TL 3 November 2014

Cat Griffiths index

The choices facing Ashurst and Olswang

Last week The Lawyer UK 200 premiered the first integrated table of US and UK firm revenues, which showed the extent to which American firms have penetrated the City. This week’s issue of The Lawyer is running two analyses that explore the transatlantic dynamic further. The first is an interview with Charlie Geffen, former Ashurst senior […]

David Stewart

Olswang at the crossroads as turnover lags peer group

UK 200 figures show that Olswang has lagged behind its TMT competitors over time, and it will shortly have to cope with the arrival of Cooley in London. With CEO David Stewart now out the door, does the firm have a plan? US technology big beast Cooley has not even launched yet in London, but […]

Charlie Geffen
2

Charlie Geffen: “I’d have loved Ashurst to do a US merger”

Charlie Geffen has re-emerged as the architect for Gibson Dunn’s English law capability – an ideal role for the committed internationalist. But why Gibson, and how does he really feel about Ashurst’s thwarted US plans? Charlie Geffen had what he calls a “second gap year” for much of 2014. In October 2013 he lost the […]

knowlesindex
9

Sir Nigel Knowles: A new way forward in the post-legal aid era

Government grants to Community Law Centres would release the pro bono potential locked in large law firms and keep our justice system accessible. This week is the 13th annual National Pro Bono Week, which should serve as a reminder to us all as lawyers that we must take our responsibility to promote access to justice […]

Bowes
2

In-house interview: Cambridge University Press GC William Bowes

Few publishing houses can compete with Cambridge University Press on history or prestige but, as general counsel William Bowes knows well, that comes with a back catalogue of challenges When William Bowes joined Cambridge University Press (CUP) in 2011 the business was at risk of becoming stifled by its own history and a raft of […]

Thornton

Moves: 3 November 2014

Move of the week Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson has hired Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe’s London tax chief Nick Thornton. This marks a return to Fried Frank for Thornton, who was a senior associate at the firm before quitting to join Orrick’s London base in 2010. During his first stint in Fried Frank’s tax […]

Bulgaria

Bulgaria – The stability dividend

Investment promises to pick up when Bulgaria sails into calmer political waters, but that’s not the only attraction for its firms and an international newcomer The past 18 months have been a box-ticking exercise for Bulgarians. The country was due to go to the polls in July 2013 for a parliamentary election, but in February […]