UK gaming and amusement machine operator Danoptra Holdings has snared Halliwells head of gambling law Nick Hawkins to take the newly created role of director of legal services. Danoptra, the parent company of Gamestec Leisure and Bell-Fruit Group, created the role to ensure that the group meets all statutory requirements and is compliant with gambling […]
Dewey & LeBoeuf in New York has hired a Weil Gotshal & Manges restructuring team headed by partner Martin Bienenstock. The hire of such a significant team from one of the world’s leading restructuring firms is a real coup for Dewey & LeBoeuf at a time when a wave of insolvencies are expected as the […]
The Legal Services Commission takes a blow as the court of appeal supporting the Law Society’s view that the unified contract for civil legal aid breached EU law. The Legal Services Commission (LSC) was dealt a blow today (29 November) with the court of appeal supporting the Law Society’s view that the unified contract for […]
Herbert Smith has advised JPMorgan Securities and China International Capital Corporation (CICC) on the $1.16bn (£0.56bn) global offering of shares in Chinese truck manufacturers Sinotruk. JPMorgan and CICC were the joint global coordinators and book runners on the transaction and turned to Herbert Smith following its work on past transactions in the sector. “The Sinotruk […]
The BPI, the industry group for UK record companies, has finally ended its search for a new general counsel, hiring Kiaron Whitehead from litigation firm Forbes Anderson Free. Whitehead will take over the role in March 2008 from Simon Baggs, a partner at media firm Wiggin who has filled the position temporarily as acting general […]
Aluminium giant Rusal has turned to the familiar pairing of Ashurst and Russian firm Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners (EPAP) to guide it through its first major M&A deal since its 2006 tripartite merger with Sual and Glencore. Rusal has bought a 25 per cent stake in Norlisk, the world’s largest nickel producer. It bought […]
Lord Neuberger wants to see law taught as part of the national curriculum and external funding made available for pupillages as part of wide-reaching proposals to reform entry to the bar. Neuberger’s working party today (27 November) published 57 recommendations for reform after working on the project for 14 months. The report urges wide-ranging measures […]
Last month saw a US Court of Appeals decision that could have implications not only for a significant number of the world’s leading multinationals, but also for the US itself. Cravath Swaine & Moore led the charge for the defendants, while litigators from Cohen Milstein Hausfeld & Toll (including Michael Hausfeld) represented the plaintiffs. At […]
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) will today (26 November) put its recommendations to the government to encourage private competition actions. Today’s recommendations follow more than six months of consultation with businesses, law firms and consumer groups after the OFT published a discussion paper on private actions in April (see www.thelawyer.com, 18 April). OFT chairman […]
Google has hired a new general counsel to head its growing UK legal team, snapping up Expedia’s rated European legal chief Luisa Edwards. Edwards will oversee the expansion of Google’s legal team in the UK. More hires are likely to follow for Google in Europe as the company searches for legal chiefs in Amsterdam, Madrid, […]
Credit crunch hits; firm to hive off volume business post-Clementi Dickinson Dees axes 17 from Northern Rock team” />Newcastle’s largest firm Dickinson Dees has made 17 staff in its mortgages business redundant in reaction to the credit crunch and the sorrows of its biggest client Northern Rock as it gears up to reshape the business […]
City-based law firm Fox Williams is positioning itself to act for private clients against banks in the expected credit crunch fallout. Head of dispute resolution Tom Custance said very few City firms were able to act against the major banks. “There’s a perception that there’s nobody who can act for those who want to sue […]