Tulkinghorn: fold-up eager beaver
Too close for comfort
Spare a thought for the lawyers at Hill Dickinson’s brand spanking new Liverpool office. The building, which is completely clad in glass, offers spectacular views over the city.
Unfortunately, some of these views include a nearby building site and several enormous cranes. One of Tulkinghorn’s minions was given to understand that the cranes sway worryingly close to the new building whenever the wind blows, making for an adrenalin-enhanced day.
Open to suggestions
To most partners the idea of an open-plan office ranks alongside the idea of letting the trainees run the firm or turning the partners’ dining room into a crèche.
But not at Speechly Bircham, where the firm’s new open-plan office has triumphed with the staff after initial scepticism from partners who were reluctant to give up their space.
One of Tulkinghorn’s moles was given the full tour and found that even managing partner Michael Lingens is out in the open, having championed the open-plan idea from the start.
And it seems he has gained a reputation for his open-plan evangelism. Lingens receives visits from managing partners from other UK firms
looking to make the jump from walled offices to open-plan.
The reason for this is simple, according to Lingens: partners have realised that they can keep closer tabs on their associates in an open-plan office. So no sneaking in at 11am.
To foldly go…
Tulkinghorn rarely cycles as he feels self-propulsion is inherently wrong.
Not so for Addleshaw Goddard corporate partner William James, who took part in the Brompton Fold Up Bicycle World Cup.
Yes, there is a World Cup for pretty much every activity one can think of.
The competition comprised a nine-mile jaunt around Blenheim Palace with around 1,000 other Brompton nuts. It is perhaps the only World Cup around where the competitors have to wear a shirt and tie.
James finished somewhere in the middle of the field, but was quite upset about the arrival of the Spanish Olympic Cycling Team. The Olympians wore shirts and ties over their Lycra and blew the other cyclists out of contention, which was just not cricket.
Eager beaver
One of Tulkinghorn’s scribes has discovered that Davenport Lyons is not the only firm to mix porn and billable hours.
Charles Russell has reportedly been instructed on a matter that saw the firm buy up a stack of various top-shelf magazines for research.
Research is all very well and good, but it transpires that one keen lawyer at the firm decided to put in some extra hours with the material, possibly with a view to working at home after hours.
Tulkinghorn’s scribe was reliably informed that the research materials went missing in mysterious circumstances once the project had been completed.
Tulkinghorn is heartened to see lawyers take such pleasure in their work.
Quizzical attributes
The legal market has quiz fever. Hot on the heels of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer associate David Stainer’s triumph on BBC4 quiz show Only Connect, Jacky Chase, chambers administrator at 25 Bedford Row, has appeared on The Krypton Factor.
Chase was a contestant last Thursday (15 January), but through a quirk of deadlines and timing Tulkinghorn didn’t know the result of the quiz at the time of going to press.
Despite that, Tulkinghorn is sure Chase performed well, given that the different rounds relate quite closely to her day-to-day job.
The skills of mental agility, physical endurance and observation are all essential for keeping the barristers at 25 Bedford Row in check.
Contributions to Tulkinghorn are welcome: submit yours here in confidence.
