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HFW bids for dominance in UAE shipping sector with double Clyde partner hire

In a significant move for the Middle Eastern shipping market, sector specialist HFW has hired partners Robert Lawrence and Ian Chung from rival Clyde & Co in Dubai to strengthen its grip in the region.

Lawrence and Chung are doyens of the shipping sector in the United Arab Emirates, ranked as ‘leading individuals’ in The Legal 500’s Dubai shipping category. Significantly, the pair constituted a large chunk of Clyde’s shipping practice in the region, leaving them with partner David Leckie (who relocated from London to Dubai in May) and legal director Len Soudagar.

Continue reading “HFW bids for dominance in UAE shipping sector with double Clyde partner hire”

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Revolving Doors: Swings and roundabouts for DLA as Kirkland boosts City funds practice

City of London

As the market readies itself for the inevitable back-to-school hiring spree, August has nevertheless seen its fair share of lateral activity.

Among those firms which have announced investments this week, Kirkland & Ellis bolstered its funds practice with the addition of two Legal 500 ranked next generation partners in London. Catherine Gokah joined from Ashurst and is credited with bringing experience advising sponsors on fundraising activities across a range of alternative asset classes including infrastructure, real estate and credit. Meanwhile, Louisa Cobbe, who specialises in real estate investments, joined from Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. Continue reading “Revolving Doors: Swings and roundabouts for DLA as Kirkland boosts City funds practice”

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Full steam ahead: Squire’s Singapore office grows in commodities and shipping as Latham hires Linklaters partner in Germany

Singapore graphic

Lateral hiring was in full swing last week, as international firms bolstered their corporate, private equity, real estate and shipping capabilities, with partner hires across offices in Germany and Singapore.

In the Asia Pacific region, Joel Cockerell became the seventh new partner to join Squire Patton Boggs’ expanding commodities and shipping industry group in the firm’s Singapore office, following the recent arrival of partner Marco Crusafio to its Milan office.

Continue reading “Full steam ahead: Squire’s Singapore office grows in commodities and shipping as Latham hires Linklaters partner in Germany”

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HFW records slipping profits and revenue as it grapples with Covid recovery

Jeremy Shebson

HFW attributed a 1% dip in revenue from £200m to £198.7m to a ‘prudent’ reduction in lawyer headcount during the pandemic, while profit per equity partner (PEP) also slipped.

PEP was down 2% from last year’s record high of £683,000 to £669,000, which the firm chalked up to the drying up of pandemic-era cost savings: ‘HFW saw exceptional cost savings during the pandemic. These cost savings diminished during FY22 as countries across the firm’s global network began to return to normality.’ Equity partner levels are understood to have remained broadly flat on last year.

Continue reading “HFW records slipping profits and revenue as it grapples with Covid recovery”

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Stephenson Harwood blames transition for underwhelming results as Stevens & Bolton celebrates twelfth year of growth

Eifion Morris

Stephenson Harwood has reported flat financials for financial year 2021/22, after a correction to last year’s results.

Revenue remained at £206m with profit per equity partner (PEP) of £685,000. This would have amounted to a drop in revenue from £209m first reported for financial year 2020/21, had the firm not adjusted last year’s financials after it settled claim regarding £3m of unpaid fees between announcing and closing its accounts. This adjustment marks a 3% drop in revenue and 6% dip in PEP from 2020. Continue reading “Stephenson Harwood blames transition for underwhelming results as Stevens & Bolton celebrates twelfth year of growth”

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Revolving Doors: Freshfields brings in Kirkland restructuring partner as White & Case expands corporate practice

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Restructuring, real estate, corporate and employment were the focus of the lateral hiring game this week, as firms returned to recruitment with renewed vigour.

The headline move was at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, where Lisa Stevens arrived from Kirkland & Ellis. The move sees Stevens break her streak of working for US firms, having trained at Mayer Brown before going on to Gibson Dunn and Latham & Watkins before Kirkland. At those firms, she has worked on bespoke special situations transactions on behalf of global clients. Continue reading “Revolving Doors: Freshfields brings in Kirkland restructuring partner as White & Case expands corporate practice”

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Dentons posts promising 14% revenue rise in UK and Middle East as investment hits DAC Beachcroft profits

Paul Jarvis

Dentons has become the latest firm to post encouraging financials for 2021/22, announcing a robust 14% increase to its top line across its UK, Ireland and the Middle East (UKIME) business, which reached £260.4m.

Much of the growth was driven by a surge in corporate activity, with the UK corporate group seeing revenues hike by over 20%. Internal referral work also increased, as inbound work from outside the region surged by 40% to £35m. Continue reading “Dentons posts promising 14% revenue rise in UK and Middle East as investment hits DAC Beachcroft profits”

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‘Bold and decisive’: Linklaters sees 6.5% revenue rise as £1.87m PEP lags Magic Circle

Linklaters London new office

As financial results season continues apace, Linklaters today (9 August) joined Magic Circle peers in showing its hand, posting a 6.5% uptick in revenue to £1.783bn.

Pre-tax profit also saw a comparable increase of 7% to £871.7m. That translated to a 5.4% rise in profit per equity partner (PEP), which reached £1.87m, and a 4.5% rise in profit per all partners, which now stands at £1.78m. Continue reading “‘Bold and decisive’: Linklaters sees 6.5% revenue rise as £1.87m PEP lags Magic Circle”

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Dealwatch: US firms line up major private equity buyouts as Magic Circle firms operate on Mediclinic acquisition

Briefcase

US powerhouses and City stalwarts alike have been up against it in the last week, departing from the traditional August lull to push through substantive deals in the health and facilities management sectors.

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R), the private equity house that bought supermarket giant Morrisons last year, has announced it plans to acquire Atalian Servest and OCS Group. Continue reading “Dealwatch: US firms line up major private equity buyouts as Magic Circle firms operate on Mediclinic acquisition”

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London calling? Recruiters eye New Zealand talent market as borders reopen

As prime minister Jacinda Ardern declared New Zealand’s borders fully open last Sunday (31 July) for the first time since March 2020, commentators have reckoned on a whole new talent pool.

Overseas experience (OE) had long been a rite of passage for many qualified New Zealand lawyers, with nearest neighbour Australia being the obvious choice for such experience. Indeed, Allens was among the firms known to actively recruit talent from the New Zealand market. Continue reading “London calling? Recruiters eye New Zealand talent market as borders reopen”

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Onward, Singapore: King & Spalding names new managing partner as Sidley backs laterals in the city state

Singapore cityscape, Marina Bay

As a growing number of international firms pivot their focus in Asia to Singapore, King & Spalding’s appointment of banking heavyweight Andrew Brereton as the office’s new managing partner could be viewed as a declaration of redoubled commitment to the city state.

The Atlanta-headquartered firm first brought the Clifford Chance veteran on board at the start of 2019 as part of an effort to build out its finance and restructuring capabilities in the wider region. Continue reading “Onward, Singapore: King & Spalding names new managing partner as Sidley backs laterals in the city state”

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‘A growing, globally active business’: Addleshaw’s European push spurs 18% revenue growth

John Joyce

Addleshaw Goddard has credited its increased European footprint for the promising financial results released today (3 August), which saw revenue rise by 18% to £377m, and an increase in profit by 16% to £155m.

Regional revenue performance is also testament to the firm’s improvement in Europe. Though UK turnover was up a solid 15%, it paled in comparison with that generated overseas, which jumped a striking 30%. Continue reading “‘A growing, globally active business’: Addleshaw’s European push spurs 18% revenue growth”

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Revolving Doors: Keystone adds three while Arnold & Porter launches in Amsterdam

Amsterdam - ABN AMRO

Keystone Law has bucked the trend of a summer slowdown of the lateral market, adding three ‘principals’ across its litigation and real estate teams.

The AIM-listed firm recruited litigators Tracy Sell-Peters and Gregor Kleinknecht from DWF and Hunters Law respectively, while transactional real estate partner Samantha Leigh joined from Freeths. This continues the firm’s acquisitive streak, which has seen it hire 41 principals in the financial year 2021/22, adding to its 51 partner-equivalent hires the previous year.  Continue reading “Revolving Doors: Keystone adds three while Arnold & Porter launches in Amsterdam”

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Freshfields reports ‘very solid performance’ as it progresses US growth plans

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer today (27 July) announced its 2021/22 financial results, becoming the latest magic circle firm to highlight its US growth amid a robust performance.

The firm marked its sixth consecutive year of revenue growth with a 10% rise, bringing its turnover to £1.7bn – notably pacier growth than its 5% increase to £1.59bn last year. Continue reading “Freshfields reports ‘very solid performance’ as it progresses US growth plans”

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Revolving doors: Shearman adds three in Europe as Squire brings in Birmingham corporate lead

Shearman & Sterling

As summer holiday season kicked in amid a quieter lateral market, Shearman & Sterling dominated this week, with the Wall Street stalwart announcing three partner hires across its European offices.

In London, the firm enlisted project development and finance partner Julia Derrick. A specialist in M&A and commercial contracts in the oil and gas sector, Derrick spent her entire career at Ashurst before making the move. Continue reading “Revolving doors: Shearman adds three in Europe as Squire brings in Birmingham corporate lead”

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Fieldfisher sees 15% turnover growth as PEP tops £1m

City of London

Fieldfisher today (26 July) confirmed a ninth consecutive year of growth, showing a solid 15% firm-wide revenue increase to £330m. Profit per equity partner (PEP) at the firm was even more buoyant, topping the £1m mark for the first time as it jumped 22% to £1.05m.

At a UK level, the firm recorded a 17% rise in turnover across its London, Manchester and Birmingham offices. The Germany practice was similarly prosperous, posting a 16% rise across the year. The Silicon Valley office, which opened in 2012, also grew in both revenue and headcount. Continue reading “Fieldfisher sees 15% turnover growth as PEP tops £1m”

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Macfarlanes credits ‘active approach’ by clients as PEP nears £2.5m

Sebastian Prichard Jones

Marking its twelfth consecutive year of revenue growth, Macfarlanes today (26 July) unveiled bullish double-digit gains across the board, with turnover increasing 16% to £303.7m.

Profit per equity partner (PEP) rose 19% to £2.484m to exceed that of both Clifford Chance and Allen & Overy, which have recorded PEP of £2.04m and £1.95m respectively. Continue reading “Macfarlanes credits ‘active approach’ by clients as PEP nears £2.5m”

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Sponsor message: A new age begins for Moral as Moral | Kınıkoğlu | Pamukkale | Kökenek

We are thrilled to announce that our firm will officially be transforming from Moral & Partners to Moral | Kınıkoğlu | Pamukkale | Kökenek, an attorney partnership, as of July 1, 2022. Founded in 1968, Moral has undergone a remarkable transformation since 2013 and has grown into one of the preeminent law firms in Turkey. With the efforts of 70 + professionals, Moral now streering the legal market in Turkey. This could not have been achieved without the confidence of our esteemed clients in us and our dedicated team – thank you all.

A new age begins. We will now be providing legal services as Moral | Kınıkoğlu | Pamukkale | Kökenek Attorney Partnership. Building on our legacy since 1968, we will carry the firm into the future using our well-established, highest quality services combined with a proven, new generation approach. We will do our best to ensure a sustainable future for our team and clients. Continue reading “Sponsor message: A new age begins for Moral as Moral | Kınıkoğlu | Pamukkale | Kökenek”

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Fire up the engine: Transactional boom fuels bumper year for Eversheds Sutherland

Lee Ranson

Eversheds Sutherland had its transactional divisions to thank, as the firm’s corporate practice turned in its ‘best ever year’ to help achieve rocketing profits.

Profit per equity partner (PEP) jumped a considerable 26% from £984,000 to £1.2m, surpassing the £1m barrier. Net profits increased a similarly pacey 23% to £150.3m, while revenue was up 8% from £629m to £678.4m. Continue reading “Fire up the engine: Transactional boom fuels bumper year for Eversheds Sutherland”

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Globetrotting Ashurst continues frenetic growth with double-digit revenue and profit boosts

Paul Jenkins

Marking its sixth consecutive year of revenue growth, Ashurst has reported a robust set of financials headlined by a 12% jump in turnover from £711m to £798m.

Profit per equity partner (PEP) was also up by a significant rate, growing 13% from £1.038m to £1.175m. According to the firm, revenue and PEP have grown respectively by 8% and 12% on average each year over the last six years. Continue reading “Globetrotting Ashurst continues frenetic growth with double-digit revenue and profit boosts”