The Legal Services Act (LSA) has always been associated with personal injury (PI) powerhouses Irwin Mitchell and Russell Jones & Walker, both of which have big post-LSA ambitions. But smaller firms are also looking for new ways to access the consumer market, and a number of online services are emerging with the specific aim of […]
Mishcon de Reya has signed up to a legal advice helpline, with two of its lawyers giving advice via online business support site Smarta. It marks a change of direction for the West End firm, which has a large private client and litigation client base. Managing partner Kevin Gold said partner Nick Davis had originally […]
Shoosmiths is looking at separating its volume business from the commercial part of the firm, with the aim of having two standalone brands. The move, which is subject ;to ;a ;partner consultation, comes as competition in the volume sector escalates, with firms looking to establish the first post-Legal Services Act brand. Shoosmiths ;chief executive Paul […]
Clarke Willmott has boosted its social housing group by recruiting Ann Hayward, an Eversheds partner of 16 years. She joins the firm as a specialist consultant on social housing finance. It is Clarke Willmott’s second major hire of 2009. Last month the Birmingham-headquartered firm recruited Bevan Brittan head of tax Christine McElroy as a partner. […]
Chambers 39 Essex Street is to join with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) to help it promote mediation as opposed to litigation. The not-for-profit organisation counts Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Herbert Smith among its supporters. Chambers director Michael Meeson said it was a “natural move to show our leadership and continuing […]
The term ‘glass ceiling’ was coined to refer to situations where qualified and capable individuals are blocked from advancing through the hierarchy of an organisation. Whether referring to a job in a corporate, a law firm or the bar, the term usually denotes an invisible barrier founded in discrimination, commonly based on gender or ethnicity. […]
An Allen & Overy (A&O) senior associate who was sacked for gross misconduct after publishing an erotic novel online has vowed to take legal action against the firm. Deidre Dare was sacked without notice from A&O’s Moscow office several weeks after the firm stopped her from publishing further instalments of her erotic novel Expat: A […]
Rosenblatt Solicitors has hired Nabarro partner Andrew Kinsey to head up its real estate division. Kinsey, ;who ;joined Nabarro as a partner from Linklaters in 2002, will lead a team of two partners, one assistant and two associates. Rosenblatts ;senior partner Ian Rosenblatt said: “We’re using the current economic environment to hire people of exceptional […]
Pinsent Masons and Mills & Reeve have landed spots on Trafficmaster’s legal panel, knocking previous advisers ;Addleshaw Goddard and Lewis Silkin off the list. After a competitive tender between the two winning firms and the duo that lost out, Pinsent Masons was appointed primary legal adviser to Trafficmaster, a listed driving ;services ;and navigation company. […]
Harbottle & Lewis has hired rated employment expert Howard Hymanson from Blake Lapthorn. Hymanson joins as co-head of the employment department, leading the group with Marian Derham. He is the external lawyer of choice for Gillian Switalski, an ex-employee of F&C Asset Management who is claiming £19m compensation for workplace sex discrimination. Hymanson’s practice focuses […]
Slaughter and May has completed the biggest deal of the football transfer window, securing Russian star Andrei Arshavin for Arsenal. Slaughters ;partner Andrew Jolly advised Arsenal on the protracted £15m transfer from Zenit Saint Petersburg, which was not confirmed by the Premier League until the day after the transfer window closed. Jolly told The Lawyer: […]
Ashurst has won a major Islamic finance instruction, advising on the creation of a $1bn (£700m) offshore sukuk programme. Ashurst Islamic finance partner Abradat Kamalpour advised Gatehouse Bank as arranger and dealer on the Islamic bond. Milestone Capital, the Jersey-based vehicle issuing the sukuk, instructed offshore firm Carey Olsen partners Alan Stevens and Mark Keeler. […]