When Shoosmiths decided not to pay compensation to trainees for deferring their start dates, it could hardly have imagined the collateral damage it would cause Old fashioned manners, telling it straight and absolutely no stuffiness.” This is the strapline Shoosmiths carefully selected to describe its approach to doing business. You might, therefore, be wondering what […]
The bid for EU accession is forcing Turkey to rethink its unfriendly attitude to foreign law firms. Julia Berris reports Last month, Barack Obama campaigned for Turkey’s accession to the EU on a trip to Istanbul. The US President’s support is welcomed by the Turkish government, which has long suffered a challenging route to […]
Our story last week about Indian firm Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co hiring two corporate partners set TheLawyer.com’s Backchat discussion board alight. “This is a very good move by Amarchand,” says one poster. “This will serve as a wake-up call to all the Indian lawyers in London and New York who […]
Retrieving cash from the fraudster’s companies is proving challenging. The downfall of US fraudster Bernie Madoff, when it finally came, was one of the quickest in financial history, yet for the lawyers working to unravel his $50bn (£33bn) Ponzi Scheme it will be several years before the work is complete. Madoff was arrested by the […]
Herbert Smith and Ashurst have won places on the $457m (£303m) cash call made by platinum miner Lonmin. Herbert Smith corporate partners Greg Mulley and Adam Wells acted for Lonmin, which launched the rights issue after reporting a $196m pre-tax loss in the six months to the end of March. Ashurst corporate partner Nicholas Holmes […]
Clifford Chance and Linklaters have scored lead roles on Travis Perkins’ £300m rights issue. Linklaters advised builders merchant Travis Perkins on the deal, with London partners Nicola Mayo and Richard Godden leading the team from the magic circle firm. Clifford Chance partners Simon Thomas and John Connolly advised the underwriters on the deal. Clifford Chance […]
Herbert Smith and Simmons & Simmons have been called in to advise on a dispute between fund manager Bramdean Alternatives and property tycoon Vincent Tchenguiz. Tchenguiz, who owns 28.7 per cent of the AIM-listed company through his Elsina vehicle, is trying to oust the board and appoint new directors. But Bramdean has complained to the […]
Denton Wilde Sapte has advised Vodafone Qatar on its $950m (£621m) IPO on the Doha Securities Market – one of the first multinational companies to list on a Middle East exchange. The deal was the second-largest Qatari IPO ever and the Dentons team had to obtain special permission from the local authorities to remove the […]
Recent cases in Jersey have highlighted the need for perspective and pragmatism in small jurisdictions, says David Cadin David Cadin Flexibility and fairness are crucial in a small jurisdiction, with limited resources and legislation and both of these principals have been used recently in Jersey to deal with new situations. The Belgravia Financial Services Group […]
Sullivan & Cromwell was deservedly lauded in this year’s Transatlantic Elite for its string of roles at the heart of the global financial crisis. Frankly, there are few firms in the market that could come up with such a succession of innovative solutions to some of the most complex problems ever faced. So, when the […]
But optimism at the firm is the official line. Rich Goetz The partner departures that seem to be turning into a flow at O’Melveny & Myers continued last week. The most recent exit was the firm’s class action and mass torts head John Beisner, who defected to US rival Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom […]
United Arab Emirates firm Al Tamimi has reopened its office in Baghdad three years after the Iraqi security situation forced the firm’s lawyers in the country to withdraw. Female lawyer Hadeel Hassan and a number of associates kept the firm’s Baghdad presence going during the intervening period by working from home.With the growth of extremist […]