Legal Business

Comment: Bespoke, mobile and plugged in: CMS’s Duncan Weston on the tech tools clients will demand

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Legal tech CMS UK
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Against a backdrop of a fast-changing technology environment; value-conscious clients, rising rents, and the need to provide meaningful alternative fee arrangements, law firms are being challenged to deliver innovative services and efficiencies like never before.

Embracing new technologies, LPOs and alternative business structures just goes with the territory.

Allocating work more efficiently is not just about reducing costs, it is a crucial way of maintaining client relationships during the early stages of representation. The role of legal process outsourcing and alternative business structures in this process is essential, having developed quickly over the past ten years to play a central role in law firms’ offerings.

It is not just about law firms adopting a sensible approach to the pricing of routine work. Today’s delivery model should be about delivering a high-quality service to clients in a more efficient way across the board.

But talk to any major technology provider and it is clear that the legal sector lags behind most business sectors when it comes to a willingness to invest in game-changing tech.

While most law firms recognise the need to move into a new IT era, the expense and change of mindset required to develop radical technology strategies means many top players still stop short of transformational change. Many firms’ technological aspirations have historically been restricted by their resources. Technologies are often incompatible between different departments, with upgrades made within the constraints of the firms’ existing IT infrastructure. This increases the cost of investment as new technologies outpace law firms’ abilities to use them without comprehensive structural upgrades.

Many law firms have been resistant to new technology, and are particularly lagging when it comes to the implementation of mobile and cloud services. Concerns over security explain some of this, but a propensity for firms to look towards other law firms for IT best practice as opposed to more progressive sectors is a decisive factor.

Two years ago we undertook a comprehensive review of our technological requirements to allow fee-earners and staff the ability to engage collaboratively and be more mobile. We felt we needed to embark upon a major step change relative to our peers; we wanted to move beyond the limits of a fixed desk and office hours mentality and allow our fee-earners to access all our business applications across multiple devices, 24/7. Our goal was to raise the quality and speed of client communication.

Our move into a new London HQ this summer was the catalyst for our implementation of new technologies, allowing us to reduce our space requirements by 30% yet increase fee-earner numbers by 20%.

All fee-earners have been issued with one of the most advanced laptops available, which can function as a touch screen and an app-based tablet device. They also have the latest mobile phone devices, enabling the provision of voice and video calls, web meetings, instant messaging, facilitating communication internally and externally.

The new office is all open-plan with fee-earners grouped according to practices and our core sectors. Having the space and flexibility to provide clients with exceptional service combined with the introduction of the most powerful, innovative technology available is having a major impact upon the way we work.

By embracing a hi-tech mobile working culture, our fee earners have all the tools they need to advise our clients instantly, anywhere in the world they happen to be. And by combining our new technology with an open-plan environment for all staff we are able to share knowledge and ideas with colleagues and devise more creative, innovative ways of servicing our clients.

This Generation Y mindset is helping to drive efficiencies across the firm as staff see the technological sophistication and flexibility they usually experience in their personal lives, reflected in the workplace.

IT now impacts upon and is transforming every facet of law firm activity from re-constituting the way legal processes are managed, developed and the level at which they are billed; enhancing and developing client relationships; enabling lawyers to advise a client anywhere and at any time and, ultimately, allowing firms to create bespoke systems to make them stand out in the eyes of clients.

As the development of new services and products continues apace, only those firms that are committed to true innovation and investment in new technology will gain what will be an increasingly powerful competitive advantage.

Duncan Weston is managing partner at CMS Cameron McKenna.

Legal Business

Voting with your feet: Nabarro and HFW pick BPP after Kaplan shuts law school

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Education CMS UKHolman Fenwick Willan
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After more than five years at Kaplan, both Nabarro and Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW) have opted for BPP as their Legal Practice Course (LPC) provider over the University of Law (ULaw).

A Nabarro spokesperson confirmed it had moved, saying it considered its options after Kaplan announced it would close its law school. The spokesperson said Nabarro was familiar with BPP from a recent close run tender, and the law school had offered it a ‘high-quality tailored qualification.’

‘As well as the quality of their LPC we are impressed that they can also offer our students the choice of obtaining a Masters through the LPC combined with additional learning on business and finance modules,’ the Nabarro spokesperson added.

HFW also said it would make the switch, having begun a review before the law school closed. It is understood the firm, which provided 15 students per year, was worth about 10% of Kaplan’s LPC revenues.

HFW graduate recruitment partner Toby Stephens said the firm was ‘surprised’ by Kaplan’s decision to move premises and said ‘the time was right’ for a review. Stephens said HFW knew Kaplan was in financial difficulty but did not know the extent to which it had lost clients.

‘There was nothing which prevented us from having a review and we probably should have done it the year before,’ Stephens said.

BPP edged out ULaw because of its optional modules and its better established insurance course, the recruitment partner commented. The City Law School was involved in the early stages of the tender for HFW’s trainees, but Stephens said its pricing was not competitive. 

BPP has been on quite a run in recent months, picking up Baker & McKenzie and White & Case from rival University of Law as well as Magic Circle duo Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance.

victoria.young@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

New endeavours: Olswang former head of corporate exits after 15 years as firm reveals new C-suite to boost growth

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Corporate CMS UK
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Olswang has had its fair share of departures these last 12 months with its former head of corporate Fabrizio Carpanini the latest to quit the firm, leaving after 15 years of serving the firm to ‘pursue new opportunities’. However, the firm has announced four management appointments in ‘a first and crucial step’ to boost growth.

Carpanini quit the firm after he officially stood down from leading Olswang’s corporate group in February this year and was replaced by senior corporate TMT partner Mark Bertram.

An Olswang spokesperson said: ‘Following some time off to reflect on what he wanted to do next in his career, we can confirm that corporate partner Fabrizio Carpanini will soon be pursuing new opportunities. We thank Fabrizio for his contributions to the firm and wish him well for the future.’

Fabrizio joined Olswang in 2000, and was appointed as the firm’s corporate head and member of the executive committee in 2007. His corporate focus covered finance, private equity deals, cross-border M&A, company and business sales and international joint ventures, with experience of advising both UK and US clients investing in the UK and Continental Europe.

During his tenure at Olswang, Fabrizio spearheaded the international corporate group which this year comprised around 35 partners and generated just under a third of total firm wide revenues in the last financial year. While it has been a year of management and team departures at Olswang, the firm did manage an 8% rise in revenues from £117.6m to £126.7m for the financial year 2014/15, while profits per equity partner held steady at £490,000. The firm also reported a significant improvement in its debt position, with net bank debt standing at £10.1m, down from £22m the year before.

Nonetheless, the firm lost its entire Berlin outpost in May, a 50-strong lawyer team including 14 partners, and which was recently shipped over to US firm Greenberg Traurig as it launched its first office in Germany.

The firm also saw its former private equity head Stephen Rosen leave in March for Cooley while its C-suite has been hit by departures including general counsel Simon Callander and global director of human resources Ffion Griffith.

However, Olswang revealed today replacements for that senior management team as it looked to kick-start a three-year strategy. Neil Morling is joining the firm as its chief financial officer (CFO); partner Stephen Hermer will take on the firm’s general counsel role and act as head of acquisitions; Sarah Tucker who has been promoted to human resources director; while ex-Linklaters Kevin Bye also joins the firm as head of strategic development.

Morling is a blue-chip-trained CFO and spent over seven years as CFO of EC Harris, where he rebuilt the firm’s international finance function, while Hermer has been a partner in Olswang’s corporate group since 1998.

Olswang’s chief executive Paul Stevens said: ‘In the next three years, I intend to promote a growth strategy based on improvement and change to both the business and our legal processes. Strong leadership in the business services teams, combined with strategic lateral hires, will be central to this transformational agenda. These four senior appointments are a first and crucial step in that direction.’

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Olswang’s new German focus, Munich, sees team of five exit for US IP firm

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Germany CMS UKFish & Richardson
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Olswang’s German offering has been served a further blow after losing its entire Berlin office, with intellectual property (IP) partner and head of the filing and prosecution team, Herbert Kunz, leaving the firm’s Munich outpost along with one other lawyer and three staff.

The team of five will join US IP and litigation specialist Fish & Richardson with Kunz joining as managing principal of the firm’s Munich office, and team of two other partners. The other staff joining include patent attorney Volker Kuhne, a technology specialist, a paralegal and an assistant.

Kunz joined Olswang in May last year, alongside Kuhne, from Dr Kunz & Kollegen – a boutique IP law firm Kunz founded in 2012. Before this, he worked at Eversheds and legacy firm Hammonds (now Squire Patton Boggs).

A European and German patent attorney, Kunz has a particular focus in mechanics, electronics, software, and medical devices. He is also a qualified European trademark and design lawyer, and has represented clients at the German Patent and Trademark Office, the German Patent Court, and the European Patent Office (EPO). Some of his clients include New Balance, Merz Dental and Astyx.

The news comes after Olswang lost a 50-strong lawyer team in Berlin which joined Greenberg Traurig in July, when it launched its first office in Germany. Some 50 lawyers including 14 partners, and all current staff from Olswang’s office joined Greenberg in the German capital as its launched its 38th international outpost.

At the time of the departure Olswang said it would concentrate its efforts on its Munich outpost with newly appointed chief executive Paul Stevens saying: ‘In Germany, we will continue to grow our Munich office, which is an important part of this offer. Munich has grown from two fee earners to 18 in less than four years and we are very pleased with both its excellent performance and its future prospects.’

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Q&A: CMS Cameron McKenna managing partner Weston on ‘making sure high quality firms understand what CMS is’

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Leadership CMS UK
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With an election for the top leadership job looming at CMS Cameron McKenna, the firm’s incumbent managing partner Duncan Weston (pictured) talks to Sarah Downey about the firm’s performance, targeting Asia and securing an elusive US merger.

Duncan, how do you feel the firm has financially performed in the last year?

It’s been fantastic. Having a large European piece means we’ve been dealing with exchange rates which is a nuisance but doesn’t have a massive impact. All of our offices in the Middle East and Mexico are profitable and up and running, Turkey has been a success since opening in 2013, our international offering picked up… our challenge is to make sure people understand what our international offering is – we are bigger than Europe.

Is there further international expansion planned?

We’re focused on China, Singapore, and South East Asia. We already have two offices in China but we have a target for Asia to constitute 30% of revenues.

How much do you think client expectations have changed?

There’s clearly a procurement agenda for clients on rates. The number one criteria for clients is quality and value – you’re looking to do segmentation, they’re more concerned to get work done, and if it’s day-to-day that can be divided into different processes. There’s sensible pricing pressure on law firms… its good for them, its second nature for us.

There’s been a lot of market comment surrounding Dentons’ current growth strategy. What’s your take?

Dentons has taken progressive, ambitious steps. It’s a bold move. Good luck to them.

What about your ambitions for a combination in the US?

We continue to raise the profile of the CMS brand and we work with US firms. We won’t do an alliance… we’re in a phase of trying to make sure high quality firms understand what CMS is. The issue for most firms in the UK is, do they step down from the top rank and do a Fulbright merger with a half billion dollar firm with a sector focus or do they continue to cajole? This is assuming white shoe firms are not touchable. The decision hasn’t been made by many firms.

sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk

For full analysis of the world’s largest law firms performances, see: Global 100 Overview – Heavyweights

Legal Business

KWM hires Nabarro’s former head of financial services regulation to support real estate and PE push

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Strategic recruitment CMS UKKing & Wood Mallesons
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In a ‘sign to the market of our commitment to grow our private equity practice’, King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has rehired Adrian Brown from Nabarro, where he formerly led the firm’s financial services regulation group after having joined from SJ Berwin in 2010.

Brown rejoins KWM as the firm seeks to better support its funds, private equity and real estate groups after a four-year stint heading Nabarro’s regulatory practice. Sam Robinson, who was made up to partner in May this year, replaced Brown as head of the group for Nabarro.

The funds expert qualified into the financial regulation team at what was then SJ Berwin in 1998 and went on to build a practice advising alternative investment fund managers and corporate finance advisors on all areas of financial regulation. He made partner at the firm a decade ago, in the same round as KWM’s recently appointed Europe and Middle East managing partner William Boss.

Brown’s arrival takes the number of financial regulation partners at KWM’s London office up to four, led by David Calligan. Blackstone adviser Tamasin Little and Tim Dolan make up the rest of the team. Brown will also have a role supporting the real estate team, led by William Naunton, acquired from Eversheds this year.

‘It’s always a nice moment to hire someone who has previously been at the firm. Adrian fits firmly in our financial regulation team, supporting our funds, structured real estate and AIFMD practice. He will also support the private equity group, which is a jewel in our crown. This hire is another sign to the market of our commitment to grow our private equity practice,’ Boss told Legal Business.

Brown is the firm’s 16th lateral hire in the past 12 months, many of which have arrived in London as KWM seeks to build a stronger corporate practices following a series of post-merger exits. The firm has also completed a review of its partnership in Europe and the Middle East with up to 10% of partners expected to leave the firm.

Boss added: ‘We’ve had partner exits, some voluntary and some involuntary, but it’s all part of proactively managing and pruning the partnership. That fits alongside making good business decisions about who we hire. We’re listening to where our clients want us to hire, which is primarily in corporate M&A and private equity. Our vision is to be corporate centred, with a strong corporate team and ancillary offering, such as the tax, regulatory and finance practices. Those areas are all just as important as growing the core corporate team.’

tom.moore@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Greenberg Traurig lands Olswang’s Berlin office to open in Germany

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Germany CMS UKGreenberg Traurig
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Greenberg Traurig has launched its first office in Germany with the mass hire of Olswang’s 50-strong lawyer team in Berlin.

Some 50 lawyers including 14 partners, with current senior associate Henrik Armah being made up in the move, and all current staff from Olswang’s office joining the US firm in the German capital as its launches its 38th international outpost.

The new German base will open its doors on 1 October 2015, as the firm’s fourth European office after London, Amsterdam and Warsaw. The Berlin-based team focuses on corporate, M&A, finance, and restructuring, and has experience of advising on real estate, technology, telecommunications, media, and infrastructure matters. 

The office hire and launch comes as Greenberg aims to combine the German real estate group with its existing real estate practices in the US and Europe. In Warsaw, Greenberg improved its real estate offering in May this year by bringing in partners from Allen & Overy and Norton Rose Fulbright as part of a 12-lawyer hire.

Christian Schede, who will serve as the German managing shareholder for Greenberg, said: ‘Greenberg Traurig’s award-winning corporate, M&A, real estate, technology, media, and telecoms practices are a perfect fit with our top-ranking German offering. Greenberg Traurig’s entrepreneurial focus, its growth strategy, and its international network enable us and our emerging talent to shape our future.’

Greenberg’s chief executive Richard Rosenbaum added: ‘We waited patiently for years to find the right time, the right place, and especially the right people, and we could not be more pleased with this opportunity. With empowered leadership on the ground, we are confident this will be an important enhancement to the firm’s global platform.’

The news comes after the TMT firm announced in June that 13 equity partners were set to exit the Berlin outpost in a ‘decoupling’ alongside the entire 50-strong lawyer office. At the time, Morrison & Foerster and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, among other firms, were understood to be frontrunners in the race to land the team.

Olswang first opened its Berlin office in 2007 and built its team with hires from Linklaters and Freshfields, a move which included the hire of Schede. The Berlin split relates to ongoing unrest in the firm’s City headquarters which first surfaced after the firm’s former chief executive David Stewart stood down last October. He recently reappeared six months later as a partner at offshore Turks and Caicos firm Griffiths & Partners.

jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Candidates emerge as CMS gears up for autumn managing partner election

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Leadership CMS UK
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CMS Cameron McKenna is gearing up for its managing partner election this autumn as chief Duncan Weston prepares to stand down from the role after eight years, with potential successors across the firm’s corporate and disputes practices already coming to the fore.

The election process will start in October with a view to announcing a new leader in November, giving management a six-month transition period before the appointment takes effect in May 2016. Four names have emerged as popular candidates to succeed Weston: energy partner Stephen Millar, a key figure in driving merger negotiations with Scots firm Dundas & Wilson last year – though some see a drawback to having another energy partner at the top of the firm alongside senior partner Penelope Warne; international arbitration head Guy Pendell; consumer products head Louise Wallace; and corporate partner Charles Currier.

Both Pendell and Millar currently sit on Camerons’ practice group leadership board, while Wallace previously lost out to Warne’s predecessor Dick Tyler for the role of senior partner in a four-way election in 2011.

A former partner said of the line-up: ‘Louise is the most senior; in some ways I wouldn’t be surprised if she got it. If I were still at CMS, she would make a lot of sense because she has been around the longest and knows the firm inside out. The others are relatively young for that role. But these are four very strong candidates – if any of them were to go forward it would be good for the firm.’

Whoever takes the mantle next will be tasked with revising firm strategy alongside Warne as Weston’s current three-year plan comes to an end. Having first been appointed chief in 2008, Weston has seen the firm through significant change during his tenure, including focusing on a sector approach to enforce its position in energy, life sciences and financial services, and finding operational savings through the firm’s high-profile outsourcing deal with Integreon in 2010. He was re-elected unopposed in November 2011 after calling on Camerons’ board to collectively endorse him for a second term, arguing he would not stand if forced to go through an arduous campaign against rival candidates.

Weston now says he is unlikely to return to fee-earning but will seek a new management role within the firm. On his remaining time as managing partner, he said: ‘I would like to deliver on a budget that would see significant growth and profitability. CMS, I hope, can then get closer to meeting its strategic goals.’

sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk

Legal Business

Candidates emerge as CMS gears up for autumn managing partner election

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Leadership CMS UK
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Four partners are tipped as potential successors as Weston prepares to step down

CMS Cameron McKenna is gearing up for its managing partner election this autumn as chief Duncan Weston prepares to stand down from the role after eight years, with potential successors across the firm’s corporate and disputes practices already coming to the fore.

Legal Business

Olswang to lose Berlin team in strategy reversal

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Germany CMS UK
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Freshfields among firms in talks to take over the office

The last 12 months have been quite a whirlwind at Olswang. Following the surprise exit of chief executive David Stewart last autumn, the firm had only just appointed intellectual property (IP) partner Paul Stevens as its new chief executive in May, when last month its entire Berlin outpost announced it was splitting off.