6 September 2010
The Lawyer
Focus: Hammonds, Hello Squire
Hammonds’ stated aim of merging with Squire Sanders needs a bit of work
James Fry
?What was your first-ever job? Hiring out bicycles around Rutland Water near Leicester.
Aviva names new general counsel
Kirsty Cooper has been appointed to the dual role of general counsel and company secretary at Aviva.
Bakers, Hammonds and Herbies scoop Boots pension transfer
Baker & McKenzie, Hammonds and Herbert Smith have worked on a pensions deal that has seen Alliance Boots offload the liabilities on the smaller of its two pension schemes to insurer Pensions Insurance Corporation (PIC).
Bellway calls on Watson Burton for major new build
Watson Burton is advising long-term client Bellway on a 474-property development in the North East.
CC, Mayer Brown advise on Shell’s oil refinery divestment to Klesch
Clifford Chance and Mayer Brown have advised on the sale of a Royal Dutch Shell refinery in Germany to private equity house Klesch & Co.
DAC targets Brazil with insurance firm link-up
Davies Arnold Cooper (DAC) is putting Latin America at the heart of its strategy with a formal association with São Paolo boutique insurance law firm JBO Advocacia.
Dechert arrival puts Frankfurt in the frame
Dechert is looking at launching in Frankfurt following the arrival of alternative investment funds specialist Achim Pütz from SJ Berwin.
Does failure of TfL deals spell the end of the line for PPP bonanza?
?Project finance practices could face tough times as PFI shrinks. By Gavriel Hollander
Eversheds pursues HK growth with hire
Eversheds has continued to expand its Hong Kong offering with the hire of former Slaughter and May litigation partner Mark Yeadon.
Feel the learn
Fiercer competition for work and talent in an increasingly globalised business environment means firms need to provide their lawyers with a broader-based skill set than previously
Firm Profile: Harper Macleod
When the financial crisis hit in 2008 Scottish firm Harper Macleod took swift action to prepare its business for the worst.
Focus: David Gold, Golden years
Herbert Smith stalwart David Gold says his retirement plans don’t involve golf or gardening instead he’s starting out with a DoJ-appointed role making sure BAE remains ethically sound
German contender enters CC senior partner race
The Clifford Chance senior partner contest sprung into life last week, with three partners having now put themselves forward as potential replacements for incumbent Stuart Popham.
Holman trio form marine boutique in City
Holman Fenwick Willan partners Jonathan Campbell, Alistair Johnston and Julian Clark have left the firm to set up a marine boutique in the City.
How many days to profit? Sackers first to break even
This year The Lawyer introduced a new metric to its annual basket of law firm financial health indicators. For many equity partners it is the key one.
Howard Kennedy partner’s net profits
Howard Kennedy partner Dov Katz has a passion outside the law that has helped his firm make some powerful connections within the Jewish community. And the passion? Table tennis.
Iberian trio instructed on Telefónica’s Brasilcel buy
Top Iberian law firms Cuatrecasas Gonçalves Pereira, Garrigues and Uría Menéndez all scored roles on Telefónica’s e7.5bn (£6.16bn) purchase of Portugal Telecom’s 50 per cent stake in Brasilcel.
Misrepresentation should make firms’ insurance void
As we approach the October renewals period for solicitors’ professional indemnity (PI) insurance, smaller law firms face a perfect storm.
Motor head
Risk management is the name of the game in the fast-moving world of Simon MacDonald, group legal affairs manager at MotorSport Vision.
National duo lose RSA panel places
Addleshaw Goddard and Eversheds have been dropped from RSA’s UK legal panel following the insurance company’s revamp of its roster of external advisers.
One North East scraps traditional panel in favour of reduced roster
Regional development agency One North East has abandoned its formal panel review process in favour of using a more informal list.
People moves
JMW Solicitors has taken on Patricia Cottrell as head of its family law practice.
The high cost of ambition
Given that we’re now officially in an age of austerity, in this year’s edition of The LawyerUK 200 we decided to focus squarely on costs and the effect of cuts.
Tulkinghorn: The signs are bad
While Tulkinghorn and his many spies are used to passing sentence on the prospects of competing law firms, none of the aforesaid expect commentary on the ups and downs of the profession to find its way to the offices of The Lawyer from the road sign-writers of England’s South Coast.
Two-year itch
The entry of foreign firms into India has become a saga of classical proportions. And as Kian Ganz finds, it is one that is set to run and run
Walkers raids MOP for three partners to facilitate launch of Dublin outpost
Offshore firm Walkers has taken three partners from Irish firm Matheson Ormsby Prentice (MOP) as it gears up to launch a new office in Dublin.
