Carla Gozo

Allen & Overy

Another Milbank leaver exits for A&O

Another partner from Milbank’s financial restructuring team is set to leave the firm, this time joining Allen & Overy ahead of its merger with Shearman & Sterling. Karen McMaster is the latest partner loss from Milbank following last month’s news of a structured finance team led by partner John Goldfinch moving to Allen & Overy, soon […]

Kirkland, Gherkin

Kirkland’s ex-Paul Weiss and STB hires lead on KPS deal

Kirkland & Ellis has banded together its high-profile recruits from Paul Weiss and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in its recent transaction for KPS Capital Partners. Leading for the private equity group’s majority stake purchase of sports surfaces business Sport Group, the US firm’s London team was made up of partners and associates from Kirkland’s hiring […]

Kirkland, Gherkin

Second A&O finance partner moves to Kirkland ahead of merger

Kirkland & Ellis has swiped another partner from Allen & Overy, just one month ahead of the magic circle firm’s tie-up with Shearman & Sterling. Vanessa Xu is making the move to Kirkland, having spent the entirety of her 17-year career at A&O. She was made partner in 2017.  A leveraged and acquisition finance partner, […]

SET and Exec committee

Associates try out top jobs as Dentons launches shadow exec team

Dentons is preparing its more junior staff for senior leaderships roles with the formation of a shadow executive team. The group comprises senior associates, junior partners and senior legal and business services employees across the UK with a select number from the Middle East. The team will make recommendations on strategic and operational initiatives to […]

Reed Smith Broadgate Tower

Reed Smith’s London revenue slumps for second consecutive year

Revenue at Reed Smith’s London office has tumbled for a second year in a row, yet the firm expects an uptick soon as investments begin to “bear fruit”. Reed Smith’s London office revenue dropped 6.3 per cent to $214.4m in 2023 from $228.8m the previous year, while revenue per lawyer (RPL) also dipped by 4.9 […]

Ladder promotion

Linklaters cuts partner promotions by a third in latest round

This year marks an end to a series of bumper promotions rounds at Linklaters, with just 27 being made partner as of 1 May 2024. The magic circle firm has elected 27 new partners – a decrease of 34 per cent from the 41 promotions announced in both 2023 and 2022. The size of the […]

Sasha Butterworth

TLT makes up five in all-female promotion round

TLT has promoted an all-female cohort amid a push to achieve a 50 per cent female partnership by 2029. This year’s new partners include restructuring and insolvency lawyer Ainslie Benzie in Glasgow and head of estates Debbie Gale in Bristol. In Manchester, Roisin Bell in financial services disputes, Rachel Smith in property finance and Debbie […]

Business people meeting, shaking hands

City talk: Charles Russell Speechlys’ corporate team has a secret weapon

Charles Russell Speechlys has hit the ground running on partner hires in the first quarter of 2024. The recruitment of corporate partners Alexis Karim and Giles Dennison in January from DWF and Eversheds respectively, immediately followed by Edwin Coe finance partner James Walton and firm alum Richard Ellis, have been just a glimpse of the firm’s […]

Ted Baker

Ted Baker fallout: Slaughters and Simmons among firms in leading roles

Slaughter and May and Simmons & Simmons are respectively on to represent Authentic Brands Group and Ted Baker’s holding company No Ordinary Designer Label as the fashion retailer files its intention to appoint administrators. Hundreds of high street jobs were put at risk after Tuesday’s announcement that Ted Baker would be in want of a […]

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, BCLP

BCLP cuts 50 roles in fresh round of redundancies

BCLP is to let go of nearly 50 staff members across its UK and US bases, the majority of whom work in the firm’s business services departments. Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner’s latest round of layoffs marks the firm’s third round of redundancies since its 2018 merger. The firm added that no fee-earners in the UK […]

Slaughters halves promotions in latest round

Slaughter and May has elevated five lawyers to its partnership in its latest round of promotions. Last year’s promotions saw 10 new partners make the grade, double the numbers of the 2024 cohort. Four of this year’s five new partners are based in London, with Ross Francis-Pike being made up in disputes, Aleezeh Liaqat in […]

ice cream

Linklaters takes the lead on Unilever’s ice cream split

Unilever’s longstanding advisers at Linklaters have secured the lead role on the consumer goods conglomerate’s split with its ice cream business. The Linklaters team was made up of repeat advisers to the client, including corporate partners Charles Turner and Michael Fanner, Netherlands’ national managing partner Guido Portier and tax partner Lynne Walkington. Capital markets partner […]