The conclusion of Lord Saville’s inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday has brought into sharp focus the need to reduce both the cost and duration of public inquiries, according to some of lawyers involved. At a total cost of just under £200m, with 2,500 written witness statements and almost 1,000 oral testimonies, the inquiry […]
DLA Piper has failed to quash an Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) case from a former lawyer and will now have to re-defend a mental health discrimination claim in the Employment Tribunal. The claimant, known as ’J’, brought an action against the firm under the Disability Discrimination Act (2005), but was told that she was not […]
The London office of Hogan Lovells has suffered its first high-level departure since the 1 May merger of Hogan & Hartson and Lovells, with partner Garry Pegg set to join US firm King & Spalding. Pegg, who was managing partner of Hogan’s City office and is currently co-chair of Hogan Lovells’ global energy and natural […]
Herbert Smith and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom have won the leading roles on News Corp’s £7.8bn bid to buy up the remaining shares in BSkyB. Herbert Smith corporate partners Malcolm Lombers and Stephen Wilkinson are leading for longstanding client BSkyB on the M&A front, with additional input from competition partner Elizabeth McKnight and […]
Former Harbottle & Lewis managing partner Lawrence Abramson has joined Fladgate’s media and entertainment practice. Abramson was a litigation partner at Harbottle for 12 years and managing partner from 2005-08, representing clients in the music, television, film, publishing and sports industries. Fladgate head of litigation Simon Ekins said: “His [Abramson] practice is an excellent fit […]
Clifford Chance has elected global litigation chief Jeremy Sandelson to head its London litigation practice. The move follows former London litigation head Nick Munday’s relocation to Moscow earlier this year (19 April 2010). It will be the second time that Sandelson has landed the London litigation role. He previously led the group before becoming London […]
CLIFFORD Chance has lost the global head of its European competition and regulation group, with partner Simon Baxter defecting to US firm Skadden. The Brussels-based lawyer, a Clifford Chance partner since 1998, resigned last Friday (11 June). He is expected to start work at Skadden later this month. Shepard Goldfein, the head of Skadden’s global antitrust […]
Global management consultancy and outsourcing and technology company Accenture is preparing to overhaul its legal roster. As part of a regular three-year review, UK general counsel Patrick Rowe is drawing up a list of firms, with a view to asking them to pitch for the new panel. Past advisers to the $21.6bn (£14.8bn) business have […]
Addleshaw Goddard has appointed Jonathan Watson as legal director of its financial regulation practice. Move of the week He joins the firm from UBS, where he was managing director and head of legal and compliance. David Heffron, head of Addleshaws’ financial regulationteam, said: “Jonathan’s hands-on practical experience of the issues faced by general counsel […]
This week we’re running an exclusive interview (here) with Andrew Rimmington, the Dorsey & Whitney partner who was charged with insider dealing by the FSA, but who was acquitted. It’s essential reading for anyone whose work brings them into contact with the regulatory authorities – and indeed, even those whose doesn’t, since the wheels of […]
Chicago firm emulates Weil Gotshal with UK investment. The big splash hires of Ashurst corporate partners Gavin Gordon and David Arnold by Kirkland & Ellis (TheLawyer.com, 1 June) has all the hallmarks of a new chapter for the Chicago-headquartered firm’s City office. The firm’s last big-hitting private equity appointments were those of Raymond McKeeve […]
The Lawyer Debate on Dispute Resolution, 8 June 2010: THE LAWYER’s first town hall debate on dispute resolution took place last week (8 June), with a stellar panel and an audience of general counsel and City litigators. Chairing the debate was Clifford Chance commercial litigation head Simon Davis, who began by asking the panel (see […]