Panel win: Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ announces first-ever EMEA line-up

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One of Japan’s largest banks, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU) today announced its first-ever panel for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with eight leading City firms appointed as preferred advisers after a process described by the bank as ‘extremely competitive.’

Allen & Overy (A&O), Linklaters and Ashurst won places on BTMU’s preferred panel alongside Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), Hogan Lovells, Norton Rose Fulbright, Slaughter and May and White & Case. Continue reading “Panel win: Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ announces first-ever EMEA line-up”

BG Group slims down legal roster to three as CC wins a spot

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For a 6,000-plus-employee FTSE 100 energy company operating across 20 countries in five continents, BG Group’s panel of four law firm was already slim but just got slimmer, with the news that Allen & Overy and Herbert Smith Freehills have been dropped in favour of Clifford Chance, which wins a place alongside incumbents CMS Cameron McKenna and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

The appointment of the three firms – which will all offer full service advice to the energy giant – came into effect on the 1 November and follow a relatively short pitch process, which began in September. Continue reading “BG Group slims down legal roster to three as CC wins a spot”

London Boroughs’ Legal Alliance halves panel as Pinsents, TLT and Ashford reappointed

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The London Boroughs’ Legal Alliance (LBLA) has joined the rising number of organisations to drastically slim down its roster of legal advisers in a bid to achieve better value after revamping its panel for the third time in four years.

The LBLA, which includes the London boroughs of Kensington & Chelsea, Brent, Camden, Ealing, Hackney, Hammersmith & Fulham, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, the City of London Corporation and the West London Waste Authority, more than halved its legal panel to seven in its latest review.

The only new entrant to the two-tier panel, which is worth an estimated £5m over three years, is Freeth Cartwright, which has been appointed to advise on complex regeneration, development, property and planning work alongside Ashfords, Bevan Brittan, Sharpe Pritchard, and TLT. Continue reading “London Boroughs’ Legal Alliance halves panel as Pinsents, TLT and Ashford reappointed”

Gordons and A&O on Morrisons panel as L&G cuts roster

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One of the UK’s largest supermarket chains, Morrisons, last month finalised its first-ever legal panel, with Allen & Overy (A&O), Ashurst, DAC Beachcroft and Eversheds among the firms selected. Selection was overseen by the company’s recently appointed general counsel Mark Amsden.

Forty firms made the long list, which was whittled down to a shortlist of 22. There are 14 firms on the panels. Amsden divided the panel into six categories: employment, property, personal injury, licensing and regulatory as well as one panel covering ‘everything else’ – corporate, commercial, litigation, pensions and intellectual property. One more panel covers Scotland, with DWF and MacRoberts selected.

Continue reading “Gordons and A&O on Morrisons panel as L&G cuts roster”

In-house: A&O, Ashurst and Eversheds on Morrisons first-ever legal panel

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One of the UK’s largest supermarket chains, Morrisons, has revealed its first-ever legal panel, with Allen & Overy (A&O), Ashurst, DAC Beachcroft and Eversheds are among the 15 firms selected, which was overseen by the company’s recently appointed general counsel Mark Amsden.

40 firms made the long list, which was whittled down to a shortlist of 22. Amsden divided the panel into six categories: employment, property, personal injury, licensing and regulatory as well as one panel covering ‘everything else’ – corporate, commercial, litigation, pensions and intellectual property. One more panel covers Scotland, with DWF and MacRoberts selected.

Continue reading “In-house: A&O, Ashurst and Eversheds on Morrisons first-ever legal panel”

Panel win: £15bn Pension Protection Fund reveals new line up

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Labelled one of the most important institutions in the pensions industry with £15bn of assets under management, the Pension Protection Fund yesterday (7 October) announced its new slimmed down legal panel, with Wragge & Co winning a first time appointment for the body as one of three core advisers.

International firms Clyde & Co and Dentons also won core advisory roles on the panel, which has shrunk from a total of 27 firms in 2007 to 23 following a comprehensive tendering process. Continue reading “Panel win: £15bn Pension Protection Fund reveals new line up”

Ever reducing panels: AIG reveals new look firm line-up

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The in-house trend towards panel downsizing is again in evidence as AIG today (26 September) revealed a 25-strong list of advisers with a view to ultimately reducing that number to as little as single figures.

Phase one of AIG’s Europe Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regional legal panel review – covering AIG’s claims and corporate legal panels for the UK and its nine largest European operations – has seen firms including Linklaters, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, CMS Cameron McKenna, Clyde & Co, DAC Beachcroft and Kennedys reappointed. Continue reading “Ever reducing panels: AIG reveals new look firm line-up”

Glaxo reviews advisers as A&O & CC take lead roles on £1.35bn Ribena and Lucozade sale

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As GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) reviews its preferred law firms in a decision that could see the healthcare giant create a formal panel, Allen & Overy (A&O) has won the lead role to advise on its £1.35bn sale of drinks brands Lucozade and Ribena to the Japanese consumer goods company Suntory Beverage and Food (Suntory).

A&O won the deal after a series of GSK’s preferred firms pitched for the role. The corporate team at A&O will include partners Edward Barnett and Andrew Ballheimer, with assistance from senior associate Nigel Parker and associate Matthew Appleton, alongside anti-trust partner Alasdair Balfour and employment partner Mark Mansell. Continue reading “Glaxo reviews advisers as A&O & CC take lead roles on £1.35bn Ribena and Lucozade sale”

Panel review – Aviva reveals new look line up

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Global law has largely won the day for Aviva as it today (30 August) announced that Latham & Watkins, Ashurst, DLA Piper, Linklaters, Pinsent Masons and Addleshaw Goddard have won a place on its panel for international and UK work.

Slaughter and May and Allen & Overy (A&O), appointed in April as the company’s most senior legal advisers to the Aviva board, were automatically included in the eight-firm line up. However, Clifford Chance, which lost its place as a board adviser to A&O in April and was invited to tender during this latest stage, has not been selected for the new-look panel. Continue reading “Panel review – Aviva reveals new look line up”

Reappointing and renewables – the newly-merged Norton Rose Fulbright and Bond Dickinson in again on Crown Estate energy panel

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Norton Rose Fulbright and Bond Dickinson have been reappointed to the Crown Estate’s energy and infrastructure panel in what will be regarded as an important win for both law firms.

The Crown Estate said that the move ‘consolidated legal advice across an extremely diverse portfolio’, cutting the body’s previous specialist panel from five to two advisers after a competitive tender process. The appointments will be considered as trophy roles for both firms, in particular underlining their credentials in the renewable energy sector, which remains a coveted area for advisers despite protracted challenges in Europe’s sustainable energy sector. Continue reading “Reappointing and renewables – the newly-merged Norton Rose Fulbright and Bond Dickinson in again on Crown Estate energy panel”