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  • September 21, 2011 |

    US firms in London to join diversity initiative; more UK firms get on board

    PRIME, the ground-breaking social mobility initiative launched by 23 major law firms earlier this month, looks set to be expanded to include the London offices of several leading US firms, with White & Case and Shearman & Sterling among those lining up to get involved.

    1 minute read

  • September 20, 2011 |

    Mayer Brown's Canning exits to join Ernst & Young as global GC

    Mayer Brown litigation partner Clare Canning is leaving the firm to become global general counsel at Ernst & Young. The appointment, which takes effect on 10 October, comes as current global GC Trevor Faure - who joined the accountancy giant in 2009 from manufacturing group Tyco, where he was EMEA GC - has been handed the role of global leader, legal services sector.

    1 minute read

  • September 19, 2011 |

    BLP signs up Linklaters partners for double Germany office launch

    Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) is set to launch two offices in Germany with the hire of a four-strong team from Linklaters, marking the firm's first venture into the country. The firm announced today (19 September) that it will open in Berlin and Frankfurt by the end of the year, with a focus on high-end real estate work.

    1 minute read

  • September 14, 2011 |

    Freshfields and Mayer Brown lead ex-BP chief's $4.2bn Turkey tie-up

    Mayer Brown and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have won roles on the planned $4.2bn (£2.7bn) merger of former BP chief executive Tony Hayward's investment vehicle Vallares with Turkish oil company Genel Energy International. Mayer Brown's London office is advising Genel, the largest oil producer in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, fielding a team led by global energy co-head Robert Hamill, working with partners including Kate Ball-Dodd 
and Richard Smith (corporate), James Hill 
(tax) and Mark Compton (financial services). Mayer Brown worked alongside Turkish law firm Yazici, where senior partner and Genel GC Murat Yazici took the lead role.

    1 minute read

  • September 14, 2011 |

    Battle royale - the tussle for global dominance shifts eastward

    With elite Wall Street firms finally breaking into Hong Kong law, the stage is set for a high-stakes struggle across Asia between the world's top law firms. Georgina Stanley and Simon Petersen report

    1 minute read

  • September 12, 2011 |

    'Draconian' Vickers banking reforms face criticism from City lawyers

    City finance partners have criticised Government plans to push ahead with proposals that will force Britain's banks to ring-fence their retail banking operations from the investment banking arms within the next eight years. Banks will have until 2019 to implement proposals in Sir John Vickers' Independent Commission on Banking report, which was released today (12 September) and called on the Government to enact the reforms as soon as possible.

    1 minute read

  • September 7, 2011 |

    Winner 
takes all - conflict over a US mortgage-backed securities deal

    On a typical Friday in August, Justice Barbara Kapnick's state court at 60 Centre Street in Manhattan would be a pretty sleepy place. Not on Friday, 5 August. On that day, lawyers and reporters fought for seats. On the calendar: a proposed settlement that would resolve claims of investors who had bought $424bn (£261bn) worth of mortgage-backed securities from Countrywide Financial Corporation, now owned by Bank of America Corporation (BofA). The $8.5bn (£5.2bn) settlement had been negotiated by Kathy Patrick of Houston's Gibbs & Bruns, who represented a group of investors, and by Meyer Koplow and Theodore Mirvis of Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, who represented BofA. Also involved in the discussion were lawyers from Mayer Brown, representing Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, the trustee of the contested mortgage-backed securities (MBS).

    1 minute read

  • September 7, 2011 |

    A waste of money - is the bonus round at top US firms just money down the drain?

    US law firms are conditioned to doling out tightly banded 'follow-the-leader' bonus awards to associates. But, argues Amy Kolz, there is little evidence this practice reflects market reality or even buys them any staff loyalty

    1 minute read

  • September 7, 2011 |

    Freshfields and Mayer Brown head up ex-BP CEO's $4.2bn Turkey tie-up

    Mayer Brown and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have won roles on the planned $4.2bn (£2.6bn) merger of former BP chief executive Tony Hayward's investment vehicle Vallares with Turkish oil company Genel Energy International. Mayer Brown's London office is advising Genel, the largest oil producer in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, fielding a team led by global energy co-head Robert Hamill, working with partners including Kate Ball-Dodd and Richard Smith (corporate), James Hill (tax) and Mark Compton (financial services).

    1 minute read

  • September 5, 2011 |

    Mayer Brown adds partner to City corporate insurance team with Debevoise hire

    Mayer Brown has strengthened its London corporate and securities practice with a hire from Debevoise & Plimpton. Colin Scagell joined the international firm today (5 September) as the newest partner in its London-based insurance industry group. He joins from the City office of Debevoise, where he was an associate.

    1 minute read