In what was a keenly awaited judgment for the third party funding profession, the Commercial Court has yesterday (23 October) handed down judgment on the costs liability of litigation funders in the high profile Excalibur Ventures v Texas Keystone & Ors battle, a $1.6bn energy dispute over oil rights in Iraqi Kurdistan and one of the biggest cases of 2013, and has ordered the funders to pay the defendants’ costs of the action.
Redundancy watch: Parabis closes entire claimant offering in Croydon
Parabis Law’s claimant arm Cogent Law is making 24 redundancies in its Croydon base affecting Cogent Law office’s entire headcount, with redundancy reviews set to take place over the next five months.
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Guest post: Partners Behaving Badly – how not to handle client relations
The other day we were in a meeting with the head of strategy and marketing and the chair of an AmLaw 100 firm, and the chair mentioned an extremely promising introductory meeting he’d had a few days earlier with the General Counsel of a well-recognised company.
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Dealwatch: Latham & Watkins, Macfarlanes and Travers Smith lead on £200m Gorkana sale
Latham & Watkins, Macfarlanes and Travers Smith have all landed key roles on the £200m sale of media database Gorkana to US rival Cision.
‘A tactic to intimidate lawyers’: Facebook sues DLA Piper for bringing ‘fraudulent’ US lawsuit
Facebook and its founder Mark Zuckerberg are suing trans-Atlantic firm DLA Piper for its role in bringing a case which they allege was ‘based on fabricated evidence, for the purpose of extorting a lucrative and unwarranted settlement’.
‘Ahead of the curve’: Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance act on UK government’s landmark renminbi bond issue
Magic Circle firms Allen & Overy (A&O) and Clifford Chance have advised on the UK’s renminbi debut bond issue, the first for a non-Chinese sovereign and signalling the first steps of China’s currency internationalising.
‘An important step in executing our strategy’: Bird & Bird opens in Australia following merger with local ally
Bird & Bird is establishing an Australian office by merging with Sydney-based Truman Hoyle, 20 months after entering into a cooperation agreement with the firm.
Reed Smith ISP clients defeated in landmark counterfeit website dispute brought by Cartier owner
In what gives brand owners the power to combat trademark infringement in the EU, UK internet service providers were defeated as London’s High Court on Friday (17 October) handed down a landmark judgment establishing that trade mark owners can secure court orders blocking websites that are structured to infringe their trade mark rights by selling counterfeit goods online.
Into Africa: Orrick launches Cote d’Ivoire presence as Gide announces Morocco union with Cuatrecasas
The race by firms to establish a presence in Africa continues apace as Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe has today (20 October) announced the launch of an affiliated office in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, the third-largest French speaking City in the world, while leading European firms Gide Loyrette Nouel and Cuatrecasas, Gonçalves Pereira have created a union of their Morocco practices in a bid to bolster their presence in one of North Africa’s most politically stable regions.
Comment: Leadership in law – improving, crucial and maybe in the nick of time
Strong leadership is fundamental to driving innovation in law firms. This is not a discussion point. There is no discussion. This issue, Legal Business teamed up with Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) for an extended look at the role of leadership in a period of uncertainty and the strength of that core conclusion surprised even me.
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Joining the Partnership: John Lewis appoints BG Group veteran as GC
The John Lewis Partnership has appointed BG Group’s deputy general counsel (GC) Keith Hubber as the successor to Margaret Casely-Hayford, who stepped down this summer.
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Revolving Doors: Arnold & Porter and Squire Patton Boggs make moves in the City while Bird & Bird brings in a new head of corporate in Poland
Squire Patton Boggs has recruited a London projects team from Nabarro spearheaded by partner Robin Baillie, as Arnold & Porter bolsters its life sciences group and Bird & Bird brings in Gide Loyrette Nouel partner Rafał Dziedzic to head its corporate practice in Poland.
Salaries: Allen & Overy thaws out and increases trainee/associate pay
After having decided to freeze pay earlier this year, Allen & Overy (A&O) has decided to up trainee, junior and mid-associate level pay after reviewing the salary market at half year.
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The Friday Edit: Lloyds unveils panel, LB unveils The Disputes Yearbook and Slaughters’ magic still mesmerises the profession
It’s that time of the week again, dear readers, where we help you look back at the interesting legal happenings since Monday and pick out some of the highlights of this month’s edition of Legal Business. You can click here for further information on gaining full access to Legal Business.
PwC Legal targets regional growth with Addleshaw Goddard partner hire
PwC Legal continues to invest in expanding its offering and has today (16 October) announced the appointment of Addleshaw Goddard partner, Neal Shepherd, to ‘spearhead its regional growth, particularly in the North of England’.
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From 74 interested to nine strong panel: Circle Housing appoints panel after year-long review
Following a 12-month review of its legal advisory panel, Circle Housing Group, the social housing provider for London and the South East, has awarded panel spots to nine firms after shortlisting 17.
Could it be your year? Nominations are open for the Legal Business Awards 2015
Now is the time to demonstrate how your firm, chambers or in-house team has positioned itself ahead of the pack this year: nominations are open for the most prestigious showcase of talent in the industry, the Legal Business Awards 2015.
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Dealwatch: A&O, Hogan Lovells and Freshfields help Heathrow’s £1bn airport sale take off
Allen & Overy (A&O), Hogan Lovells and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have led on Heathrow Airport Holdings sale of Aberdeen International Airport, Glasgow Airport and Southampton International Airport to a consortium formed by Ferrovial and Macquarie for £1.05bn.
‘It was necessary to be present in the financial capital of Europe’: Spain’s Pérez-Llorca set to launch London office
Spanish firm Pérez-Llorca has made a key investment into the City and is set to launch a London office at the end of this year, after choosing what it described as ‘Europe’s finance capital’ in a bid to grow its financial practice.
Asia round-up: Hogan Lovells turns to A&O for first partner based in Vietnam, while Bakers appoints new MP
Hogan Lovells has put its first partner on the ground in Vietnam, recruiting Allen & Overy’s (A&O) senior associate Jeff Olson as a partner to its corporate practice. Meanwhile, Baker & McKenzie elected partner Milton Cheng to serve as managing partner for its Hong Kong, China, Korea and Vietnam offices where he succeeds Paul Tan who held the position since October 2012.