Redundancies, restrictive covenants and unions – why employment work is surging in the UK right now

Redundancies, restrictive covenants and unions – why employment work is surging in the UK right now

A dynamic and highly active space, employment law is on the cusp of a changing world. The economic climate, new technology, government policy and recent case law precedents have ensured that employment is one of the busier practice areas in 2023. Across litigation and non-contentious work, change is in motion, and the spotlight on this area will continue to grow as the 2020s progress.

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Under the lens: the rise of senior investigations

Under the lens: the rise of senior investigations

Driven by the coalescing forces of greater employee willingness to raise grievances, heightened interest from regulators and the desire of employers and shareholders to maintain company reputations and safe working environments, conduct investigations into senior employees are more common than ever before. Against this backdrop, it is crucial that in-house legal teams are aware of both when and how to run an investigation process, as well as the likely ramifications.

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The Legal 500 view: Employment

The Legal 500 view: Employment

Howard Kennedy, Dentons and Mishcon de Reya have emerged as some of the firms doing the best job at keeping their London employment clients satisfied, according to new research from The Legal 500 that canvassed the opinions of hundreds of clients.

Howard Kennedy, Dentons and Penningtons Manches Cooper top a table of firms achieving the highest overall client service scores for London employer work, with Mishcon, Shoosmiths and CM Murray among other firms achieving high enough scores to appear within the top ten. Continue reading “The Legal 500 view: Employment”

Perspectives: Clare Murray, CM Murray

Perspectives: Clare Murray, CM Murray

When you began your legal career, why did you choose employment law?

The 1990s felt like the Golden Age of employment law – employment protections were expanding rapidly (thanks to Europe), opportunities for pushing the boundaries and progressing in employment law seemed limitless; even the Prime Minister and his wife were employment lawyers. All of life was in employment law – power imbalances, relationship struggles, societal prejudices and biases, human ambition, vulnerability and frailties, and so much more. It was the most exciting area of law to go into at that time (and probably still is now), and everyone wanted to be an employment lawyer. I was lucky enough to have great mentors and sponsors who supported my progress and gave me international work that I loved, fantastic opportunities to learn, and, in time, the potential to travel. Employment law opened doors for me that I never expected and which, to this day, I genuinely appreciate. Continue reading “Perspectives: Clare Murray, CM Murray”

Alphas revisited: Women deal stars five years on

Alphas revisited: Women deal stars five years on

‘There is still fundamentally an issue with how women are perceived in the legal market and how well they can traverse the seniority ranks. It says a lot more about our profession than it does about women.’ So argues Tamara Box, Reed Smith’s former Europe and Middle East managing partner and now head of structured finance.

The outlook now, while not exactly bleak, is not as bullish as it should be. Continue reading “Alphas revisited: Women deal stars five years on”

Alphas revisited: Private equity stars

Alphas revisited: Private equity stars

Victoria Sigeti, Freshfields

Legal Business first named Freshfields’ Victoria Sigeti a rising star in 2016 while only a year into partnership. Judging by the sheer volume of plaudits she receives for her work in the most competitive product line in City law, she has now well and truly, well… risen. Continue reading “Alphas revisited: Private equity stars”