Two features this month focus on firms that have dusted themselves down and have come back fighting. For markedly different reasons, both Clifford Chance and Bristows have returned from positions of perceived weakness to enjoy something of a renaissance post-economic crisis.
In 2012 Clifford Chance was one of the stronger performers in a UK Global Elite that has been pretty beleaguered of late. Its performance in the most recent LB100 outstripped its rivals, posting a 7% growth in turnover and a 9% rise in profit per lawyer. But in particular, its corporate practice enjoyed a very strong 2012, topping mergermarket’s M&A tables for deals by value right up until the end of the year until Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom posted a trio of high-value deals in December.
All this comes after the corporate team limped behind rivals in 2008, where it ranked tenth in the league tables by value. In 2010 average deal size was just £336m compared to nearly £800m last year as the firm suffered from an over-reliance on financial services clients. In ‘Stepping up’ (page 24) we chart the rise of the corporate practice under head Matthew Layton since 2009.
Bristows’ mini crisis in 2007/08 was far more localised and specific, much like the nature of the firm itself. The firm fell out of the LB100 in 2008 on the back of falling revenues as other firms were still making money hand over fist. This was preceded by around a quarter of its tiny all-equity partnership quitting the firm the year before. While the bad times may have been little more than a blip, the firm’s rise since 2008, in one of the most difficult periods for the legal profession, has been particularly startling. It was one of the top performers across the entire LB100 in 2012 – jumping ten spots up the table on the back of a 27% increase in turnover, while profit per lawyer swelled by 40% – all achieved organically. In ‘Geek chic’ (page 44) we meet the co-managing partners, Iain Redford and Mark Watts, of this unusual, pure lockstep firm, and ask whether its recent success is attributable to good fortune, strategic management or both, and whether the strong performance is sustainable.
One practice area that looks to be sustainable for the long term is white-collar crime, particularly given the level of regulatory scrutiny on financial institutions and as more evidence emerges of unacceptable practices during the boom years. In ‘Committed to crime’ (page 30), we look at how large City firms have been muscling in on work that has traditionally been the preserve of boutique criminal law specialists.