Simmons & Simmons, Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), Bond Dickinson and Reed Smith are among 24 firms to win a place on Lloyds Banking Group’s (LBG) specialist sub panel, which sits below the bank’s main core roster of eight firms.
It is understood that the firms on the specialist panel can be supported at times by the bank’s core firms on more specialist pieces of work. The bank’s core firms are: Addleshaw Goddard, Allen & Overy, Ashurst, CMS Cameron McKenna, Eversheds, Herbert Smith Freehills, Hogan Lovells and Linklaters.
In addition, firms are gearing up to pitch for Lloyds’ commercial banking panel, which is due to start shortly and is expected to include about 80 – 100 firms.
Speaking to Legal Business, one law firm partner said: ‘The main panel allows us to do work for pretty much everything. There are sub panels within the main panel and if you are appointed to the main panel you know which sub panels you are on. But then there are additional firms that are not on the main panel, which also get appointed to sub panels.
‘The banking pass through panel is different – it is much bigger and that process hasn’t started yet although it is due to start shortly.’
In a statement, a spokesperson from LBG said: ‘Following a rigorous and competitive tender process, the list of the group’s specialist legal panel was finalised in December 2016. The panel will include 24 firms which have been designated as specialist because they are able to offer services which are fully aligned to the needs of our group’s businesses. As previously announced, we will be announcing our specialist firms for our commercial banking division during the first half of 2017.’
LBG finalised its UK legal roster in October last year with DLA Piper and Norton Rose Fulbright losing their spots as the bank’s core panel shrunk from ten to eight firms.
kathryn.mcann@legalease.co.uk
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