How The Lawyer Awards judges have recognised the delicate and intricate interplay between culture and innovation as the profession has developed The Lawyer judges always look at firms in the round, taking into account client service, quality of work, a distinctive vision, investment in people and operational nous. Over the years the big prize […]
ABSs arrived just two years ago but their impact on the profession is already deep. In a pre-Awards debate, our shortlisters discuss the rough and smooth of the transition In association with The Lawyer’s recent alternative business structure (ABS) roundtable gathered five pioneers of the liberalised UK legal market and found that if there is […]
It’s a critical balance in the push for innovation and durability. In the run-up to our Awards, Law Firm of the Year contenders tell us their secrets of success In association with The management of private practice law firms has never been so dependent on economics, data and pricing. Yet away from the day […]
Any discussion of innovation in private practice must confront two challenges: nurturing culture and managing risk. This week we showcase two of the roundtables we have run related to The Lawyer Awards; in both, culture and risk dominate the discussion. The first, sponsored by Travelers, saw animated debate among our seven shortlisted contenders for Law Firm […]
With the economy improving, partners’ minds are turning to growing the business, but a serious dose of pragmatism must balance their ambitions As the legal market recovers from a bruising period, many firms are considering either opening new offices in the UK or internationally or developing their practice areas. Having been through a period of […]
In the regulators’ sights and with plants on the Russia-Ukraine border, Amcor’s tobacco packaging division needs all the help it can get from GC Damien Clayton Despite the advent of e-cigarettes, the world still loves an old-fashioned fag. Research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that between 1980 and 2012 smoking […]
The professional indemnity insurance market was shaken by last year’s adjustments, and now the SRA has additional proposals Last year was unusually turbulent for firms looking to secure professional indemnity insurance (PII), resulting in brokers voicing concerns over the SRA’s handling of the renewals process after the regulator admitted it had lost track of some […]
Move of the week Water industry watchdog Ofwat has appointed former Ofgem legal director Elizabeth Hillman as its first general counsel. She worked for seven years at energy regulator Ofgem as legal director. She moved to Ofgem from energy giant EDF, where she was head of the B2B and upstream legal team. […]
Northern Ireland’s economy has picked up and work levels with it. Lawyers can almost taste the possibilities from much lower corporation tax In the years immediately preceding the financial crash the Northern Ireland economy routinely tracked above that of the UK as a whole, Scotland and its southern neighbour Eire. But the past few years […]
East Africa is a buoyant and increasingly integrated region, with oil and gas driving its future. Meanwhile, a liberalised legal market is emerging There are many synergies between East Africa’s three largest economies – Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda – not least their strong independent law firms. While each has its own geopolitical issues to grapple […]
Property prices are rising again and this time Ireland’s lawyers are confident it is no bubble, while talk of an early wind-up for Nama hints at austerity’s end Ireland’s ‘bad bank’, the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) was controversial when it was set up in December 2009, but just under four years down the line […]
Energy could shelter Cyprus from the worst headwinds coming from long-term partner Russia. Will a surge of global firms follow the power line? Limassol and Nicosia may be the best part of 1,500 miles from Moscow, but Cyprus has become hugely dependent on Russian money and investment. And, say local lawyers, ripples from the turbulence […]