It was a busy week for UK and US deal counsel as Travers Smith and Ashurst acted on multibillion-pound deals north of the channel and White & Case and Ropes & Gray landed key mandates in continental Europe. Again acting well above its traditional mid-market territory, Travers advised IT company Micro Focus on the $2.5bn sale of open source …
Latham & Watkins is sticking to London for its new chair and managing partner, electing deal finance heavyweight Richard Trobman to the role. Previously the firm’s co-vice chair, Trobman will step into the role immediately, bringing to an end a three-month long search for a successor to Bill Voge, who resigned from the firm in March …
Continue reading “London rules again as Latham elects deal finance guru Trobman as new chief”
Another year of international expansion has seen the 27th consecutive year of revenue growth for Bird & Bird as the firm posted a 6% rise to €382.3m and an 11% hike in sterling terms to £337m, as Gordon Dadds passed the £30m mark in its first results since its public listing. In what chief executive …
Baker McKenzie has promoted six in the City as part of a scaled down global promotion round which saw 68 lawyers minted, 15% fewer than last year’s 80. Together with 53 laterals during this financial year, the promotions mean partner numbers at the firm hit 1,600.
Hogan Lovells is to cut 54 business support jobs from its City arm as the firm moves to expand its low-cost hubs around the world. The Anglo-American law firm announced today (20 June) that most of the roles have been moved to its low cost centres in Johannesburg and Louisville, and a new business support …
Marco Cillario sizes up the pros and cons for legal advisers of the current ICO boom ‘We are in an odd position: we feel we need to be closely involved in this, but there is a reputational risk because there is a lot of fraud.’ Understandably, the partner expressing this view does not want himself …
The mood among most managing partners at independent law firms from Lisbon to Moscow is certainly upbeat. And for good reason. Our third Euro Elite survey shows overall revenues of continental Europe’s 25 top independents had a strong year, reaching €4.04bn. The number is only marginally up on last year’s €4.03bn, but with smaller outfits …
Continue reading “Europe’s elite continues robust performance as multi-site firms prosper”
Recent announcements from Linklaters and CMS have provided a fillip to international firms looking to gain a surer footing in China. Linklaters announced in May that it had finally received the green light to practise Chinese law through a joint operations agreement with Shanghai outfit Zhao Sheng Law Firm.
Ten years after acquiring Pret A Manger in a deal worth £350m, private equity house Bridgepoint is selling it for more than four times its original investment and providing City firms with big mandates. Luxembourg-headquartered JAB Holding Company, an investment firm owned by Germany’s Reimann family, is to buy the food chain for £1.5bn.
Looking out of the window of his office overlooking the picturesque Piazza del Duomo on a rainy April afternoon, one veteran Milan partner is feeling sentimental: ‘I remember the firms that used to dominate the market back when I started – Graziadei, Carnelutti, Pavia Ansaldo. No-one hears of them anymore.’ What on the surface seems …
