KWM – ultimately a question of confidence

Posted on |

These are tough times for the house that Stanley Berwin built, with exhibit A being recent news that King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) is undergoing a sweeping partnership restructuring set to trim its European business by nearly two dozen partners, or 15% of its ranks. While global managing partner Stuart Fuller (pictured) attempts to frame the move as repositioning KWM for the future, the storm clouds are ominous. The firm has suffered a string of significant exits in the last 18 months in its funds, litigation and corporate practices, losing several notable clients along the way. The firm was already going through a performance-driven partnership review set to manage out at least 10% of its ranks by this April (the firm’s German practice has struggled particularly). While the firm managed to achieve respectable growth in 2014/15 and increases in profitability in Europe, having to go through more major cuts is hardly an advertisement for its partnership.

Continue reading “KWM – ultimately a question of confidence”

Reform underway as Dentons shakes up profit-sharing arrangement in China

Posted on |

Following its landmark combination with Dentons to create a 7,500-lawyer legal giant, legacy Dacheng is restructuring its practice to reduce the number of profit pools from 15 to five.

With Dentons striving to integrate what is now the world’s largest law firm by employee headcount, the China arm of the firm, headed by senior partner Jinquan Xiao, has carried out a reorganisation to create increased profit-sharing between the firm’s 44 Chinese offices.

Continue reading “Reform underway as Dentons shakes up profit-sharing arrangement in China”

Shell starts panel review as BG Group legal team undergoes post-acquisition restructure

Posted on |

Shell external roster set to dominate reconfigured in-house department

Royal Dutch Shell has kicked off a review of its external legal roster after finalising its £47bn takeover of BG Group last month and as their existing panels come to an end. As a result of the takeover, the second-largest energy deal on record, both companies will overhaul their legal divisions.

Continue reading “Shell starts panel review as BG Group legal team undergoes post-acquisition restructure”

Shell starts panel review as BG Group legal team undergoes post-acquisition restructure

Posted on |

Royal Dutch Shell has kicked off a review of its external legal roster after finalising its £47bn takeover of BG Group last month and as their existing panels come to an end. As a result of the takeover, the second-largest energy deal on record, both companies will overhaul their legal divisions.

Continue reading “Shell starts panel review as BG Group legal team undergoes post-acquisition restructure”

Parabis carved up in £50m pre-pack administration

Posted on |

One of the first firms to benefit from sweeping liberalisation of the legal services market in 2012, Parabis Group has been placed into a pre-pack administration in a move expected to save ‘all but a handful’ of the 2,000 jobs at the company.

Peter Saville, Ben Browne and Anne O’Keefe of AlixPartners were appointed joint administrators over a number of entities within Parabis Group. Immediately following the appointment, a series of sales of the group’s legal services, rehabilitation and field services divisions took place.

Continue reading “Parabis carved up in £50m pre-pack administration”

‘Challenging to maintain’: German market has volatile November

Posted on |

Germany saw a flurry of activity last month, with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and White & Case pulling out of several markets and consolidating their operations, while Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) went the other way and set up shop in Düsseldorf.

Freshfields announced plans to cut one of its six offices in the region, with its Cologne and Düsseldorf bases set to merge in 2016. The cut means 240 fee-earners will be located in one office – which is yet to be decided, though Cologne is regarded as more likely to shut – as the Magic Circle reconfigures its German operations. A spokesperson at the firm said the merger is ‘not driven by cost or a requirement to downsize’, but to create ‘greater efficiency’ and have ‘more lawyers in a single location to offer a stronger and more specialist platform’.

Continue reading “‘Challenging to maintain’: German market has volatile November”

A royal departure: Crown Estate general counsel Vivienne King to leave amid business restructure

Posted on |

The Crown Estate’s high profile general counsel and director of business operations, Vivienne King is leaving as the company undergoes a restructure of the business which will create three new executive roles.

Continue reading “A royal departure: Crown Estate general counsel Vivienne King to leave amid business restructure”