) office and launched in San Francisco with a raid on US firm Duane Morris for a 10-lawyer litigation team.
Cobbetts loses property finance team after partner shake-up…
A five-strong property finance team has quit Cobbetts for Halliwells.
Cobbetts promotes property trio to partnership
Cobbetts has promoted three former directors to partner, all of them in the property department.
Davis Polk elects first London partner to management team
Davis Polk & Wardwell has elected London-based partner Tom Reid to the firm's three-member management committee.
Dentons helps builders create vision for London
Denton Wilde Sapte is playing its part in changing London's skyline, advising building company Newlands Enterprises on a development for the South Bank.
Dentons promotes second batch of 12
Dentons has promoted a group of 12 senior associates to the partnership for the second year running, bringing the total number of partners to 181.
Druces & Atlee becomes LLP
Druces & Attlee will convert to an LLP on 1 May this year, shortening its name to Druces LLP.
Edwards Angell prioritises Hong Kong and Tokyo launches
Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge (EAPD) is gearing up to open offices in Hong Kong and Japan just four months on from its merger with London firm Kendall Freeman.
Eversheds sues former client for £160K owed
Eversheds has launched a legal battle against a former client for almost £160,000 in unpaid fees.
Farrer, Mishcon change focus in partner rounds
Farrer & Co and Mishcon de Reya, two firms particularly well known for their private client practices, have snubbed the area in their partnership promotions.
FFW bags Eversheds franchising team; relaunches construction team
Field Fisher Waterhouse has snared three Eversheds franchising lawyers and is to relaunch construction.
Football League reviews insolvency policy after Wilberforce defeat
The Football League is reviewing its insolvency policy in the wake of Wilberforce Chambers having failed in its bid to claw back 15 points for Leeds United FC.
Four make partner at DWF
DWF has promoted four to the partnership in its Manchester office, bringing the total number of partners at the firm to 128.
Freeth makes up seven partners
Freeth Cartwright has promoted seven into the partnership, with six of those promotions in its Notttingham office. Mark Gradwell, Matthew Grocock, Atiyya Khaliq, Sophie Philippon-Thomas, Isobel Radford and Gillian Roberts will all join the real estate partnership, while Rena Magdani, a specialist in employment law, will join the firm's partnership in Leicester. It is the largest round of promotions the firm has made in a single year.
Freshfields advises German rail giant on privatisation and IPO
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer's Frankfurt office is advising German national rail operator Deutsche Bahn on its planned partial privatisation and IPO on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
Freshfields and BoE: rock solid?
Last year Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer parted company with its longest-standing client the Bank of England (BoE). Now it seems the pair have kissed and made up.
Freshfields becomes LLP
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has taken on LLP status, joining Hammonds for a 1 May conversion.
Freshfields 'superhero' O'Brien voted back into equity
Top M&A dealmaker Barry O'Brien is set to be voted back into the Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer equity partnership
Geoffrey Atkinson: Monarch Airlines
Flying isn’t the only thing that’s low-cost about Monarch Airlines. Thanks to group lawyer Geoffrey Atkinson, the company’s annual legal spend is a modest £50,000. By Kit Chellel
Gibson Dunn snares west coast partner from Heller
Gibson Dunn has hired securities litigator George Brown from Heller Ehrman as a partner in its Palo Alto office.
Gide London to switch to LLP
Gide Loyrette Nouel’s London office is set to covert to a limited liability partnership (LLP) from 1 May.
Hammonds bags Barclays funding mandate
Hammonds' Birmingham team has acted for Barclays Bank as funder to the private equity-backed management buyout of crisps manufacturer Tyrrells Potato Chips.
Hammonds converts to LLP
Hammonds has converted to Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) with effect from today (1 May 2008).
Hammonds is number one associate promoter
Hammonds is the top UK firm with the largest proportion of new joiners to the partnership this year, analysis by The Lawyer has revealed.
Herbert Smith freezes associate pay; makes 10 of counsel
Herbert Smith will not be increasing associate salaries this year, with pay levels for trainees, newly qualifieds and those with post-qualification experience (PQE) of one, two and three years remaining unchanged.
Hires see No5 become first to exceed 200 members
No5 Chambers has become the first set to pass the 200-member mark after adding five new recruits to its London office.
Judges' BAE ruling struck a vital blow for the rule of law
The High Court gave the Government a right good kicking a couple of weeks ago when it ruled that the Serious Fraud Office's (SFO) decision to drop the BAE Systems investigation was unlawful.
K&L Gates London raids Nabarro for tax partner
K&L Gates has boosted its London tax practice with the hire of partner Paul Beausang from Nabarro.
K&L Gates pencils in merger with Kennedy Covington
Charlotte-based firm Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman has announced it is in merger talks with K&L Gates.
Kitson Hutchings
In the last two years Kitson Hutchings has witnessed a sea change in its ability to attract new recruits from outside the South West. "We must be doing something right," says joint managing partner James Cross.
Lawyers live in hope that Eastern European PPP market matures
The economies of Eastern Europe and the CIS have emerged from decades of rigid state planning, leading to predictions that the private sector would win a raft of infrastructure work.
Legislative changes affecting socio-economics in the South West
The past decade has seen the implementation of a number of legislative changes which have significantly altered socio-economics within the English countryside. Here Robin Beckley at south-west law firm Rickerbys, looks at the challenges faced by solicitors practicing in this field and highlights the importance of understanding ...
LG evacuated as flood hits South Bank
LG was flooded after a burst water main caused havoc at its new state of the art south bank home at More London Riverside this week.
LG outsources company secretarial work
LG has outsourced its company secretarial department to accountancy firm Whale Rock.
Linklaters salaries fail to match inflation
Linklaters.jpg" alt="Linklaters salaries fail to match inflation" /Linklaters has announced a below inflation salary increase for its London associates, with an average pay hike of 2.5 per cent, The Lawyer can reveal.
LSB's first chair promises 'world-class' standard
In his first interview since being appointed as the first chair of the Legal Services Board ;(LSB), ;David Edmonds has vowed that the new regulator will be a "world-class agency".
Management overhaul creates seven new posts at Doughty Street Chambers
Doughty Street Chambers has undergone a massive management shake-up, creating seven new posts and putting a brand new structure in place.
Manchester United appoints first legal panel
Manchester United has launched its first legal panel, signing up five firms for a two-year term.
Matthew Arnold hikes partnership
South East firm Matthew Arnold & Baldwin has made up three partners. The firm has increased its partnership to 32 with the appointment of Amanda Melton in the family and contentious probate practice, Mark Tempest in the insolvency practice and Craig Harrison in corporate. Jackie Hanlon has been appointed as director of mortgage and debt recovery.
Middle East
As the UK economy skids to a downturn, the Gulf is providing a potential counter-balance through inward investment from sovereign wealth funds.
Moves: Round-up
Jones Day has hired Laurent Assaya as of counsel in its Paris Office. Assaya joins from Fried Frank and will head the business restructuring and reorganisation practice.
Nabarro seals Appeal Court victory in Coal Authority competition case
Nabarro has secured a Court of Appeal judgment dismissing claims that the Coal Authority acted in an anticompetitive manner.
New head at 9 Gough Sq vows modernisation
John Foy QC has stepped down as the head of chambers at 9 Gough Square, handing over the reins to newly made-up silk Grahame Aldous QC, who has pledged to continue modernising the set.
Norton Rose promotions drop by a third
Norton Rose promotions drop by a third" /Norton Rose has promoted 16 associates to its partnership, a drop of 30 per cent compared to last year when the firm made up 23.
O'Brien takes reins at Freshfields corporate group
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer partner Barry O'Brien has taken over responsibility for one of the firm's four core corporate groups, replacing Mark Rawlinson, who is now overall head of corporate.
O'Melveny in disarray as UK dream goes sour
O'Melveny & Myers' London office is in turmoil after underinvestment by the firm's Los Angeles (LA) hub prompted the exit of a fifth of its partners.
O'Melveny's strategy flaw
Just a couple of years after its fanfared relaunch in London, LA firm O'Melveny & Myers is looking rather depleted. Was there anything more predictable?
Orange's UK panel firms put on notice
Telecoms giant Orange UK is set to revamp its roster of legal advisers in its first panel review for three years.
PARTNERSHIP 2008: Stephenson Harwood: veterans day?
How many associates did Stephenson Harwood make up to partnership? It¹s not as easy a question as it appears.
PARTNERSHIP 2008: The Verdict
As our two partnership stories today reveal, it is not magic circle firms that have emerged as the most favourable for associates hoping to make the partnership.
Partnership 2008: stats revealed
Partnership 2008 Table
Pinsents to pioneer £5K bonus plan for trainees
Pinsent Masons has shrugged off the depressed economic climate to launch the first-ever bonus scheme for trainees.
Pinsents wastes no time in bagging third PFI deal
Accountancy firm Pannel Kerr Foster (PKF) helped Pinsent Masons bag an instruction from a new entrant into the waste PFI market - the family-owned Donarbon.
Promotions go global as firms aim to diversify their offerings
As promotion rounds go, this year's has been notable for two main reasons: first, that firms in general have made up fewer partners than they did last year; and second, that the promotions have been made across a wide number of countries and practice areas.
Quinn Emanuel hunts barristers for City launch
US?litigation?firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges is looking to recruit barristers as well as solicitors to staff its nascent City office.
Reed Smith drops names early
The Reed Smith network will unite all its offices under the Reed Smith name on 1 May, with Richards Butler being dropped from the firm's European brand.
Revealed: mid-market best for female promotions
Women are more likely to make the partnership at mid-market and silver circle firms, analysis of partnership promotions at the UK’s top 20 firms by The Lawyer reveals today.
Scotland: Border crossings
Scottish firms may be divided on the question of alternative business structures and expansion into the wider UK market, but the advent of the Legal Services Bill in England and Wales is prompting calls for a level playing field
Sharia scholars' boards
The growth of sharia-compliant Islamic finanical institutions is making them a force to be reckoned with. But industry regulators say there is a need to clarify the role of sharia scholars' boards.
Shearman ditches global GC in rejig
Shearman & Sterling has made its global general counsel redundant as it continues to cut costs as part of a major reorganisation.
Shearman NQ salaries shoot up to £80k
Shearman & Sterling is the first firm in the City to announce annual pay increases for trainees and associates with newly-qualified lawyers now earning £80,000.
Shearman's three musketeers target Asia, Europe, US finance clients
Shearman & Sterling has reorganised its global financial institutions practice with the appointment of three local partners to coordinate an attack on financial institutions in Asia, Europe and the US respectively.
Simpson Thacher scoops $23bn chewing gum deal for Mars
Sixteen per cent fees surge sees Gide Loyrette pass €250m mark
Leading French independent firm Gide Loyrette Nouel has posted record results for 2007, hitting the e250m (£197.79m) mark for the first time.
Sovereign rights
After running to Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds for help, the West is now calling for regulation. Hypocrisy is an understatement.
SRA calls for more lawyer feedback
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has issued a plea for more engagement from the profession after receiving limited responses to four key consultations.
Stephenson Harwood makes up four to partner
Stephenson Harwood has made up four partners this year, with an extra one each promoted in the firm’s Singapore local partnership and Asia joint-venture Stephenson Harwood & Lo.
Sweet sixteen: Allen & Overy
Star practices/peopleAllen & Overy (A&O) was one of the first UK firms to target the senior lender market in the early 1990s and did so with the greatest success. And for years that has defined its place in the UK market. It has also ...
Sweet Sixteen: Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
Star practices/peopleCleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has been dedicated to developing a strong transatlantic offering, with a focus on private equity and finance, for years. Having launched a UK law capability in London in 1997, the...
Sweet Sixteen: Clifford Chance
Star practices/peopleClifford Chance – almost as big in New York as Cravath Swaine & Moore, even if its RPL lags behind – is best known for corporate and banking.It may not rival Slaughter and May when it comes to FTSE100 clients, b...
Sweet Sixteen: Cravath Swaine & Moore
Star practices/peopleThe closest to a Slaughter and May equivalent in the US, blueblood Cravath’s focus is on quality not quantity. The firm deserves its inclusion in the Sweet Sixteen for its transactional practice alone (where bedr...
Sweet Sixteen: Davis Polk & Wardwell
Star practices/peopleA top six Wall Street firm, Davis Polk & Wardwell is arguably under the most pressure in its peer group. Its growth over the past five years has lagged significantly behind that of its peers, most of which have bi...
Sweet Sixteen: Debevoise & Plimpton
Star practices/peopleDebevoise & Plimpton stunned the US market earlier this year when The Lawyer reported its 2007 financial results. These showed a 23.5 per cent rise in revenue (to £355m) and a 27.2 per cent rise in average profit p...
Sweet Sixteen: Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Star practices/peopleWith a raft of names such as former corporate head Tim Jones, his successor Mark Rawlinson, Will Lawes, Ed Braham and David Higgins on the department’s roster, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is all but guaranteed...
Sweet Sixteen: Kirkland & Ellis
Star practices/peopleKirkland & Ellis is the sole Chicago-headquartered firm to make it into the Sweet Sixteen. Known as a brutally tough private equity machine, its clients include Bain, Apax, CCMP Capital, CVC and TowerBrook Capital....
Sweet Sixteen: Latham & Watkins
Star practices/peopleLatham & Watkins, once happy to be known as a West Coast firm, is now one of the most significant firms in New York and, indeed, the world. There are still some on Wall Street who dispute this, but Latham, originally propelled by its strength in high-yield, has arrived.
Sweet Sixteen: Linklaters
Star practices/peopleThe 200-partner corporate group is the central nervous system at Linklaters. It has grown to epic proportions since the firm’s pioneering attitude on the 1999 hostile bid for Mannesmann by Vodafone. The deal marked the firm’s global expansion into M&A.
Sweet Sixteen: Linklaters
Star practices/peopleThe 200-partner corporate group is the central nervous system at Linklaters. It has grown to epic proportions since the firm’s pioneering attitude on the 1999 hostile bid for Mannesmann by Vodafone. The deal marked the firm’s global expansion into M&A.
Sweet Sixteen: Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Star practices/peopleThe foundations of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett’s recent success are built on its rock-solid relationships with key Fortune 100 companies plus, of course, private equity giants Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and the Blackstone Group.
Sweet Sixteen: Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom
Star practices/peopleSkadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom is the ultimate M&A machine. In comparison with, say, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Skadden is focused more on corporates than private equity firms, but its ranks of corporate relationships and extensive ...
Sweet Sixteen: Slaughter and May
Star practices/peopleThink Slaughter and May, think corporate. Think Slaughters corporate, think Nigel Boardman, Chris Saul, Frances Murphy, William Underhill, Steve Cooke…
Sweet Sixteen: Sullivan & Cromwell
Star practices/peopleSullivan & Cromwell was founded on the premise of securing involvement in the world’s top deals, an ambition helped immeasurably by it long being Goldman Sachs’s law firm of choice.
Sweet Sixteen: Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz
Star practices/peopleWith just one office and 200 lawyers, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz is the odd one out among the Sweet Sixteen. But by sheer force of will the firm has maintained its position as home to the pre-eminent domestic US M&A practice.
Sweet Sixteen: Weil Gotshal & Manges
Star practices/peopleWeil Gotshal & Manges has earned its place in the Sweet Sixteen by building a leading private equity practice in London and New York as well as maintaining its reputation in restructuring and bankruptcy in the US.
Taskforce tackles legal carbon footprints
The Law Society and 18 large law firms are launching a taskforce to encourage the entire UK legal profession to take action on climate change.
Taylor Wessing promotes bumper crop to partner
Taylor Wessing promotes bumper crop to partner" /Taylor Wessing has promoted a bumper crop of partners this year, with 19 getting the nod compared to 11 last year.
The nuclear option
As Middle Eastern economies boom, energy resources are becoming depleted. Nuclear power could be the answer
Thompsons swallows trade union powerhouse
Personal injury powerhouse Thompsons is to take over eight-partner firm Whittles, which has offices in Leeds and Manchester, from the 1 May.
TLT promotes duo to partnership
South West firm TLT Solicitors has promoted two partners.
Travers Smith appoints new private equity chief
Travers Smith partner Phil Sanderson is to take over responsibility for the firm's private equity group from incumbent Charles Barter, who steps down from the role in July after five years.
US quartet scoops airline mega-merger
Four US firms have won lead roles on the Delta Airlines and Northwest Airlines merger.
Watson Burton acquires IT boutique for London push
Watson Burton acquires IT boutique for London push" /Newcastle's Watson Burton has taken over a Surrey-based IT commercial boutique to boost its nascent London offering.
Watson Farley promotes nine to partner
Watson, Farley & Williams has promoted nine to the partnership, with the largest single number - five - being made up in London.
Web week
The Lawyer's Web Week is a weekly commentary on legal activity on the web. This includes an overview of the best of the week's blogs. If you want to direct us to useful links, email webweek@thelawyer.com.
Where there's a Wil...
Where there's a Wil... 02-May-2008Monday's news of Manchester United's first law firm panel was the most popular story on The Lawyer.com this week.
Wilberforce fails to rescue league points for Leeds Utd
Wilberforce Chambers has failed in its bid to claw back the 15 points Leeds United was deducted by the Football League for failing to follow the League's insolvency rules.
Wragges' Brum deal's a done deal
Wragge & Co signed terms on a shiny new HQ in the centre of Birmingham last week - the largest pre-let in the city by a factor of two.
