Dundas departures reflect pressure on Scots firms

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Dundas & Wilson has confirmed the departure of three more partners from the firm’s London arm. Corporate partners Julian Mathews and Simon Sale, along with banking and finance partner Michael Wrigley, have decided to leave the Scots leader, which has faced a difficult few years by any yardstick.

These moves, which were confirmed in February, compound an unsettled time for the firm’s London office. The City practice last year saw Martin Thomas, one of its top litigators, leave for Wragge & Co, along with banking partner John Pike, who quit for Osborne Clarke. More recent senior departures include TMT partner Paul Graham, who left for Field Fisher Waterhouse, while real estate partner Nick Padget left for Osborne Clarke. The latest departures have raised familiar questions about the firm’s London ambitions.

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Leverage starts to resurface in dormant market

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Liberty Global’s $23.3bn acquisition of Virgin Media and Dell’s proposed $24.4bn leveraged buyout have deal finance advisers asking whether this is a signal that leveraged buyout deals are making a comeback.

The pair of mega deals were announced last month within weeks of each other and have handed roles to a raft of advisers on both sides of the Atlantic.

Virgin Media turned to New York firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson for M&A advice, with senior counsel Arthur Fleischer Jr on the US corporate side and London corporate partner Richard May on the UK aspects.
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Pinsents launches flexi-lawyer service for clients

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Pinsent Masons is set to launch a contract lawyer service that will provide clients with access to lawyers on a temporary basis as and when they are needed.

‘Vario’ will offer in-house teams a group of freelance lawyers with a variety of experience to cover anything from fixed-term projects to maternity leave. The move follows clients’ increased demand for flexible lawyers and addresses the core issues of resource, cost and skills that often affect the in-house legal teams.

Pinsents partner Alison Bond, who heads Vario, said: ‘Clients are increasingly asking for access to flexible resources. However, we wanted to take the idea a step further and launch the next generation of this type of service. Continue reading “Pinsents launches flexi-lawyer service for clients”

FFW and Travers Smith shake up senior roles

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City firms Field Fisher Waterhouse (FFW) and Travers Smith have overhauled senior management, with each seeing new appointments to the top roles.

Head of technology and outsourcing Michael Chissick has been named FFW’s new managing partner, replacing Matthew Lohn, who will take up the re-introduced role of senior partner.

Chissick said: ‘I am leading the firm through a transformation. We want to move away from the negative market perception and create a firm culture that is modern and forward thinking.’

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HSF sees more City departures but secures German launch

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Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) has been hit by a string of key departures from its lucrative disputes practice.

Simon Bushell, who co-chaired the corporate fraud and asset tracing group at HSF, is set to join Latham & Watkins’ City office imminently. His departure marks the fourth high-profile litigation exit since the start of the year after Martyn Hopper, who was head of the firm’s successful financial services regulation practice, and Nikunj Kiri both left for Linklaters in January.

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Litigation market polarised as Jackson reforms take effect

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With the Jackson reforms recently instigated, the market is divided about how the introduction of damages-based agreements (DBAs) will impact the litigation market.

Under the reforms, which came into effect on 1 April, litigators will be allowed to accept cases under DBAs for the first time. However, litigators say the lack of clarity about how the new rules work will inhibit their use.

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SJ Berwin is latest international arrival in Luxembourg

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SJ Berwin announced the opening of its twelth office in Luxembourg at the start of the year, in what was described as an ‘obvious’ choice of jurisdiction for the firm given the strength of its European fund formation practice.

The firm launched its office through the hire of two new partners: former Allen & Overy (A&O) lawyer Alexandrine Armstrong-Cerfontaine and tax specialist Geoffrey Scardoni, from Benelux firm Loyens & Loeff. Armstrong-Cerfontaine said the new office would focus on corporate, finance, private equity, funds and tax, and concentrate on building its relationships across the region.

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TNK-BP takeover saga ends in largest Russian deal ever

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The ongoing battle over what was to become of Russian oil joint venture (JV) TNK-BP finally concluded at the end of 2012, in one of the largest M&A deals of the year. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Linklaters all played lead roles on TNK-BP’s multibillion-dollar sale to Russian state-owned oil giant Rosneft in December.

The deal has made Rosneft, advised by Cleary, the largest listed oil company in the world. However BP, represented by Linklaters, still has an almost 20% stake in the company after negotiating a cash plus shares sale worth $27bn. Continue reading “TNK-BP takeover saga ends in largest Russian deal ever”

General counsel pay still bolstered by bonus culture

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The bonus, not the pay rise, was how companies rewarded the efforts of their general counsel (GC) in 2012. This reflects a changing rewards system for GCs, and caution from the managers who employ them.

These are the findings from two recent studies on wages for in-house lawyers. The first survey from UK employment research organisation, Incomes Data Services (IDS), showed average pay increases fell below the retail prices index last year.

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No let up for Libor claims as FSA issues record fines

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With the Financial Services Authority (FSA) issuing a record £300m of total fines in the UK in 2012, up from £65.5m in 2011, litigation teams in the City are predicting a further surge in banking litigation in 2013 thanks to the Libor scandal.

Barclays’ fine of £59.9m in June was dwarfed by UBS’ £160m fine in December. Clifford Chance and Sullivan & Cromwell were brought in to advise Barclays, while Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher advised UBS in both the US and the UK.

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