Legal Brief: Grate expectations for 2011

SJ Berwin is advising British Land while Herbert Smith is acting for Canadian pension fund subsidiary Oxford Properties on the £340m development of Leadenhall Building, already commonly known as the ’Cheesegrater’.

The JV will see British Land and Oxford both invest an initial £90m in the development, with the remaining cost split over the course of the agreement. The deal marks Oxford’s first major invest.2ment in a high-profile UK real estate project (read more).

Meanwhile, Herbert Smith also worked opposite Taylor Wessing on the sale of the Sheffield office block that houses DLA Piper’s offices in the city. Taylor Wessing advised longstanding client Canada Life on the £24m purchase of No 1 St Paul’s Place from fund manager Standard Life Investments, which was advised by Herbert Smith. (full article).

Elsewhere, employment lawyers have all been talking about Leigh Day’s victory for former Countryfile host Camilla Parker in her age discrimination case against the BBC. Miriam O’Reilly took the broadcaster to an employment tribunal after she became one of four presenters dropped from the rural affairs show in favour of younger hosts in 2009. The tribunal also upheld claims of victimisation but not sex discrimination (read more).

Meanwhile, 2011 is expected to be a busy year for the Supreme Court as the High Court deals with a flood of cases spinning out of the global recession. Click here for Lawyer2B.com’s sister title The Lawyer’s pick of the trials to watch out for in the coming months.