US firm Winston & Strawn has shaken up its global executive committee, and replaced London board member and disputes partner Michael Madden with corporate partner Zoe Ashcroft, signalling a shift in focus for the global 100 firm.
US law firms take advantage of early retirement myths at City leaders, argues report
New research suggests US firms are picking up top talent by taking advantage of the misconception that UK firms exit their partners in their late 50s.
Comment: The Dirty Conversation – hard choices for leading US firms as the Boomers clock out
With the first wave of the Baby Boom about to turn 70, firms are asking the hard question, earlier and earlier. Guest writer Aric Press discusses the best way to have the Dirty Conversation.
‘A hole in the market’: Scott + Scott opens in the City with plans to exploit conflicts and cash in on competition class actions
In anticipation of a boom in competition-based disputes as the Consumer Rights Act comes into force, US firm Scott+Scott is planning to kick-start its City offering by pursuing banks found guilty of manipulating the foreign exchange market in a multi-million pound lawsuit.
Mintz Levin scales back London office as managing partner leaves to set up pharma boutique
Having lost the bulk of its City patent practice to fellow US firm Cooley earlier this month, Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo has made the decision to scale back its London offering with managing partner Julian Crump exiting to establish his own pharmaceuticals boutique.
Cooley continues London expansion with launch of City patent practice
With a mandate to generate London revenues of upwards of $40m, Cooley is making good on its City ambitions and hired a trio of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo lawyers to bulk out its London offering and launch a patent practice.
Continue reading “Cooley continues London expansion with launch of City patent practice”
Comment: The Global 100 – so much for the City comeback as US leaders land the big blows
Having spent a reasonable chunk of my pundit duties over the last three years noting significant shifts against London’s elite on the global stage, I confess I had expected financial results this year to break that pattern with City leaders managing a more confident showing. Particularly as the Global 100 firms collectively grew revenues by 5% to $92.7bn, while profits increased 7% to $36.43bn.
Global 100 Overview – Heavyweights
A busy US deal market saw rainmakers pack a bigger punch than ever at the world’s largest law firms but the contest remains tough for aspiring firms. Legal Business separates the champs from the contenders.
Linklaters managing partner Simon Davies chooses his words carefully when describing his partnership’s feelings on the City giant’s performance in 2014/15: ‘they appear content’. The Magic Circle collectively went into the financial year with considerable hopes of rekindling their momentum after a long grind through the post-banking crisis wilderness.
Global 100: The regional view – Stick and move
2014 saw US firms continue to build on a solid home base but extend their reach in Europe, Asia and Africa. As clients seek to consolidate their law firm panels internationally, the Global 100 continue to slug it out.
‘The last 18 months have seen clients increasingly want to internationalise panels – not just country panels, but want to review which firms they are using in each country and assess whether this can be streamlined to use [fewer] firms that can cover more jurisdictions,’ says Hogan Lovells chief executive Stephen Immelt. ‘Rather than have ten different firms, they want five, so they can have greater consistency and more leverage in terms of pricing.’
Continue reading “Global 100: The regional view – Stick and move”
The Global 100: so much for the City comeback as US leaders land the big blows
Having spent a reasonable chunk of my pundit duties over the last three years noting significant shifts against London’s elite on the global stage, I confess I had expected financial results this year to break that pattern with City leaders managing a more confident showing.
Unfortunately for London’s finest and my own credibility, that expectation has proved plain wrong because the City’s big four have just posted their most indifferent collective performance since the wipe-out of 2008/09.
True, a weakening euro made the performance look a little softer than it actually was (though a rebound in sterling flattered their results in our Global 100 ranking) but it has still been a very subdued result given a firmer UK economy, masses of cheap debt sloshing around and robust levels of cross-border activity. Continue reading “The Global 100: so much for the City comeback as US leaders land the big blows”