4 July 2011
The Lawyer
Analysis on Parabis: Opening Gambit
It’s bigger than BLG, it’s bigger than Kennedys and it’s grown from zero to £100m in a decade - how Parabis Law is remodelling the legal insurance sector
Battle for students as LPC take-up dwindles
Enrolments on the LPC have plummeted across the market, with the University of Huddersfield seeing a 68 per cent drop in student numbers for the 2010-11 academic year.
Bitter aftertaste
After-the-event insurance is changing, and it is the smaller cases that will suffer the most.
CC rallies the troops for massive Asian onslaught
Strategy aims to double Asia and Australasia turnover by 2014
Cederquist
Cederquist is not scared by competition. Rather, if there are any new arrivals into Sweden’s legal scene, the firm takes the opportunity to evaluate its own performance. “Competition makes you better,” says managing partner Jens Tillqvist.
City trio sets nations on road to recovery with bond issue advice
Allen & Overy (A&O) has advised on European bond offerings in Romania, Latvia and Iceland, representing the start of a financial recovery for the three countries.
CMS Eversheds flirt alert
At the end of last week an excellent new rumour hit town: that Eversheds and CMS Cameron McKenna were in merger talks to create a £580m firm.
European Awards: firms of all sizes in the running
Niche practices are battling it out with Europe’s largest firms for this year’s European Awards.
Eversheds muscles in on SNR Sierra Leone power project
Eversheds and SNR Denton have scored top roles advising on Sierra Leone’s first independent power project.
Flat fees and lower fees: study reveals trends among Spain’s in-house lawyers
Spanish in-house counsel are rejecting hourly rates in favour of tough negotiation over fixed fees, an academic study has found.
Former Skype GC joins Living Social
The former general counsel of Skype has taken up a new in-house role at consumer deals website Living Social.
Hogan Lovells strengthens bonds in Zimbabwe
Hogan Lovells has won a new client, advising the co-arrangers of Zimbabwe’s first bond issue since the suspension of the Zimbabwe dollar in 2009.
Kirkland, White & Case lead on Securitas sale
Kirkland & Ellis and White & Case snatched key roles advising on EQT Funds’ SEK21 (£2.04m) sale of security products maker Securitas Direct to a private equity consortium.
Little big country
Luxembourg might not be the biggest country in Europe, but with an influx of new law firms it is nevertheless riding high. Joanne Harris reports
LPC classes empty as dynamic duo corner market
It is no great secret that the LPC market has in recent years been dominated by BPP Law School and the College of Law (CoL).
Magic circle loses out in Barclays’ panel rejig
Magic circle firms have had their positions on Barclays’ legal panel reduced drastically following a radical shake-up of its roster.
ON THE MOVE
Media boutique Wiggin has launched a trademark filing practice, hiring Withers & Rogers partner Laurel McBray as a consultant to join Wiggin lawyer Gurminder Panesar at the helm of the team.
Opinion: Government reforms spell danger for civil justice
Thousands of injured people stand to lose out through the Government’s latest attack on access to justice.
Pay slashed as Clarke Willmott retains profits
Clarke Willmott has held back a chunk of its 2010-11 profit to invest in the firm, meaning equity partners will pocket profit shares ranging from £35,000 to £163,000.
Power ranger: Francois Graux, International Power
International Power general counsel Francois Graux is no stranger to the legal challenges of the energy industry. Caroline Butcher reports
Stewarts Law attains top 100 with one-track strategy
Litigation boutique Stewarts Law is set to break into the UK 100 league table after posting a revenue of £28.5m at the 2010-11 year-end, with an average profit per equity partner (PEP) on a par with magic circle levels at £926,000.
Tulkinghorn: Event full evening
Tulkinghorn’s old friend Michael Bloch QC of Wilberforce Chambers, who just happened to be one of the judges at this year’s Lawyer Awards, is a conscientious chap.
Volume down, value up
Firms are hunting those few, precious megadeals as rankings show deal numbers are falling. By Joshua Freedman
WFW partner is a true Renaissance woman
When Watson Farley & Williams partner Celia Gardiner first started singing at church, she did not expect to found a chamber choir. In fact, when she started out she was the only amateur singer in a group of professional musicians.
Work Life Quiz: Simon Jackson, Shulmans
What was your first-ever job? A Saturday job working in a warehouse for BHS.
