Special report | Networks: connected in an age of uncertainty
What support can networks offer their members in the current crisis and how will they function in a post-pandemic world?
The New Look deal is a watershed moment for Latham
New Look’s long-rumbling restructuring journey is emblematic of a shifting order of restructuring advisers in the City. A decade of financial engineering at the hands of private equity has left the retailer fighting and shifting between magic circle and US legal advisers. Latham’s prescient poaching of star talent has paid off, having sealed the sole […]
The ‘New How’: How Shoosmiths’ lockdown project took shape
In early 2020, Shoosmiths engaged a design agency to build a promotional campaign around a suite of technology platforms. The idea focused on doing things differently, informed by Prof Richard Susskind’s idea of the ‘lawyer of the future’. The campaign revolved around three platforms the firm had developed over the previous year. They were meant […]
The inconvenient truths about global firms’ future in Hong Kong
New security laws and a US-China trade war mean Western players will have to change the way their do business to compete with the PRC heavyweights
Data-smart recruiters aren’t looking at your A Levels anyway
Never mind the headlines. Graduate recruiters at some of the top law firms have been cooling for a while on the importance of applicants having top A Level grades. In fact, if you were to look at the recent trainee intake of an example firm, broken down by top three A Level grades achieved, you’d […]
Roundtable: For BD teams dealing with a pandemic, less is more
In the past few months, the pandemic has forced business development teams in firms to come up with new ways of engaging with clients.
A Level grades: what do law firms ask for?
As A Level chaos broke out across the UK last week, DWF made the decision to stop asking for specific A level grades from training contract applicants. The decision has been made to attract talent that might otherwise have been put off by the firm’s grade requirements. Firms’ attitudes to A Level grades vary considerably. Some set exacting […]
Leaving Fleet Street is an emotional wrench for Freshfields
On a London map, the distance that separates 65 Fleet Street from 100 Bishopsgate amounts to almost three kilometres. But the path that led Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer from its longstanding institutional home to the shiny skyscraper feels much longer. The firm first signed a lease for the new building four years ago, marking a new […]
Barrister of the week: 5RB’s Adrienne Page QC
Adrienne Page QC has represented newspapers, politicians and barristers in the most sensitive of cases during a sterling 46-year career; however, life hasn’t been without its challenges for 5RB‘s libel doyenne. During her early years as a junior, Page struggled immensely with the stressful experience of going to court, at a time when anxiety in […]
Roundtable: Remote investigations during Covid-19
The world of investigations relies upon in-depth scrutiny. Whether it be leafing through office documents, conducting forensic interviews or relying upon whistle blowers, an investigator’s physical presence on-site is often key to carving out the truth. However, the in-person part of investigations is largely on hold for the time being due to Covid-19, forcing individuals […]
Tech pioneers: the quest for a single-space solution
Lupl, a new all-encompassing platform to allow international collaboration on legal matters, has been developed after many hours of discussion between developers and those at the legal coalface
Roundtable: Successfully adopting technology in legal teams
How in-house lawyers can encourage the use of tech in their companies.
Case study: How PwC ventured into legal tech
An in-house solution to managing contracts with artificial intelligence came about after third-party software laid the foundations
Case study: Addleshaws’ bid to take real estate into 21st century
REVEL captures years of knowledge and masses of information to simplify everyday tasks for lawyers
Climate Emergency: How Pinsent Masons hit its sustainability targets one year early
Two of the key players describe how, by using the right consultants and clever software, the firm beat its own deadline on reducing its impact on the environment.
Coronavirus Update: Working From Home (again)
A government campaign was launched in early August to actively encourage employees to return to the workplace in an attempt to boost the wider economy and revitalise city centres that had been left empty after months of lockdown. However, within two months, the pandemic appears to have taken a turn for the worse and the government announced yesterday that once again people should work from home wherever possible.
First-step analysis: aviation finance and leasing in British Virgin Islands
Conyers’ Counsel Audrey Robertson provides an overview and analysis of Aviation Finance and Leasing in BVI in Lexology: Getting the Deal Through Aviation Finance & Leasing 2020…
Ukraine relaunches privatisation
September 2020 – Yesterday, 22 September, the President of Ukraine signed the Law which amends the Law of Ukraine “On privatisation of state and communal property” (the “Law”), introduces parliamentary control over the privatisation of state property and “unfreezes” the preparatory procedures to privatise large-scale state-owned objects. The Law was adopted by the Ukrainian parliament on 8 September 2020 and will become effective after its official publication.
Cyprus introduces film production incentives
Producers and media companies are invited to utilise the Cyprus landscape and infrastructure and enjoy a variety of legal, corporate and tax incentives for filming in Cyprus under the new Cyprus Filming Scheme.
Legal guide to pre-enforcement steps under Jersey and Guernsey law
The temporary Covid-19 protections offered by the UK government to businesses to prevent them from being subject to winding up petitions or wrongful trading actions are currently due to expire at the end of September (although an extension is very possible).
The Cayman Islands unit trust: demystifying the investment vehicle that ‘does not not exist’
An examination of the key features of the preferred investment vehicle for many Japanese investors.
Supreme Court grants permission to appeal Alize 1954 v Allianz
The Supreme Court has this week granted Owners permission to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision in Alize 1954 v Allianz (“CMA CGM LIBRA”)…
Portugal – New measures to prevent and combat money laundering and terrorist financing
Law 58/2020 came into force on 1 September 2020 and it implements into Portuguese law.
Switzerland – restructuring and insolvency activity
The Swiss federal government’s Expert Group expects Switzerland’s GDP to fall by 1.5 per cent in 2020, down from previous expectations in December 2019 that predicted a rise of 1.3 per cent, mainly because of covid-19.
Romania – Consumer protection updates in the audio-visual media field
In November 2018, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union enacted the Directive (EU) 2018/1808 amending Directive 2010/13/EU on the coordination on certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administration in Member States concerning the provision of audio-visual media services in view of changing market realities (the “Audio-Visual Media Services Directive”).
Application of Article 15 of the Hague Service Convention 1965: When can a court give a judgment if service of the BVI proceedings is unsuccessful?
An aggrieved party which has started proceedings in the BVI must seek court permission to serve the claim form out of the jurisdiction on a foreign defendant. The most common method of service is via the Hague Service Convention.
EU Competition law and policy – 2nd quarter 2020
Below, you will find the issue of our competition law and policy newsletter for the 2nd quarter of 2020, which compiles the most significant news in this area.