The 60 second interview: “I look for lawyers who have fire in their belly”
Sage’s GC shares how she helps her in-housers develop their leadership skills and what she looks for when hiring talent.
Pinsents acting as pressure mounts on Deloitte over Scottish role
As part of the ongoing dispute that sees Addleshaw Goddard caught up in the insolvency of a string of family-owned caravan parks, Pinsent Masons has been called on to defend big four accountancy firm Deloitte from a professional negligence claim for advice it gave during that same insolvency. In May, The Lawyer reported that City-based Pinsents partners […]
Redundancy fears at BT spread to in-house legal team
BT group general counsel Sabine Chalmers has written to lawyers at the telecomms business in a bid to curb fears over job losses which have now spread to its legal team. BT CEO Gavin Patterson has been the most high-profile casualty of the business’s recent struggles as he was asked to step down by shareholders […]
The speed read: the legal world’s key stories of last week
There are three things that keep City managing partners awake at night. First, the US firms. Second, tech and New Law. And third, Brexit. This week saw all three issues in the spotlight. The extent of US firms’ growth in London was shown by the unveiled City 50, The Lawyer’s ranking of US and UK […]
White & Case advises as CVC buys UnitedLex in biggest-ever legal market deal
CVC Capital Partners has acquired a majority stake in alternative legal services provider UnitedLex in what is believed to be the largest investment in the legal market ever at $500m. UnitedLex CEO Dan Reed led negotiations in-house. The Lawyer can reveal that CVC was advised by a White & Case team led by New York-based partner […]
Orrick and Latham advise on FarFetch float
Orrick, Latham & Watkins and Fenwick & West have taken the lead advising on luxury online retailer FarFetch‘s IPO on the New York Stock Exchange. Latham & Watkins is advising FarFetch, with a capital markets team led by New York partners Marc Jaffe and Ian Schuman, and London partner Joshua Kiernan. Orrick is acting for a […]
The 60 second interview: Need new ways to motivate your team? Ask them
GSK’s assistant general counsel talks to The Lawyer about the steps she takes to avoid disappointment in the mentor-mentee relationship.
Revealed: A&O’s IP reshuffle in the wake of Dagg’s Kirkland move
Former Allen & Overy (A&O) head of intellectual property Nicola Dagg was leading on 75 per cent of the firm’s cases in the sector before the announcement of her high-profile move to US firm Kirkland & Ellis earlier this year, data from The Lawyer can reveal. Data gathered for The Lawyer Litigation Tracker Q2 shows that of the firm’s four […]
LOD targets US as future biggest market in growth strategy
Flexible lawyering service Lawyers On Demand (LOD) has laid out its plans for significant growth in the US with hopes that it will become the provider’s biggest market in the next “few years”. In a bid to further its ambitions in the US, LOD co-founder John Knox relocated to the North Eastern state of Connecticut […]
Hogan Lovells joins magic circle firm on £2bn energy project
Linklaters, Hogan Lovells and Norton Rose Fulbright have sealed the construction of Triton Knoll, a major offshore wind farm which will provide 800,000 households with renewable energy. Led by projects partner Richard Coar and energy partner John Pickett, Linklaters acted for Triton Knoll on the project financing work. The pair were supported by counsel Andrew Penfold and […]
Linklaters takes the lead on Unilever’s corporate overhaul
Davis Polk & Wardwell and Linklaters have advised on the simplification of Unilever corporate structure, in which its Dutch and UK entities have been merged to create one listed holding company. As a result, Unilever’s UK business will join with the Dutch entity to create New Unilever NV. The company will be listed in three jurisdictions; […]
Four firms score £1.5bn sale of Network Rail property
Clifford Chance, Eversheds Sutherland, Gowling WLG and Kirkland & Ellis have advised on the £1.5bn sale of Network Rail’s commercial estate to private equity giants Blackstone Property Partners and Telereal Trillium – the biggest investment programme in the railway since Victorian times. Clifford Chance and Eversheds both acted for Network Rail in its sale of a portfolio comprised […]
Blow for Macfarlanes’ client over oligarch’s $350m freezing order
A Russian billionaire being sued by a former business partner has failed in his attempts to not have the details of a worldwide freezing order (WFO) on assets worth up to $350m disclosed to the claimant in a recent High Court judgment. Fishing magnate Vitaly Orlov, advised by Macfarlanes head of fraud James Popperwell, is […]
Sberbank swaps South Square silk for “£300,000” Brick Court QC
The Russian bank Sberbank has opted to swap South Square’s Barry Issacs QC and Alexander Riddiford for Brick Court super silk Mark Howard QC and junior Laura Newton for its Court of Appeal hearing in October. Howard and Newton will now be instructed by Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson partner Justin Michaelson for the […]
Quinn and Norton Rose face off in Ukraine-Russia bond battle
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has secured victory for Ukraine in a long-running stand-off between the nation and Russia over the terms of a $3bn bond. The case was heard in the Court of Appeal last week, with the decision overturning a previous one made by the now-retired Mr Justice Blair – brother of former Prime […]
Freshfields partner swaps private practice for the Bar
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer restructuring partner Nick Segal is switching private practice for the Bar, taking on a new role at Erskine Chambers. Segal is set to join the chambers as a barrister in September, after he has been successfully admitted to the Bar. Segal joined Freshfields in 2006 on his return to the UK from […]
Crisis averted as criminal barristers accept £15m legal aid offer
The Criminal Bar Association (CBA)’s feud with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has ended with 51.55 per cent of members voting to accept the £15m offer that was put to them two weeks ago. The offer was accepted through a slim majority voting in favour of the reforms with an 85 per cent turnout from […]
MoJ offers £15m to Criminal Bar after fees dispute
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has offered the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) £15m as the government entity seeks to end the increasingly tense standoff between the two bodies. The deal is said to be an entirely new investment and will include an £8m cash injection for barristers who have lost money through a change in […]
Pillsbury shuts doors in Dubai after just one year
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has become the latest US firm to review its operations in the Middle East, closing two offices in the region. The firm has shut its doors in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the latter office opening in the second quarter of 2017. The decision follows the departure of Pillsbury’s Middle Eastern co-head […]
Ashurst capitalises on Glasgow growth with operations launch Down Under
Ashurst has expanded its Ashurst Advance team with the opening of a global delivery centre (GDC) in Brisbane, its second after the launch of its Glasgow office in 2013. The GDC will extend the firm’s legal analyst model on home turf within the APAC region, where Ashurst has five Australian offices following its merger with Blake […]
VW faces £8bn damages claim from shareholders in Germany
Volkswagen (VW) is facing a new €9bn (£8.1bn) claim from roughly 4,000 shareholders in light of the company’s emissions scandal. Despite the fact that the automobile giant is a key client of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, giving a number of instructions in Germany, VW is instead instructing German firm SZA Schilling Zutt & Anschutz on the matter. The […]
Dechert nabs Paris finance team from Mayer Brown
Mayer Brown has lost a five-lawyer real estate and finance team to Dechert’s Paris office, as the recruitment market continues to heat up in the French capital. Dechert partner Privat Vigand is leading the team’s move to Dechert, along with four associates – Guenaëlle Taroni, Antoine Periat, Fanny Roiena and Pauline Keller. Vigand has been at […]
China’s Zhong Lun gets behind new AI platform to boost trade
A new bilingual legal tech platform has been launched in China that could save lawyers “lost in translation” and boost foreign investment going into and out of the country. Supported by Beijing officials and a pool of international law firms, beta trials are underway to test docQbot, a cloud-based contract bot said to draft quality […]
Three firms win Sodexo panel work in regional overhaul
French hospitality giant Sodexo has named a trio of firms to handle work across its European business,The Lawyer has learned.
How legal tech oils the wheels of law firm network comms
Communication between member firms is crucially important to the modern network business model. How is legal tech helping them push that to the max?
‘Brexit has renewed interest in Luxembourg’
Lawyers see the increasing flexibility of fund structuring in the country as a big draw in light of the Brexit vote
The long read: International firms and the European battleground
With growth in London far from reliable for law firms, is it time for Europe to take more of a leading role?
Former SFO case controller resurfaces to launch US firm’s London white-collar crime team
The former Serious Fraud Office (SFO) case controller for its high-profile battle with the Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC) has resurfaced as a partner at a US firm which only launched in London earlier this year. John Gibson has joined Cohen & Gresser’s London office – which opened in May – to launch the firm’s […]
Mayer Brown fills tax gap with new partner hire
Mayer Brown has added former Nabarro partner Simon Rose to its tax practice in London, nearly a year after the departure of its lead City partner to Gibson Dunn & Crutcher. Rose joins Mayer Brown as its third tax partner in London. He started his career at SJ Berwin in 1994, working there until leaving to […]
Addleshaws parts ways with Scottish private client practice after team defection
Over a year into its Scottish merger, Addleshaw Goddard has lost a ten-strong private client team to independent firm Morton Fraser. The head of Addleshaw’s private client team in Edinburgh, Gregor Mitchell, will move across to Morton Fraser, alongside legal director Euan Fleming and a team of eight consultants, solicitors, paralegals and executive assistants. The defection comes […]
Slaughters finally seals hire of former SFO director David Green QC
Slaughter and May has finally confirmed it has hired former Serious Fraud Office (SFO) director David Green QC as a senior consultant. Sources had claimed conflict issues were causing a hold up in the firm’s high-profile hire, but Slaughters has said Green will not work on matters in which he was involved while at the SFO. Green’s […]
Orrick grows PE team with Simpson Thacher and Milbank duo
Orrick’s City office has offered partnership to two private equity lawyers from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy to bolster the firm’s efforts in this area. James Connor and Daniel Wayte join from Simpson Thacher and Milbank respectively, and have been brought in to add bench-strength to Orrick’s London private equity practice and add […]
Morgan Lewis loses corporate partner to Baker Botts
Baker Botts has snagged a corporate partner from Morgan Lewis & Bockius’ London office, three weeks after the latter brought in a trio of M&A partners from Herbert Smith Freehills to boost operations. David Ramm is joining Baker Botts after four years as a partner at Morgan Lewis. He moved over to the firm in 2014 […]
Sidley exits continue as finance partner joins Vinson
Sidley Austin‘s spate of exits continues in the capital, with capital markets partner Noel Hughes the latest to take on a new role at US firm Vinson & Elkins. Noel Hughes joined Sidley Austin as a partner in 2016, after a four-year spell as an associate at Paul Hastings. Prior to this, he was an […]
DWF employment chief moves over to Osborne Clarke
Osborne Clarke has added two new partners to its City employment team, including DWF’s national head of employment Andrew Chamberlain. Chamberlain joined DWF in 2014 after nearly two decades at Addleshaw Goddard. In his practice, he advises FTSE 100 employers on processes such as services agreements and termination. He also covers employment nuances in M&A […]
Sidley’s former City chief moves back to his old firm
Baker McKenzie has lured back former partner Matthew Dening, months after he stood down from his role as Sidley Austin’s London office head, The Lawyer can reveal. It is 14 years since Dening left Bakers for Sidley; Dening trained, worked and was promoted at Bakers in 2001 where he became a member of its derivatives team. […]
From PSL to partner: Kirkland breaks new ground with Weil hire
In a rare move for a US firm in London, Kirkland & Ellis has hired a professional support lawyer as a partner to drive growth in its increasingly busy restructuring practice. Kate Stephenson joins Kirkland as a partner, having worked at Weil Gotshal & Manges for four years as a PSL in the restructuring team. […]
RBS disputes head exits bank for White & Case
White & Case has hired an in-houser from the Royal Bank of Scotland’s legal team, as the US firm continues to add to its litigation practice in the City. RBS’ litigation head Laura Durrant will join White & Case‘s London office as a partner. She leaves her role as head of litigation and investigations at RBS […]
Deutsche Bank veteran leaves in-house role for Shearman
Shearman & Sterling has hired Deutsche Bank’s former co-general counsel Simon Dodds to its London office, after he left the bank earlier this year. Dodds joins Shearman’s financial institutions advisory and regulatory practice as of counsel. He was in-house at the bank for nearly two decades, having been appointed to the role of UK and […]
Future of public procurement in UK in the event of ‘no-deal’ Brexit
By David Kilduff, Richard Auton or Richard Butterworth On 13 September 2018, the UK government published further guidance on the future of public procurement in the UK in the event of a “no deal” Brexit. What next for UK public procurement? Under current rules, all procurement opportunities that fall within the scope of the EU procurement […]
Third party redevelopment – Landlord may oppose tenant’s lease renewal
By Matthew Lonergan, Lucy Shepherd A recent case has confirmed that a landlord was entitled to oppose its tenant’s lease renewal under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 where redevelopment of the site was to be undertaken by a third party. Background The case of Santander UK PLC v LPS Estates Ltd concerned the security of […]
Sunset of £500K, dawn of GDPR enforcement and horizon of Brexit
By JP Buckley In just a short space of time, the ever-evolving world of data protection and cyber has seen yet more change: 1. Potentially one of the last enforcement actions under the Data Protection Act 1998 against Equifax – and a maximum £500,000 fine for them for failing to secure UK citizens’ personal data against […]
Officer of judgment debtor can be committed for failure to provide information under CPR 71 – Court of Appeal
Deutsche Bank AG v Mr Alexander Vik [2018] EWCA Civ 2011 This judgment is the latest instalment in the long-running litigation between Deutsche Bank (“DB”) and the Monaco-based billionaire, Alexander Vik. In 2008, Mr Vik’s personal investment vehicle, Sebastian Holdings, Inc. (“SHI”), incurred huge debts to DB after it made a series of heavily loss […]
BVI to implement changes to rules governing SPCs registered under BCA
By Michael Killourhy The British Virgin Islands (BVI) will shortly implement some important changes to the rules governing segregated portfolio companies (SPCs) incorporated or registered under the BVI Business Companies Act, 2004 (BCA). These changes, introduced by the BVI Business Companies (Amendment) Act, 2018 (the 2018 BCA Amendment Act) will come into force on 1 October […]
Relevant loans – HMRC Update
By Aidan Grant HMRC has updated its guidance regarding relevant loans, which may have a significant impact on the wider use of debt financing in offshore estate planning. The industry was just coming to terms with the idea that, where money is made available under a loan for the purpose of (generally speaking) purchasing a UK residential […]
Premium pricing does not signify dominant position
By Manas Kumar Chaudhuri, Ebaad Nawaz Khan The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on 9 July 2018 closed a case involving allegations of abuse of dominant position against Merlin Developers, Merlin Projects Limited (Merlin Developers and Merlin Projects Limited have been collectively referred to as Merlin), Merlin group companies and their office bearers (In Re: Cambridge […]
NCLT widens approval of schemes under Provisions of the Companies Act 2013
By Mehul Shah, Sanket Shah, Aman Yagnik The Chennai Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has recently approved the merger of a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) with a private limited company (Scheme). This newsflash analyses key aspects of the NCLT order permitting the aforesaid merger. Background Under a joint company petition filed before the […]
Video: The evolution of project management in litigation
By Michael Quartararo, Jason Reid From beginning to end, litigation is time consuming, complicated and costly. More and more clients are demanding increased transparency and efficiency from their external counsel. So how do you deliver? Project management tools can improve results and strengthen client relationships. Watch our webinar as we discuss: – The rise of project management […]
Nucleus Research benefit report – Addleshaw Goddard
Addleshaw Goddard uses the HighQ platform to improve productivity, security and add value to its client services. After deploying HighQ AG saw improvements in efficiency, risk management, client engagement and brand visibility across all areas of the company. Clients of Addleshaw Goddard also benefit from a contract management solution the firm developed with the HighQ […]
Starting Point Employment Law Guide – Jersey Update – September 2018
By Siobhan Riley, Huw Thomas, Tarina Le Boutillier Whilst in the UK changes to employment legislation generally happen in April, major changes to Jersey employment law have in recent years occurred in September. September 2018 is no exception and will arguably be the busiest September for Jersey HR professionals for some years. There is a raft of changes […]
Video: How to health check the anatomy of your legal matters
By Rob MacAdam With clients expecting more efficiency, transparency and value from their lawyers, it’s time for law firms to re-engineer their legal service delivery into real competitive advantage. In this video, Rob MacAdam, Director of Legal Solutions, identifies six elements that make up the anatomy of a legal matter, and discusses what improvements can be […]