Bray upbeat as CC US figures show promise

Even so, the firm's profitability was still way below expectations.
Revenue per partner is actually higher among the Americans than it is in London - the average partner brings in around £1.9m in the US compared with nearer £1.75m in the UK.
In the first region-by-region breakdown of the massive £938m turnover, chief executive Michael Bray has revealed to the rest of the firm that the US practice's turnover grew by 26 per cent last year, from £186m to £233m.
The UK practice's turnover grew by the same percentage to £405m.
Asia, though, was the most successful, adding a 34 per cent increase to its turnover to hit £64m.
The rest of Europe, outside London, grew by 19 per cent to £236m.
Bray has also told lawyers that the firm's revenues from 58 of its top 100 clients grew by more than 50 per cent. The overall turnover was a 10 per cent increase on the £853m target revenue set by the firm mid-year (The Lawyer, 4 December 2000).
In an internal announcement seen by The Lawyer, he said: "The results have exceeded our expectations - and could not have been achieved without significant effort and contribution from everyone, in every region.
"Our results show that we've built a strong platform for long-term success - and now have to focus on delivering to clients the full potential of our global capability.
"While market conditions remain uncertain, we are nonetheless bullish about the future."
The firm's revenue for the first financial year since its merger with Rogers & Wells and Pünder Volhard Weber & Axster is the largest revenue figure ever posted in the legal sector, a 24 per cent increase on the aggregate turnover of all three of the predecessor firms in 1999/2000.