The acquisition by comparethemarket.com owners BGL Group of leading personal injury (PI) firm Minster Law last week should be seen as a sign that the PI market is far from in tatters, according to Minster Law’s chairman, Adrian Christmas.
Minster Law is one of the UK’s largest road traffic accident (RTA) personal injury practices, employing over 800 people and handling more than 40,000 personal injury claims in the last financial year, making it the largest outright sale of a UK firm to date.
International dispute resolution law firm Kennedys and rated aviation and aerospace outfit Gates and Partners have merged in a move designed to achieve ‘an even greater international platform’ and strengthen their offering to global insurance and reinsurance clients.
The merger, which went live on 1 June, will enable Kennedy’s to offer comprehensive legal support to the aviation sector including corporate and commercial, regulatory and competition, employment, finance, insurance and dispute resolution services. The merger will also give an expanded platform to the already international Gates team, which has offices in London, Brussels, Singapore and Dubai. The merged firm will be known as Kennedys and the new team will operate as Kennedys Aviation.
One of the most touted legal mergers of the last decade today (3 June) goes live with Norton Rose and US partner Fulbright & Jaworski unveiling a full governance team for the combined practice.
Norton Rose Fulbright confirmed the make-up of its global executive committee and group-wide supervisory board, with Fulbright managing partner Kenneth Stewart joining the executive committee.
Five partners from the Houston-based law firm join the 20-strong executive body, with six members on the oversight team.
Addleshaw Goddard today (31 May) became one of the first major UK law firms to announce its 2012/13 financial results, confirming that revenue has dipped by 2% to £167m against its previous financial year. The top 25 UK law firm saw profits per equity (PEP) partner edge up 2% to £457,000.
Despite the generally subdued outlook and weak demand in the UK market the performance will be viewed as disappointing for Addleshaws, which has struggled to achieve sustained growth over the last five years.
Eversheds has shaken up its sector focus as part of a series of measures introduced by management to adapt to changing client demand and the increased globalisation of legal services.
Following a three-year strategy review unveiled by chief executive Bryan Hughes in July last year, the top 10 UK firm is focusing heavily on increased integration and branding between its international offices and has this month created four new global sectors.
The steady stream of job cuts seen through May continued this week with the rapidly-assembled national player DWF confirming it has put around 80 roles at risk in a review of the business. The move comes only two months after a previous consultation put 99 jobs under threat following DWF’s recent run of five acquisitions culminated earlier this year in taking on 419 staff from the collapsing Cobbetts.
Expectations that law firms would come under mounting pressure to avoid compulsory retirement of partners have been once again upset as the final chapter in a much-watched legal battle over age discrimination concluded this week.
The Employment Tribunal (ET) made a final rejection of a claim by solicitor Leslie Seldon against his former law firm Clarkson Wright & Jakes (CWJ) that he suffered age discrimination in being required to retire at the age of 65.
It was the most controversial piece of legislation aimed at corporates to emerge in the last decade and, in a slow news week at least, the Bribery Act is still generating headlines amid signals that the government is flirting with watering down the anti-corruption law.
A report in the Financial Times indicates that a review of the act is likely to be announced in July following recommendations from the so-called ‘Star Chamber’ – a government working party hunting the Snark that is cutting red tape.
Ashurst and Nabarro‘s real estate teams have secured a role on the sale of another landmark London building, while King & Spalding has furthered its transatlantic ambitions by closing a sizeable European M&A pharma deal.
In the £225m sale of 10 Paternoster Square, home of the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Nabarro advised the seller, Tokyo-headquartered Mitsubishi Estate Company (MEC), led by rated real estate partner Deborah Parry.
Here’s a question that’s been bothering me of late – what, exactly, is a quality legal service? You’ll have noticed that this phrase has become so common that it no longer requires an adjective (unless it’s poor quality). Many seem to think that if you say often enough that you provide one, it must be true.
It has come to the fore with the debate over criminal legal aid. First there is the Quality Assurance Scheme for Advocates (QASA). This elides ‘quality’ with competence. ‘The aim of QASA,’ says the application to the Legal Services Board for approval of the scheme, ‘is to assess and assure the competence of all advocates conducting criminal advocacy in courts in England and Wales.’
