Katy is The Lawyer’s Horizon editor. Returning to The Lawyer after a three-year break in 2020, Katy initially covered litigation and the Bar and was the publication’s senior writer between 2014 and 2017.
The last few years have been record-breaking for law firm office moves. In 2021 and 2022, law firms agreed leases on 2.85m sq ft of City space, according to property specialist Knight Frank. Demand hasn’t peaked just yet, however, with a raft of US City firms now looking for fresh digs to call home. Competition […]
Given the time, money and effort firms put into training up the next generation, it comes as a kick in the teeth when a fresh-faced NQ takes their ass elsewhere. But while firms might be able to shrug off a one-time dip in trainee retention rates, a sustained downward spiral could be cause for concern. […]
Clyde & Co’s latest LLP accounts reveal what the firm paid to acquire BLM in July 2022. Snapped up for just £11m, the revelation underscores the scale of the financial challenges faced by BLM in the years prior to its takeover. Clydes’ LLPs also show profits at BLM fell to £2.5m in the year ending […]
Insurance giant Clyde & Co has launched a UK restructure with up to 14 partner roles understood to be under threat. It is understood that the partners affected were informed of the restructure at the start of January. Sources close to the firm said roles in Clydes’ defendant casualty practice, which covers employer, public, road […]
A decade ago, an associate who perennially switched roles would have stirred suspicions among recruiting partners. That scepticism is fading against a backdrop of talent wars and wage inflation. For ambitious associates, knowing when to switch firms is not inherent. They can’t rely on a firm to signpost career crunch points. Talent retention is the […]
Knights is sacrificing clients in its mission to keep profits ticking upwards. The listed firm has taken financial control to the extreme with a straightforward, tough-talking policy that is applicable to both institutional and private clients. Chief executive David Beech says if clients fail to pay within 30 days, he doesn’t want them to stay. […]
The disconnect between partners’ view of the profession and the view of the average associate is nothing new. Mass homeworking during the pandemic saw firms issue policies designed to minimise that disconnect, many of which were informed by firmwide surveys and focus groups that canvassed views from all ranks of the firm. With research suggesting […]
Commercial law barged into the public consciousness this week and not in a good way. The reputation of the legal market is under fire because of the Post Office scandal, and the army of lawyers and barristers understood to have facilitated the wrongful prosecution of hundreds of sub-postmasters. This should be of concern to all; […]
The fastest-growing UK firms are being buoyed by gains being made overseas; of that there can be no doubt. But while Addleshaw Goddard, Gateley and Fieldfisher have made non-UK growth a central plank of their strategic narrative, others appear to be falling behind the curve. Step forward Taylor Wessing. Rising firmwide revenues are a handy […]
Law firm financials are a window to a firm’s soul. Primarily, for UK firms at least, the annual LLP accounts are a regulatory obligation, and they are also an opportunity for firms to be transparent in non-financial areas – changes to the risk profile, for example, or progress on climate commitments. Global firms, however, complain […]
From the moment a lawyer begins their career, they are encouraged to measure themselves against their peers. Evidence of this desire to find an appropriate yardstick can be found in the Horizon columns that have garnered the most attention in 2023. You, dear readers, like nothing more than to read about the firm next door. And […]
It is a confusing time to be an associate. The good news is that your firm wants you to know it cares about you. That is why, according to recent research from Evelyn Partners, almost three-quarters (71 per cent) are increasing their focus on employee wellbeing right now. But public proclamations mean little to under-pressure […]