Live blog: Find out who’s moving where
The latest movers in the legal market.
You be the judge: which mergers will we see in ’23?
Can you believe it has been a whole five years since the last major transatlantic merger – that of Bryan Cave and Berwin Leighton Paisner? Major tie-ups have been thin on the ground since… but rumours are now swirling that big weddings are on the cards between some famous old firms. Three of the four […]
Clifford Chance’s former tax head is having the time of his life
Dan Neidle is enjoying his new role as a gadfly “All communications sent to me will be held in strict confidence and only disclosed with your explicit permission”, reads the legal notice on Dan Neidle’s website Tax Policy Associates (TPA). “Unless you are threatening to sue me for libel, in which case absolutely no duty […]
Dickson Minto will merge. Will it take the Edinburgh office with it?
Meetings between law firm leaders can be casual, just a polite meeting to chew the fat over a cup of coffee, or they can have a serious intent. Last month, when Dickson Minto’s de facto managing partner Jordan Simpson met with a delegation from New York’s Fried Frank, it was the latter. Make no mistake, […]
Claim Spotter: Quinn represents in lawsuit against PE firm; Weightmans takes on former client
Check in with The Lawyer each week as we spot the most important new claims hitting the courts and assess what they say about the litigation landscape.
Live blog: Find out who’s moving where
The latest movers in the legal market.
You be the judge: which mergers will we see in ’23?
Can you believe it has been a whole five years since the last major transatlantic merger – that of Bryan Cave and Berwin Leighton Paisner? Major tie-ups have been thin on the ground since… but rumours are now swirling that big weddings are on the cards between some famous old firms. Three of the four […]
Clifford Chance’s former tax head is having the time of his life
Dan Neidle is enjoying his new role as a gadfly “All communications sent to me will be held in strict confidence and only disclosed with your explicit permission”, reads the legal notice on Dan Neidle’s website Tax Policy Associates (TPA). “Unless you are threatening to sue me for libel, in which case absolutely no duty […]
Dickson Minto will merge. Will it take the Edinburgh office with it?
Meetings between law firm leaders can be casual, just a polite meeting to chew the fat over a cup of coffee, or they can have a serious intent. Last month, when Dickson Minto’s de facto managing partner Jordan Simpson met with a delegation from New York’s Fried Frank, it was the latter. Make no mistake, […]
City associates offered partner-style pay in Boies recruitment drive
Boies Schiller is giving UK associates the option of either partner-style “formula compensation” or standard salaries to recruit and retain new talent, The Lawyer can reveal. Each City associate at Boies Schiller can now choose whether to receive a standard market competitive annual bonus or instead be paid a percentage of the number hours they […]
Kirkland’s beaten Linklaters again
Does anyone need any confirmation of the gradual takeover of the City by rampaging US law firms? No, thought not. If, however, your answer is yes, then more evidence of the Americanisation of London can be found in the upcoming edition of the UK Corporate 50. Much of the focus in this year’s report is […]
We’re entering a new era in Spain’s most expansionist firm
Mexico is set to welcome thousands of lawyers later this year when the capital city plays host to the International Bar Association’s (IBA) showpiece event. Partners and support staff will mingle from dawn until way after dusk, discuss strategies and scan way off into the horizon. However, Mexico’s been high on the interest list for […]
Clydes needed BLM as much as BLM needed Clydes
At times, Clyde & Co appeared dangerously close to squandering the growth opportunities presented by its July 2022 acquisition of BLM. The firm’s most recent financials, however, suggest BLM was the fuel Clydes needed to grow in the UK. Not that it has been without casualties, with a significant proportion of former BLM partners having […]
These are the M&A winners so far this year
The M&A rankings for the first half of 2024 confirmed one thing we already felt was true: that Linklaters and Slaughter and May have had a lot of acquisitive or targeted clients this year. According to data provided by the London Stock Exchange Group, the pair rank first and second respectively in terms of the […]
Stephenson Harwood is playing the long game
When Stephenson Harwood chief executive Eifion Morris set a target for doubling revenue to £400m by 2027, he knew it would be a tough challenge. “A profitable growth strategy will probably take more than individual lateral joiners and internal promotions to achieve,” he told The Lawyer back in 2021. This protective view came as the […]
The Lawyer Podcast: Qualification – the end of your career?
The associate recruitment market has tightened up over the past year or two. For trainees looking to qualify, it means that finding a home in their preferred practice area has become more difficult too. Qualification and, specifically, which team you qualify into, can be one of the most crucial moments in a solicitor’s career. On […]
HSF’s profits surge after lull in previous year
Herbert Smith Freehills’s revenue hit £1.3bn over 2023/24, while profits soared by 14 per cent after a small uptick was recorded in the previous year’s results. The firm’s revenue was up 10 per cent from its last financial results of £1.186bn. Profits saw a double digit burst for the financial year, with HSF reporting a […]
Freshfields and Slaughters announce strong trainee retention
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Slaughter and May have released their retention results for the September cohort, achieving 86 per cent and 84 per cent respectively. There are 37 trainees staying on in newly-qualified positions at Freshfields out of the 43-sized cohort. Slaughters is keeping one fewer trainee from the same sized batch of trainees, meaning […]
Kingsley Napley issues bonuses early after 120 per cent profit rise
Kingsley Napley will give bonuses to staff three months early after a highly profitable year, which saw the firm’s net profit increase by 120 per cent. Managing partner Linda Woolley told The Lawyer that the results were a sign that the firm’s investments in the prior years had come through, following the firm’s challenging year […]
Morton Fraser MacRoberts revenue rises in first-ever financial results
Morton Fraser MacRoberts has posted a 2 per cent rise in revenue in its first set of financial results since the 1 November merger of legacy firms Morton Fraser and MacRoberts. The increase takes the total revenue at the recently-merged Scottish firm to £47.5m, which should be enough to propel Morton Fraser MacRoberts into the […]