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Slaughters targets Aussie quartet as it abandons sole best friend strategy

Er...I yield to no-one in my admiration for Slaughters, but this notion that they've "drawn up a list" of favoured firms with which to work in Australia gives them more than a shade the best of it. Fact is, there is not much in the way of quality left to select from in Oz. For Slaughters, this is a case of Hobson's Choice. G+T are an extremely high quality outfit, no question, but they're cosily sized, to say the least. Meanwhile, Minters and Clayton Utz are larger, but much more uneven in quality, while Corrs are a handy second/upper third tier outfit, but no more than that. So far, so respectable, but it hardly adds up to a group of new best friends even vaguely approaching the clout and depth of S and M's friends in Europe, the US or even, dare one whisper it, their erstwhile Australian muckers, Allens. Let's be clear - this has, to a greater or lesser extent, been forced on the firm. It's what can happen when one's relationships aren't set in stone, and it does, once again, highlight the uncertainty that is always likely to attend Slaughters' global strategy.

25-Jul-2012

5:44 pm