Online March 2015

This week’s top 15 legal briefings – 5 April 2015

The tragic Germanwings crash has provoked much debate on airline safety and the mental health of pilots. Thoughts must also turn to another practical matter: compensation. Stewarts Law outlines the rules on airline liability and compensation for international aviation disasters, as set out in the 1999 Montreal Convention. The firm also notes that payouts will vary widely […]

Willis Group picks Furman to replace Rosman as group general counsel

Insurance giant Willis Group has found a replacement general counsel for Adam Rosman after a four-month wait – Travelers’ senior vice president and general counsel Matthew Furman. Furman is leaving Travelers after working for the company for almost eight years, and will bring his experience working as general counsel for finance and corporate at Goldman […]

Mr Justice Eder in talks to return to private practice following resignation

Eder J took early retirement from the bench on Wednesday (1 April) after just four years’ service, and is in talks to return to his former set, Essex Court. His return to private practice is understood to be in answer to a series of reforms to judicial processes by the Coalition Government, as well as […]

US: Hogan Lovells hires two partners from Allens and launches in Australia

Hogan Lovells has launched an office in Australia with the hire of partners Nicky Lester and Tim Lester from Linklaters’ best friend firm Allens. Hogan Lovells CEO Steve Immelt said that the firm’s Australia launch is focused on an offering that would complement its multi-jurisdictional practice rather than a domestic Australian practice. [continues] Also on […]

Hashi Mohamed of No5 Chambers appears in appeal over wind-turbine permission

Hashi Mohamed of No5 Chambers, acting on behalf of Lincolnshire County Council, appeared in an appeal against a decision of East Lindsey District Council to refuse planning permission for the installation and operation of a wind energy scheme comprising nine wind turbines and ancillary infrastructure. In this recovered appeal, the infrastructure project was due to stand for a […]

Tool to manage the Employment Tribunal process introduced by Eversheds

Eversheds has designed and introduced a case management system called Matter Sphere that gives clients more control over the tribunals process, sophisticated management information and improved budget transparency. It works by linking lawyers who take the legal decisions such as settling the defence, drafting the witness statements and determining what documents should be used, with legal […]

World Duty Free

Slaughters and Bonelli advise on Dufry’s €1.3bn World Duty Free acquisition

Best friends Bonelli Erede Pappalardo and Slaughter and May have advised on opposite sides of Dufry’s €1.3bn (£950m) acquisition of shares in rival World Duty Free from the Benetton family, in a deal that creates the world’s biggest travel retailer. Slaughter and May finance partner Matthew Tobin led the team advising Swiss duty free operator […]

London

Former Olswang arbitration head joins JAMS in bid to avoid conflicts of interest

Former Olswang arbitration head Andrew Aglionby has joined arbitration provider JAMS International as an arbitrator and mediator in London and New York, ditching plans to join the bar. Aglionby announced he would leave Olswang in November 2014 to return to chambers after four years at the firm, citing conflict of interest issues (11 November 2014). […]

Baker & McKenzie advises Volkswagen on ABS deal

Baker & McKenzie has advised Volkswagen Bank and Volkswagen Financial Services in a public ABS transaction. Baker & McKenzie has advised Volkswagen Bank and Volkswagen Financial Services in a public ABS (asset-backed securities) transaction of the Private Driver series in Germany. Notes with an aggregate principal amount of €965m secured by auto loan receivables were […]

Hong Kong

Freshfields returns to Linklaters for another Hong Kong partner hire

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has continued to bolster its Asian practice by hiring from magic circle rival Linklaters, this time taking a Beijing banking and finance partner for its Hong Kong office. The addition of energy specialist Thomas Ng comes after Freshfields hired Linklaters securities partner David Ludwick earlier this month (13 March 2015). He also […]

uluru australia

Hogan Lovells launches in Australia with Allens two-partner hire

Hogan Lovells has launched an office in Australia with the hire of partners Nicky Lester and Tim Lester from Linklaters’ best friend firm Allens. The firm’s Australian operations will be run from Perth and Sydney. Nicky Lester will spearhead the firm’s banking and finance practice, and Tim Lester will lead the corporate finance practice for the firm with […]