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  • July 4, 2013 |

    On dangerous ground – negligence cases against lawyers have fallen, but the sums being claimed are soaring

    It remains the case that, following a peak in 2009, the number of claims against solicitors has generally decreased. It has been widely reported that the most marked increase has come from lender litigation. Residential claims are now tailing off to a degree, although commercial property claims continue to come through. Opinions are divided about whether the worst of the lender claims are now over. If interest rates rise (perhaps unlikely while economic troubles continue) we may see something of a resurgence. For larger firms the trend is towards fewer claims, but of markedly increased severity in terms of amounts claimed. This is because the downturn followed a boom period where there were many complex high-value transactions. A significant development has been this April's introduction of the Jackson reforms to litigation procedure and costs, which end the recoverability by a winning party of a success fee under a conditional fee agreement (CFA) or an after-the-event (ATE) insurance premium.

    1 minute read

  • June 27, 2013 |

    Olswang faces multimillion-pound claim over Esporta takeover role

    Olswang is facing a multimillion-pound claim relating to advice it gave on the £460m acquisition of fitness club chain Esporta from private equity firm Duke Street Capital announced in 2006. The case, which has been assigned to the Queen's Bench Division of the Commercial Court, sees Olswang accused of negligence and breach of its duties of care under its client retainer in relation to advice it gave Esporta's acquirers Ironzar III, a trust owned by property investor Simon Halabi. Ironzar claims Olswang breached its retainer duty by failing to alert the trust of the potential pitfalls created by the format of letters of engagement between the trust and Ernst & Young (E&Y), which was conducting due diligence on the acquisition. It also alleges Olswang failed to provide E&Y with the necessary documents it required as part of its due diligence exercise.

    1 minute read

  • June 19, 2013 |

    Clydes recruits partner duo to launch fourth US base in Atlanta

    Clyde & Co has opened a new office in Atlanta, marking the firm's fourth base in the US and 33rd office worldwide. The office will be headed up by civil litigation and dispute resolution partner Bob Fisher and risk partner James Chin, both of whom join from Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi, a litigation-focused US firm based in Minneapolis.

    1 minute read

  • June 11, 2013 |

    DAC Beachcroft overhauls board as legacy firm's senior partner retires

    DAC Beachcroft has overhauled its management team with the addition of four partners to its board, as former Davies Arnold Cooper (DAC) senior partner Danny Gowan prepares to retire from the firm. The new board members are disputes partner Nick Young in London, insurance partner Pablo Wesolowski in Madrid, Dublin head Katie da Gama and Leeds senior partner Virginia Clegg.

    1 minute read

  • June 11, 2013 |

    Clydes boosts revenues 17% as PEP rises 5% in first full post-BLG year

    Clyde & Co has posted a 17% increase in turnover and a 5% rise in profits per equity partner (PEP) following its first full year of trading since its merger with Barlow Lyde & Gilbert. The firm has posted turnover of £337m for the 2012-13 financial year, up from the figure of £287m recorded last year, with PEP rising from £550,000 to £580,000.

    1 minute read

  • June 11, 2013 |

    RPC sees turnover rise 20% after launches in Hong Kong and Bristol

    RPC has defied the continued economic downturn to post a 20% hike in turnover in 2012-12, with the expansive firm's revenue rising from £68m to £82.1m. The results come after the firm's revenue climbed by 13% during the previous financial year, meaning fee income has soared by 36% over the last two years compared with a 2010-11 equivalent of £60.3m.

    1 minute read

  • June 6, 2013 |

    King & Spalding continues London growth drive with Steptoe arbitration partner hire

    King & Spalding's London office has recruited Steptoe & Johnson's Russia and CIS group co-head Egishe Dzhazoyan, in the latest of a series of City partner hires for the US firm. Dzhazoyan is a UK and Russian-qualified litigation and arbitration lawyer with a particular focus on the banking, telecoms and energy sectors.

    1 minute read

  • June 3, 2013 |

    Transfer Window Asia: recent moves including Simmons and Ashurst

    Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld has expanded its Beijing team with the recruitment of corporate lawyer Chen Li from Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy. Chen, who was an Of Counsel with Milbank in Beijing, has more than a decade of experience handling cross-border transactions in China, concentrating on outbound M&A and foreign direct investment, with a focus on major Chinese state-owned enterprises.

    1 minute read

  • June 3, 2013 |

    Department of Health appoints 14-strong cross-department roster

    The Department of Health and the NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) have appointed a new panel to provide legal advice to 16 health organisations. In total, 14 firms have won places on the panel, which replaces the previous roster which advised the NHSLA alone. The panel is sub-divided into clinical liability, non-clinical liability and regulatory, health and disciplinary. Eleven firms will advise on the clinical negligence roster, while six firms have taken places on the non-clinical panel. Meanwhile, 11 firms have taken places on the newly created regulatory, health and disciplinary panel.

    1 minute read

  • May 30, 2013 |

    SJ Berwin leads as British Land lets landmark City building to insurer

    SJ Berwin has advised longstanding client British Land and its joint venture partner Oxford Properties on the letting of City landmark the Leadenhall Building to insurance group Amlin. The lease is for 111,000 sq ft of office space in the 47-storey building, with the option to take up further space of up to 36,760 sq ft. The annual rental price for the space is around £7m. The SJ Berwin team was led by the firm's international real estate head Bryan Pickup and fellow real estate partner Pat Jones, while Clyde & Co acted for Amlin with real estate partner Malcolm Rogerson in the lead role.

    1 minute read