6 June 2011
The Lawyer
Addleshaws, Bakers lead on King Sturge-Jones Lang tie-up
Addleshaw Goddard and Baker & McKenzie took the prime advisory roles on the merger of Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) with fellow real estate giant King Sturge.
Addleshaws, Eversheds, SNR Denton to grow in Middle East as Trowers totters
A divergence of strategies is emerging in the Middle East, with some international firms expanding their presence in the region as others pull out.
Ashurst raids Fried Frank for NY partner
Ashurst has bolstered its US offering by scooping a New York lending partner from former merger suitor Fried Frank.
BLG chief exec: Clydes deal is no rescue merger
Potential merger would ’destroy the competition’ in insurance sector
Bonny for Clydes?
In the end - if this is the end - Barlow Lyde & Gilbert (BLG) simply looks to have run out of options. As our lead story reports, partners at the firm are understood to have been told months ago that BLG would soon not exist and that a merger was the only option.
Capstan Avocats
French firm Capstan Avocats is a niche outfit, but a big one. The firm employs 180 lawyers and another 70 staff, with every lawyer devoted to advising companies on employment law.
CC and Nabarro deal with Sportingbet Oz acquisition
Clifford Chance and Nabarro have taken lead roles on Sportingbet’s bond issue and subsequent acquisition of Australian betting company Centrebet.
Clifford Chance and AAR steer Rio Tinto’s joint venture with Chinalco
Australian firm Allens Arthur Robinson (AAR) took a place opposite Clifford Chance on a deal that will see mining giant Rio Tinto join forces with Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco) to explore mainland China in search of mineral deposits.
Error alert
Professional trustees can no longer rely on the Hastings-Bass principle as a cure-all for their mistakes. Michael Alden and Sue Savill report
Fighting chance
Cyprus is seeing a big rise in litigation. Joanne Harris finds out why, and looks at some of the ways lawyers are trying to get to grips with the situation
Freshfields breaks top two’s FTSE stranglehold
Change in legal markets happens on a geological timescale, or at least that is how the received wisdom has it.
Gag man
At the heart of the battle between the right to privacy and freedom of expression sits Hugh Tomlinson QC. The Lawyer talks to Mr Anonymity about his feelings on the matter
Game-changer: Steven Holmes, Inspired Gaming Group
Steven Holmes, general counsel at Inspired Gaming Group, has seen the company through tough times into a new era of expansion, says Caroline Butcher
GDF Suez to formulate inaugural legal panel
GDF Suez is set to appoint its first-ever global panel of external law firms, having chosen until now to instruct lawyers on an ad hoc basis for deals such as its £17bn venture with International Power earlier this year.
Giving to the full
Changes to the Government’s policy on philanthropy are in the spotlight as the Big Society agenda takes shape, say Christopher Groves and Alana Lowe-Petraske
Kennedys forges links to fuel expansion in Latin America
Kennedys is to grow its South American practice through an alliance with Brazilian firm Torres Marcellino & Associados (TM Law).
Kidby-less rockers Hog the Love with Law Rocks win
A superheated display of rock shapes and sounds last Thursday night (2 June) stole the Law Rocks crown at the third time of asking for Hogan Lovells’ New New Teen Titans.
Mayer Brown ally scoops 2011’s first Spanish IPO
Mayer Brown’s Spanish alliance partner Ramón y Cajal has landed the lead role on the first IPO to take place on the Madrid Stock Exchange this year.
Partners shouldn’t take restrictive covenants lying down
How far should a partner in a law firm be prepared to go when asked to enter into restrictive covenants, and where does the balance of power lie in negotiations between firms and those joining them?
Proskauer hitch fails to dent SJ Berwin’s American dream
SJ Berwin remains committed to securing a transatlantic merger as the dust settles on its failed attempt to pair up with Proskauer Rose last year.
Remains of the pay
A recent pension law upgrade could be a game-changer in terms of advising clients on how their wealth is transferred. By Julie Hutchison
Speechly sets up shop in Luxembourg and Zurich
Speechly Bircham has made its first foray into overseas markets, opening offices in the financial services centres of Zurich and Luxembourg.
Style counsel: in-housers adopt a higher profile
The Lawyer Awards 2011 shortlist contains some outstanding pitches from in-house lawyers.By Joshua Freedman
Trowers introduces post of managing associate
City firm Trowers & Hamlins has launched an alternative career path following a firmwide consultation.
Tulkinghorn: Hush blush crush
Shamefaced head-hanging at Tulkinghorn Towers last week after a sharp-eyed and popular music-conversant diary story consumer pointed out what appeared to be a horrendously slipshod mistake in a tale about DLA Piper and Trett Consulting’s LawRocks band, The Acquired.
Willing and stable
Law firms in Cyprus are building on the country’s tradition of stability, although some feel the government has missed a chance to enhance the attraction of the jurisdiction.
Work Life Quiz: Jane Keir, Kingsley Napley
What was your first-ever job? Stacking cartons in a yoghurt factory.
