Posted on

PwC forms new law firm in Canada one month after obtaining ABS status

In the first major development since PricewaterhouseCoopers last month received authorisation from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to become an alternative business structure (ABS), the accounting giant announced on 1 March that it has formed a new law firm in Canada by tying up with Toronto immigration outfit Bomza Law Group.

The new firm will be called PricewaterhouseCoopers Immigration Law, and Christopher Kong, national managing partner of PwC Canada’s tax services said: ‘With a range of global employment opportunities and the related complexities to employees and employers, an immigration law firm affiliated with PwC provides an opportunity to help our clients with the mobility of their people.’ Continue reading “PwC forms new law firm in Canada one month after obtaining ABS status”

Posted on

After South Africa, Hogan Lovells launches nearshoring venture in Birmingham

Following Hogan Lovells announcement at the start of February that it is setting up a business process outsourcing centre in South Africa, the top 15 LB100 law firm has launched a new legal services centre in Birmingham to undertake low level legal work as a cost effective extension of its London office.

The nearshoring venture, called the Legal Service Centre, will be developed over time in response to client demand but it is expected to comprise up to 20 lawyers initially. London partner Alan Greenough will be moving to Birmingham to manage the office, which is expected to be established by autumn this year. Continue reading “After South Africa, Hogan Lovells launches nearshoring venture in Birmingham”

Posted on

Comment: Paradigm shift vs recession – responding to a sceptical reader

We recently posted a comment piece addressing the issue of whether the forces impacting on the legal market represent a permanent structural shift or are just the result of a horrendous recession. Dry stuff that will leave the professional pulse unmoved for most, but still pretty fundamental to whether law firm leaders should start launching their Lawyers on Demand rip-offs and outsourcing anything that moves in a desperate attempt to future-proof their business.

One professional observer felt I was underplaying the level of permanent change facing the profession, and was kind enough to send me some research they have produced in the area. Continue reading “Comment: Paradigm shift vs recession – responding to a sceptical reader”

Posted on

US financial results 2013: DLA achieves record revenue of $2.48bn as growth slows

The highest-ever gross turnover but reduced growth figures was the message that came out of DLA Piper’s financials today (28 February), as the top Global 100 firm revealed a 1.7% increase in revenue to $2.48bn, while revenue per lawyer rose 3.3% to $625,000.

Profit per equity partner rose just 1% to $1.325m, while the global firm’s net income slipped 0.3% to $602m, although that still constitutes a significant improvement when compared with 2011 figures of $563m. Continue reading “US financial results 2013: DLA achieves record revenue of $2.48bn as growth slows”

Posted on

RBS share sell-off in Direct Line gifts Allen & Overy with £1bn deal

Just under a year earlier than expected by some in the City, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) this week (26 February) announced the sell-off of the majority of its remaining stake in Direct Line, gifting Allen & Overy (A&O) with a further bite of the cherry in a deal anticipated to be worth over £1bn.

A&O led by corporate partner David Broadley was first instructed on RBS’ float of 34.72% of Direct Line in the autumn of 2012, after the 80% nationalised bank was forced to offload the major insurer under EU regulations on state aid. Continue reading “RBS share sell-off in Direct Line gifts Allen & Overy with £1bn deal”

Posted on

Good things come in threes…or fours: DLA Piper secures triple lateral hire from BLP

Following the announcement last September that Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) corporate partner Patrick Somers had joined DLA Piper, the top five Global 100 firm today (28 February) confirmed it has secured a further three lateral hires, including head of real estate finance Laurence Rogers.

Rogers joins the 4,036-lawyer firm alongside commercial real estate partner Richard Hopkinson-Woolley and corporate tax partner Neville Wright. Continue reading “Good things come in threes…or fours: DLA Piper secures triple lateral hire from BLP”

Posted on

Lessons learned – will bluechip legal teams ever take training seriously?

While the in-house profession has come of age, the number of home-grown trainees remains tiny. Legal Business assesses whether in-house teams should lessen their reliance on law firm-schooled staff

Despite talk of radical changes to legal education and burgeoning in-house legal teams in blue-chip organisations, there has been no real breakthrough in a mainstream plc route to qualification.

Continue reading “Lessons learned – will bluechip legal teams ever take training seriously?”

Posted on

Sochi over, the World Anti-Doping Agency brings in new GC as it looks to tougher 2015 code

As the excitement surrounding the successful albeit controversial Winter Olympics 2014 in Sochi fades, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will shortly, albeit with less fanfare, welcome the arrival of new general counsel and chief operating officer Olivier Niggli, who joins the global agency from Swiss law firm Carrard & Associés.

Currently a partner at the Lausanne-based business and sports boutique, where he specialises in sport, arbitration and commercial law, Niggli will in June join the agency he helped to set up in 1999, as it prepares to implement a new, far stricter code, which comes into effect on 1 January 2015 and will double the ban for athletes found guilty of doping from two to four years. Continue reading “Sochi over, the World Anti-Doping Agency brings in new GC as it looks to tougher 2015 code”

Posted on

Family marketing teams on DEFCON 1 as Law Commission calls for gold-plated prenups in UK law

For marketing teams at the family bar it’s been a tough wait but at last the Law Commission has issued its long-trailed proposals on matrimonial property laws.

Private practice teams across London have been lightening quick to respond to the report, published today (27 February), which proposes new legislation to take out the uncertainty surrounding the enforcement of pre-nuptial agreements, an issue that has dogged divorce cases of wealthy couples, setting London at a disadvantage to the majority of countries in Europe.

Continue reading “Family marketing teams on DEFCON 1 as Law Commission calls for gold-plated prenups in UK law”

Posted on

US merger talks: Patton Boggs and Squire Sanders confirm ‘early’ discussions

Washington-based Patton Boggs and transatlantic top 40 Global 100 firm Squire Sanders are in preliminary merger talks, the firms confirmed to Legal Business today (27 February), with a view to creating a 1,700-lawyer firm with 45 offices across 22 countries.

The confirmation, which comes after widespread reports of the talks across the US legal and financial media yesterday (26 February), stressed that ‘discussions are in very early stages, and there is no assurance that a combination will be completed.’ Continue reading “US merger talks: Patton Boggs and Squire Sanders confirm ‘early’ discussions”

Posted on

US results season 2013: Hogan Lovells unveils highest post-merger results with 5.2% increase in turnover

Transatlantic firm Hogan Lovells has today (27 February) unveiled its highest post-merger global financial results, posting a fee-income increase of 5.2% while profit per equity partner (PEP) and revenue per lawyer (RPL) increased by 10% and 3.7% respectively.

Fee-income increased to $1.72bn, while PEP rose to $1.21m and RPL was up to $742,613. Across the regions, the Americas represented approximately 46% of total billings, while London and Continental Europe together equalled 47%, and the Asia & Middle East region totalled 7%. Continue reading “US results season 2013: Hogan Lovells unveils highest post-merger results with 5.2% increase in turnover”

Posted on

‘Worst fears confirmed’ as Grayling announces final legal aid reform package

There was never likely to be much compromise and so it proved. The Government today (27 February) confirmed its final package of reforms to the legal aid system following consultation, that includes a range of measures ‘specifically designed to support lawyers through a period of transition and modernisation’. The package – which the Government hopes will slice more than £200m from the £1.2bn criminal legal aid budget – was swiftly condemned by the profession with the Bar Council claiming the measures confirmed its ‘worst fears’. Continue reading “‘Worst fears confirmed’ as Grayling announces final legal aid reform package”

Posted on

Reforming the reforms: One-year-on Jackson soundings likely to lead to further calls for overhaul of DBAs

The first year bedding down Lord Justice Jackson’s extensive civil litigation reforms was always going to be challenging, but as the Civil Justice Council (CJC) this month announces a one-year-in soundings process, senior City litigators are expected to call for a radical overhaul of the largely unpopular damages-based agreements (DBA) provisions ushered in by the reforms.

Announced on 13 February, the CJC is inviting written submissions from the legal profession on the ‘practical impact’ of the reforms and will hold a conference in March to discuss the submissions with representatives of stakeholder groups such as practitioners, the judiciary, consumers, major court users and other interested parties. Continue reading “Reforming the reforms: One-year-on Jackson soundings likely to lead to further calls for overhaul of DBAs”

Posted on

Hogan Lovells eyes growth in South Africa with hire of Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs partner as banking head

Transatlantic giant Hogan Lovells has made its first lateral hire in South Africa since merging last December with Routledge Modise, taking on finance partner Anina Boshoff from leading local firm Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs (ENS) to head up its banking and finance department in Johannesburg.

Boshoff (pictured), who returned to South Africa early in 2010 after working in the Singapore office of Allen & Overy for three years, will begin her new role on 1 March, and will be joined by ENS associates Candice Morgan and Sanrie van Tonder. Continue reading “Hogan Lovells eyes growth in South Africa with hire of Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs partner as banking head”

Posted on

RBS litigation: Bird & Bird’s head of dispute resolution criticised for £500m fluctuation in value of claim

The highly complex Royal Bank of Scotland 2008 rights issue litigation has seen Bird & Bird’s dispute resolution head Steven Baker criticised at the High Court over a £500m fluctuation in the value of the claim.

In his fifth witness statement to the court in November Baker, who represents John Greenwood and the RBoS Shareholders Action Group Limited, with around 12,000 retail and around 100 corporate, institutional and charitable members (the BB Action Group), told the court: ‘the losses suffered by the members of the BB Action Group who have actually issued proceedings so far would equate to approximately £900m…and the total acquisition value of those claimants’ shares is £1.25bn.’ Continue reading “RBS litigation: Bird & Bird’s head of dispute resolution criticised for £500m fluctuation in value of claim”

Posted on

Systems overhaul required as Treasury Solicitor’s Department falls foul of Data Protection Act

Whitehall’s largest legal department, the Treasury Solicitor’s Department (TSol) is to improve its data protection practices after an independent investigation found it had breached the Data Protection Act four times between 2011 and 2012.

The investigation by the UK’s independent data privacy authority, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), found that TSol failed to comply with the act after it released the personal information of individuals to third parties on four separate occasions between August 2011 and November 2012.

Continue reading “Systems overhaul required as Treasury Solicitor’s Department falls foul of Data Protection Act”

Posted on

US financial results 2013: Paul Weiss builds on 2012 success with revenue increase of 7%

New York elite firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison has built on its double-digit growth of 2012 by turning out a near 7% increase in revenue for 2013, up to $934.5m, while its profit per equity partner (PEP) figure rose by 8% to $3.62m.

The results follow the 803-lawyer firm’s 12% increase in turnover to $877m in 2012, coupled with a 6% increase in PEP to $3.35m. Much of the top 40 Global 100 firm’s success is credited to its top flight litigation practice, which has represented major financial institutions such as Bank of New York Mellon in its defence against a $1bn claim last May. Continue reading “US financial results 2013: Paul Weiss builds on 2012 success with revenue increase of 7%”

Posted on

Profile: Alison Kay, National Grid

The energy giant’s group GC discusses the overhaul of its legal function

When the in-house legal team of a large corporate announces a ‘review’, it’s often enough to instil a sense of foreboding in its external legal panel. For the law firm, it’s likely to mean months of painstaking paper pushing, parading in front of senior lawyers (and, these days, possibly their bosses) and making promises they hope they can keep, particularly when it comes to costs versus service levels.

But at National Grid, things are a little different, for now at least. There is a review planned, but group general counsel (GC) and company secretary Alison Kay is determined to analyse service levels closer to home, starting with her own 31-strong UK team.

Continue reading “Profile: Alison Kay, National Grid”

Posted on

Making a splash – partners from Shearman, Covington and Jones Day join breakaway Freshfields arbitration boutique

As brand new start-ups go, the Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer-breakaway arbitration boutique set up by heavyweight arbitrators Constantine Partasides, Paris-based Georgias Petrochilos and former arbitration co-chair Jan Paulsson earlier this month is making quite a splash.

Following news of its launch on 17 February, the latest announcement today (26 February), less than ten days later, is that Shearman & Sterling Paris international arbitration partner Todd Wetmore, Covington & Burling’s London-based international arbitration co-chair Gaetan Verhoosel, and Washington-based Jones Day litigation partner Luke Sobota have all resigned to co-found the new venture. Continue reading “Making a splash – partners from Shearman, Covington and Jones Day join breakaway Freshfields arbitration boutique”

Posted on

Energy run: Clifford Chance advises Shell on series of major M&A deals

Clifford Chance (CC) has secured a run of major mandates for Royal Dutch Shell including last week’s A$2.9bn ($2.6bn) agreement to sell the global energy giant’s Australia downstream businesses to Vitol and the sale of a number of businesses in Italy to affiliates of Kuwait Petroleum International.

The Vitol deal, which was announced on 21 February, saw CC led by London-based partner Kathy Honeywood, Singapore-based Geraint Hughes, and Australia-based Tracey Renshaw advise on all aspects of the transaction, which included the sale of Shell’s Geelong refinery and 870-site retail business in Australia. Continue reading “Energy run: Clifford Chance advises Shell on series of major M&A deals”