EE LEGAL HEAD REVEALS PLANS POST-TELCO MERGER
Following BT’s high-profile £12.5bn takeover of UK mobile business EE, it has emerged the telco plans to consolidate external legal panels, while EE’s general counsel (GC) James Blendis has been appointed to BT’s legal leadership team. Blendis will now sit on BT’s legal leadership board, which comprises senior legal management, including group GC Dan Fitz.
LAND SECURITIES TO LAUNCH PANEL REVIEW
FTSE 100 company Land Securities has kicked off a review of its external legal roster now that the current three-year term has come to an end. The review is being led by group general counsel Tim Ashby, who was appointed to the role following the departure of Adrian de Souza in October last year.
DLA PIPER’S KNOWLES TO RETIRE
Sir Nigel Knowles will retire from DLA Piper at the end of June after nearly four decades at the firm, the vast majority of which he spent spearheading a rapid globalisation of DLA into one of the world’s largest firms. Knowles will vacate his current roles as co-chair and senior partner of the $2.5bn-a-year firm at the end of April. His departure kick-starts a leadership race that hopes to find a new senior partner for DLA Piper’s non-US businesses by the end of March.
ADDLESHAWS SCOTTISH TAKEOVER CALLED OFF
Merger talks between Addleshaw Goddard and Maclay Murray & Spens to create a national practice with combined revenues of around £230m have been called off. Addleshaws’ takeover of the Glasgow-based practice was planned to go ahead in May this year.