Parabis Group storms into Scottish insurance market

Private equity backed Parabis Group recently entered the Scottish legal insurance market with a bold statement of intent, hiring local rival HBJ Claim Solutions’ litigation head Tony O’Malley in the process. Parabis, an alternative business structure in England and Wales, has opened a single-partner-regulated law office known as Parabis Scotland. It will offer claimant and …

Ashurst expansion continues full throttle

Ashurst’s recent appetite for international expansion shows no sign of abating, with the firm announcing in November the launch of a new operation in Saudi Arabia. The firm will soon be able to practise Saudi law after establishing a partnership with Faisal Adnan Baassiri, the former head of legal at Ashurst client Saudi Economic and …

DAC Beachcroft becomes first UK firm in Chile

DAC Beachcroft has strengthened its presence in Latin America by becoming the first European-based firm to launch in Chile by acquiring two local firms. Chilean players SegurosLex and Amunategui y Cia joined the English firm to create DAC Beachcroft Chile at the beginning of November in a move to extend its leading insurance practice in …

Locke Lord’s lateral spree continues in London

US firm Locke Lord has continued its rapid expansion in London since launching in February this year with the addition of three more lateral hires within a few weeks. The arrival of Mayer Brown reinsurance litigator Ian McKenna at the end of October was followed by the hire of Fox Williams’ corporate finance partner James …

Magrath launches in Singapore

November saw London-based Magrath become the first corporate immigration specialist to open a standalone presence in Singapore; Ben Sheldrick and Mark Chowdhry will spearhead the firm’s practice in the city state. The launch of Magrath Global reflects the eastwards shift of several of the firm’s multinational clients, eager to capitalise on more buoyant markets. ‘Clients …

Banks could face backlash on legal panel reviews

With the latest round of bank panel reviews in full swing, early indications show signs of a backlash from law firms as banks place increasing demands on panel candidates at the same time as driving down costs. In October, The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) announced the results of its long-running panel review. By reducing …

Landmark three-way merger aims to end Dentons’ Europe woes

At press time, partners at SNR Denton, Salans and Canadian firm Fraser Milner Casgrain (FMC) were poised to vote through a $1bn, three-way merger using a Swiss Verein model. A source within SNR Denton said that the union was basically a ‘done deal’ with partners from all firms having met on 13 November to review …