Graham Vinter set to retire as BG Group appoints a new GC

Posted on |

In-house heavyweight Graham Vinter is set to retire as the general counsel (GC) of BG Group later this year, with Norwegian aluminium manufacturer Sapa’s GC, Tom Melbye Eide, lined up to take on the role from 1 September.

Vinter joined BG Group in 2007 after 27 years with Allen & Overy (A&O), including two decades as a partner and acting as the Magic Circle firm’s global head of projects from 1996 to 2007. BG Group’s legal team currently comprises 82 lawyers and recently worked on the $5bn sale of its Australian gas pipeline network to APA Group.

Continue reading “Graham Vinter set to retire as BG Group appoints a new GC”

Gender diversity improves as law firms make bumper partner promotions

Posted on |

The annual round of partner promotions at City firms looked a lot more international this year as Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Slaughter and May, Addleshaw Goddard, Mishcon de Reya and Pinsent Masons announced who made the grade, while there were also signs the profession is improving its gender diversity record.

Slaughter and May, which last year made up its highest number of international promotions as it elected three Hong Kong associates to partner, made up four partners as part of its London round. With law firms under pressure and pushing to improve gender diversity, this latest round puts the firm in good stead to achieve a more balanced partnership in the years to come, with two of those made up being women. Last year three out of seven London promotions were female.

Continue reading “Gender diversity improves as law firms make bumper partner promotions”

DLA Piper’s Canada merger to build on west coast roots and target Toronto

Posted on |

DLA Piper ended its long wait to seal a merger in Canada last month after partners at Vancouver-based Davis voted to become the 33rd country in the firm’s sprawling empire.

The merger, due to complete this month, will add around 250 Canadian lawyers, including 112 partners, to DLA Piper’s 4,000-lawyer operation. While it is used to seeing the international LLP of DLA making acquisitions, the deal is the largest carried out by the US LLP and the Canadian firm will operate in a verein structure with the US branch.

Continue reading “DLA Piper’s Canada merger to build on west coast roots and target Toronto”

Winston & Strawn pulls in corporate and finance teams

Posted on |

Mass hire from Pillsbury sees 15 partners defect.

Winston & Strawn, which had been looking to bolster its finance and corporate teams, pulled it off in a single move last month by hiring 15 Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman partners across five offices. The bulk of the hires were senior figures, including global finance chief Mats Carlston and London-based co-head of energy, infrastructure and projects, James Simpson.

Continue reading “Winston & Strawn pulls in corporate and finance teams”

Q&A: Mishcon de Reya’s Kevin Gold talks peers, New York and international strategy

Posted on |

High-flying City firm Mishcon de Reya recently kicked off a review of its strategy, aiming to create a ten-year vision. Managing partner Kevin Gold, last month named Management Partner of the Year at the Legal Business Awards, talks to Sarah Downey about the firm’s future as a limited liability partnership, its Manhattan struggles and his leadership style.

***

Continue reading “Q&A: Mishcon de Reya’s Kevin Gold talks peers, New York and international strategy”

Gibson Dunn partner suspended after misleading High Court

Posted on |

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher partner Peter Gray was found to have deliberately misled the High Court regarding evidence presented in a case between the Republic of Djibouti and Abdourahman Boreh, one of the African country’s wealthiest citizens.

In a ruling handed down last month, Justice Flaux said: ‘I find that Mr Gray engaged in a strategy of equivocation and evasion which was not one which any reputable and honest solicitor could ever have adopted and the concept of “acceptable evasion” is clearly anathema to the standards of professional conduct to be expected of an officer of the court.’

Continue reading “Gibson Dunn partner suspended after misleading High Court”

Links, A&O and HSF win roles on Sabadell’s £1.7bn TSB takeover

Posted on |

Less than a year after Lloyds floated TSB Bank, Linklaters, Allen & Overy (A&O) and Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) all secured instructions on its high-profile takeover by Spain’s Banco Sabadell.

Taxpayer-backed lender Lloyds Banking Group formalised the 340p-a-share offer in March and agreed to sell its 50% stake in TSB. The deal values TSB, which is already the UK’s seventh-largest retail bank with 4.5 million customers, at £1.7bn.

Continue reading “Links, A&O and HSF win roles on Sabadell’s £1.7bn TSB takeover”

Cross-border £1.1bn Liberty Living deal sees raft of firms pick up mandates

Posted on |

The trend of foreign money flowing into the UK real estate market continued last month. This time the investment came from Canada and saw a raft of Legal Business 100 and international law firms pick up advisory roles.

Nabarro, Clifford Chance (CC), Pinsent Masons, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, Dechert and Canadian firm Stikeman Elliott won roles advising on the £1.1bn acquisition of UK student accommodation provider Liberty Living by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB).

Continue reading “Cross-border £1.1bn Liberty Living deal sees raft of firms pick up mandates”

Deal watch: Corporate activity in March 2015

Posted on |

CC, LINKLATERS AND LATHAM & WATKINS WIN KEY ROLES ON PIRELLI TAKEOVER

Advised by Clifford Chance (CC), China National Chemical Corporation bought tyre-maker Pirelli in a $7.7bn deal. The Chinese company acquired a 26.2% stake from Camfin, which was advised by Chiomenti, while Lombardi Molinari Segni handled financing aspects and Linklaters advised fellow investor Long Term Investments. Latham & Watkins advised underwriters JP Morgan.

 

Continue reading “Deal watch: Corporate activity in March 2015”

Latham halves its offices in the Middle East

Posted on |

DWF picks Dubai for first international office and puts three-year growth plan in place

With just 35 lawyers spread across four offices, Latham & Watkins admitted last month it had made a mistake in how it launched in the Middle East in 2008, and told staff in Abu Dhabi and Doha that their offices will close by the end of the year with the firm using Dubai and Riyadh to service the region.

Continue reading “Latham halves its offices in the Middle East”