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  • May 25, 2011 | International Edition

    A change in the private equity guard is opening a few gates

    Last month Clifford Chance (CC) private equity veteran James Baird retired from the firm after more than 25 years as a partner. Clearly the departure is unlikely to spell anything like disaster for a buyout practice as dominant as CC's, but it has certainly got the private equity sewing circle talking. And, no doubt, hoping for opportunities to tighten links with some of Baird's clients, such as CVC.

    1 minute read

  • May 25, 2011 |

    A change in the private equity guard is opening a few gates

    Last month Clifford Chance (CC) private equity veteran James Baird retired from the firm after more than 25 years as a partner. Clearly the departure is unlikely to spell anything like disaster for a buyout practice as dominant as CC's, but it has certainly got the private equity sewing circle talking. And, no doubt, hoping for opportunities to tighten links with some of Baird's clients, such as CVC.

    1 minute read

  • May 25, 2011 |

    Fat chance - debunking ideas about Am Law 100 profit margins

    Grow your way to the top? Some common ideas about Am Law 100 profit margins don't hold up, a five-year analysis shows. Amy Kolz reports

    1 minute read

  • May 20, 2011 |

    Freshfields and Camerons lead on €9.6bn pharma acquisition

    Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and CMS Cameron McKenna have advised on the largest European private equity deal since before the global financial crisis, worth €9.6bn (£8.4bn). The two law firms have advised as Japanese pharma company Takeda makes a move into the European market with the debt-free purchase of Swiss-based drug-maker Nycomed from its private equity owners.

    1 minute read

  • May 11, 2011 |

    Five US law firms line up on Microsoft's $8.5bn Skype purchase

    A raft of US law firms have won roles on Microsoft's $8.5bn (£5.2bn) acquisition of Skype Global, the internet voice and video chat service, reports The Am Law Daily. The all-cash deal - Microsoft's largest acquisition ever - will give the software giant a leading communications brand to partner with its other products such as Outlook, Lync, and Xbox LIVE.

    1 minute read

  • May 5, 2011 |

    Simpson Thacher associate lands new Euro general counsel role at Bain Capital

    Bain Capital has hired its first-ever European general counsel, with the US buyout house appointing Simpson Thacher & Bartlett London corporate associate Bart Gombert to the role. Gombert, who is due to join Bain in London later this month (16 May), has been hired with a remit to oversee Bain's legal function across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, as the organisation expands its interests outside the US.

    1 minute read

  • May 5, 2011 |

    Rugged individualism – 2010 was a year of firm-specific achievement in the US

    If US culture traditionally celebrates individual achievement, the financial results for the world's largest legal market proved suitably patriotic last year. Overall there was little surprise, with the US top 100 firms achieving underlying revenue growth of 1.4% - a modest but respectable result that returned the group to growth after the 3.4% contraction seen in 2009. The prolonged squeeze on costs was enough to turn this modest revival into an 8.4% increase in average partner profits overall - very solid going for a hardly solid market.

    1 minute read

  • May 3, 2011 |

    Simpson Thacher launches Hong Kong law practice with magic circle duo

    Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has hired two partners from magic circle rivals to launch a Hong Kong law practice, writes The Asian Lawyer. Celia Lam, the joint Greater China managing partner for Linklaters, and Christopher Wong, the former head of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer's China corporate practice, will join Simpson Thacher in the autumn.

    1 minute read

  • April 21, 2011 |

    New regulation wreaks havoc on private equity houses' returns

    The burden of regulatory compliance is causing "misery" for private equity houses, with associated legal and compliance costs eating into returns, according to Better Capital managing director Jon Moulton. Speaking at Legal Week's Private Equity Forum last week (13 April), Moulton said regulation such as the European Commission's Directive for Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFM), the forthcoming UK Bribery Act, the US' Dodd-Frank Act and carbon reporting requirements were causing undue problems for buyout houses.

    1 minute read

  • April 13, 2011 |

    Kirkland boosts London base with Shearman partner hire

    Kirkland & Ellis has strengthened its City office with the addition of a partner from Shearman & Sterling. Shearman capital markets partner Ward McKimm (pictured) is understood to have handed in his notice yesterday (12 April), with the intention of joining US rival Kirkland.

    1 minute read