Filter This View

  • January 31, 2013 |

    Down but not out – global firms still eye Japan success despite a tidal wave of economic strife

    When the Japanese Government allowed foreign law firms to open offices in the country in 1987 to provide international advice, UK and US advisers started piling onto the bustling streets of Tokyo, then lured by the presence of the world's biggest banks and insurance companies as well as its booming technology and automobile industries.

    1 minute read

  • January 23, 2013 |

    Reed Smith enters coveted Houston market with local office launch

    Reed Smith has opened an office in Houston, handing it direct access to the highly prized Texan energy market. The firm said no formal appointments had so far been made, and declined to offer an official projection for growth in the coming year, but a spokesperson said it was expecting to "expand aggressively".

    1 minute read

  • January 17, 2013 |

    Libor's long tail – lawyers jostle as bank scandals spread through the market

    The new year may be a time to start afresh, but the Libor scandal that dominated business headlines in the second half of 2012 is – for advisers – showing no signs of abating. At Clifford Chance (CC), the news that its client Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is in the final stages of a settlement with US and UK regulators over its alleged Libor role means the firm's regulatory lawyers will have had a busy start to 2013.

    1 minute read

  • January 14, 2013 |

    Freshfields strengthens Hong Kong corporate with Orrick hire

    Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has boosted its corporate team in Hong Kong with the hire of capital markets partner William Woo from Orrick. Woo, whose practice also covers private equity and M&A, will join the magic circle firm in Hong Kong this month, taking the total number of corporate partners in the Hong Kong office to 10.

    1 minute read

  • December 19, 2012 |

    Gibson Dunn advises as UBS reaches £945m Libor settlement

    Gibson Dunn & Crutcher has advised UBS on its (£945m) settlement with US and UK authorities over allegations that the Swiss bank tried to manipulate Libor interest rates. UBS announced today (19 December) that it was settling with the US Department of Justice (DoJ) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the UK, and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), over the regulators' investigations into manipulation of the Libor interbank lending rates.

    1 minute read

  • December 13, 2012 |

    New Hong Kong laws push firms to review paternity pay policies

    Law firms in Hong Kong are facing an overhaul of their paternity leave policies following a move to force all private companies in the region to provide employees with at least three days' paid leave. The government proposals, endorsed by the Hong Kong Labour Advisory Board last month, will see men paid at least 80% of their salaries for the paternity leave period.

    1 minute read

  • December 12, 2012 |

    Norton Rose, Herbert Smith among firms on Delta's $360m purchase of 49% Virgin Atlantic stake

    Herbert Smith Freehills, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Norton Rose and Shearman & Sterling are among a raft of law firms to have advised on Delta Air Lines' $360m (£223m) acquisition of a stake in Virgin Atlantic. The deal has seen Delta take a 49% stake in Richard Branson's transatlantic carrier from Singapore Airlines, alongside a joint venture between Virgin and Delta, and a revised brand licence with the Virgin Group.

    1 minute read

  • December 7, 2012 |

    Freshfields high-yield partner quits for Weil in latest exit to US rival

    Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer high-yield partner Gil Strauss has resigned to join Weil Gotshal & Manges, marking the latest departure from the magic circle firm for a US rival. Strauss, whose practice focuses on US corporate finance and securities, will join Weil in London in the New Year to help build out the firm's European high-yield practice.

    1 minute read

  • December 6, 2012 |

    Linklaters calls time on cooperation agreement with Brazil ally Lefosse

    Linklaters has ended its Brazil cooperation agreement with Lefosse Advogados as a number of law firms rethink their local operations amid faltering hopes for market liberalisation. The firm called time on the agreement in October after the Brazilian Bar unanimously voted to uphold the rules for foreign firms in Brazil, which allow firms to offer international legal advice but stipulate strict demarcation between foreign and local practices.

    1 minute read

  • December 6, 2012 |

    Herbert Smith Freehills shakes up post-merger partner notice terms

    Herbert Smith Freehills is overhauling its notice period in the wake of the merger between the two firms which went live in October, with the new six-month term halving the notice period previously in place at legacy Herbert Smith. Partners at both firms approved the change, which is in the process of being implemented, as part of the merger terms. The six-month term, which will be imposed at the discretion of the firm, effectively doubles the notice for legacy Freehills partners exiting, as they were previously subject to just three months.

    1 minute read