Is it something in the air or does every firm out there want to merge at the moment? First there was Hogan Lovells, then Sonnenschein and Dentons announced their intentions, now Mayer Brown is thought to be looking for an English suitor (see story). Eyebrows, no doubt will be raised given that the firm already […]
Linklaters has appointed Paul Lignières as managing partner of its Paris office for a four-year term. Move of the week He takes over from Arnaud de La Cotardière, who has been made commercial divisional practice head. Lignières joined Linklaters in 2003 and became a partner in 2005, focusing on corporate and financial transactions. He […]
Eversheds and Olswang have acted for the two sides in a tie-up that will see the creation of Europe’s second-largest tissue producer. Olswang advised new client Sofidel on its acquisition of the family-owned LPC Group in a deal that will establish a combined entity with an annual turnover of e1.3bn (£1.1bn). Corporate chief Fabrizio Carpanini […]
Ward Hadaway partner Karen Andrews has helped secure a mandate advising on a £350m schools project two months after arriving at the firm. The firm has been selected by Bedford Borough Council to provide all legal advice on its multimillion-pound Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme, which will see the creation of seven secondary […]
Pinsent Masons and Slaughter and May have helped Asda in a major acquisition that could see it become the UK’s second-largest supermarket chain. Asda will acquire 193 Netto stores from the Danish chain Dansk Supermarked for £778m, which will see the Wal-Mart subsidary’s total number of UK stores overtake that of J Sainsbury, while also […]
Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Hogan Lovells and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett have snared top roles on the proposed £800m flotation of zombie life assurance fund Phoenix Group. Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Hogan Lovells and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett have snared top roles on the proposed £800m flotation of zombie life assurance fund Phoenix […]
Partners from the nine CMS network firms will discuss how they can consolidate their position across European markets when they meet for their annual partner conference this month. The event, which takes place in Vienna between 10-12 June, will focus on how the network can increase revenues in Europe against the backdrop of a market […]
XXIV Old Buildings has devised a five-year plan to raise its profile among Chinese law firms after the lengthy Danone/Wahaha dispute showed there is a place for the bar on disputes between Eastern and Western companies. In the arbitration, which took place in Stockholm – which has positioned itself as a neutral jurisdiction where Chinese and Western […]
Later this month Thames Valley firm Boyes Turner will find out if it is to become The Lawyer’s Regional/ National Law Firm of the Year 2010. But as one of the few UK firms to have made no layoffs, and with successive years of revenue growth throughout the recession, the firm already considers itself a […]
A tough year for North East firm Watson Burton looks set to continue with news that two heads of department could be set to leave the firm and warnings that more could follow. The Lawyer understands that the firm is set to lose insolvency chief Andrew Cawkwell and wealth management head Keith Hately, the only partner in […]
The surprise announcement last week by Sonnenschein and Dentons of their proposed merger reinforces a number of trends that we in the US and our strategic alliance partner Jomati Consultants in the UK have seen emerging over the past year. First, US firms are increasingly focusing on international expansion as their client base demands legal […]
Howes Percival is forging ahead with plans to treble its private client team following the arrival of two lawyers. Solicitor Justine Flack has arrived from Clarkes Solicitors and will be joined by associate partner William Chalk from BP Collins next week. The firm wants to expand the seven-strong private client team to 15 by April […]