This summer has seen two sizeable acquisitions in Paris by major international firms of smaller boutique practices. First, Paul Hastings bolstered its white collar team with the incorporation of Antonin Lévy & Associés. The move brought three partners and nine associates into the US firm’s fold, upgrading its offering as a key Paris practice. Then […]
Few UK start-up firms have experienced the same meteoric rise as Knights. Its position as a mid-tier disruptor and consolidator has been largely unchallenged, helping it to lift revenue by a market-topping 185 per cent over the last five years. With so many sub £50m firms contending with the twin issues of a cashflow crunch […]
How did your firm fare in salary review season? For associates at Freshfields, their firm can claim the early-mover advantage prize after announcing a bold NQ salary jump to £150,000. But its moment was short-lived. Within a week, Quinn had upped its junior lawyer pay from £152,000 to £180,000. If there was an award for […]
Mid-market firms have been forced to re-evaluate their hiring strategies in the face of greater competition for partners. With lawyers more likely than ever before to switch firms, these firms have to move fast to secure the right talent, and one handy way to achieve that is to recruit from outside the partnership. Where first-time […]
Does anyone need any confirmation of the gradual takeover of the City by rampaging US law firms? No, thought not. If, however, your answer is yes, then more evidence of the Americanisation of London can be found in the upcoming edition of the UK Corporate 50. Much of the focus in this year’s report is […]
Mexico is set to welcome thousands of lawyers later this year when the capital city plays host to the International Bar Association’s (IBA) showpiece event. Partners and support staff will mingle from dawn until way after dusk, discuss strategies and scan way off into the horizon. However, Mexico’s been high on the interest list for […]
At times, Clyde & Co appeared dangerously close to squandering the growth opportunities presented by its July 2022 acquisition of BLM. The firm’s most recent financials, however, suggest BLM was the fuel Clydes needed to grow in the UK. Not that it has been without casualties, with a significant proportion of former BLM partners having […]
The M&A rankings for the first half of 2024 confirmed one thing we already felt was true: that Linklaters and Slaughter and May have had a lot of acquisitive or targeted clients this year. According to data provided by the London Stock Exchange Group, the pair rank first and second respectively in terms of the […]
When Stephenson Harwood chief executive Eifion Morris set a target for doubling revenue to £400m by 2027, he knew it would be a tough challenge. “A profitable growth strategy will probably take more than individual lateral joiners and internal promotions to achieve,” he told The Lawyer back in 2021. This protective view came as the […]
Many firms fancy themselves as market disruptors, but only a select few can truly claim that title. Paul Weiss is one of those rare exceptions. Over the past year, the firm has been aggressively expanding in London by recruiting top-tier laterals and offering them eye-popping salaries. This bold strategy has even forced competitors like Latham […]
It’s coming ho… No. Stop right there. Don’t say it. Stop thinking it. You know that you were. We’ve been here before. Don’t jinx it. Ollie Watkins gave England football fans a moment to savour on Wednesday night with a touch-and-finish so exquisite that it would not look out of place in any of this […]
Attention turned to Linklaters’ US advances when its financials were released this week, and tied into that, its well-publicised partner losses to US firms in London. Since last summer, four of its partners have joined Paul Weiss, although it feels like much more. Added on to that are the many Linklaters alum who swapped the […]