• December 13, 2009 |

    Beachcroft

    Less boring than it used to be, the national not-just-insurance firm got stuck in with a bit of restructuring last year that saw its private client team leave the building.

    1 minute read

  • December 8, 2009 |

    Greenberg expands City securities team with SJ Berwin partner hire

    Greenberg Traurig Maher (GTM) has bolstered its City headcount to 15 partners with the hire of a corporate and securities partner from SJ Berwin. Laura O'Neill will join the US firm in the New Year after four years as a partner with SJ Berwin, which she joined from Clifford Chance in 2005.

    1 minute read

  • December 8, 2009 |

    RBS solidifies legal panel with 18 firms given three-year terms

    Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has finalised a review of its legal panel, with at least 18 law firms making the grade. The bank, which kicked off a review of its external advisers in the spring, is in the process of formalising the appointments, with firms waiting for written confirmation.

    1 minute read

  • December 1, 2009 | International Edition

    Independent Law Firms in Europe: Numbers crunched

    Europe's independent firms have put expansion plans on hold, with the recession prompting fears among many managing partners that the risks of a tie-up with a like-minded firm could outweigh potential the benefits. Despite the opportunistic merger openings presented by the recession, the number of independent firms that would consider tying the knot over the coming 18 months has fallen from almost a quarter (23%) in 2008, to just 15% in 2009.

    1 minute read

  • December 1, 2009 |

    Independent Law Firms in Europe: Numbers crunched

    Europe's independent firms have put expansion plans on hold, with the recession prompting fears among many managing partners that the risks of a tie-up with a like-minded firm could outweigh potential the benefits. Despite the opportunistic merger openings presented by the recession, the number of independent firms that would consider tying the knot over the coming 18 months has fallen from almost a quarter (23%) in 2008, to just 15% in 2009.

    1 minute read

  • December 1, 2009 |

    Weil Gotshal makes up just three to partnership as London misses out

    Weil Gotshal & Manges has announced a depleted partner promotions round, with just three lawyers set to join the partnership on 1 January 2010. No London-based lawyers will join the firm's partnership in this year's round, with the total of three promotions representing less than half of last year's tally, when seven were made up worldwide, including one in the City.

    1 minute read

  • November 30, 2009 |

    Greenberg hires ex-Kirkland partner for London restructuring launch

    Greenberg Traurig Maher (GTM) is launching a London restructuring practice with the hire of former Kirkland & Ellis partner Lyndon Norley. Norley will join the US firm in the New Year after serving as a partner with Kirkland in London for seven years. He joined Kirkland in 2002 from Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft to launch a UK insolvency team but left in October.

    1 minute read

  • November 27, 2009 |

    You get what you pay for (now online)

    Eagle-eyed readers will have noticed that Legal Week has been going through changes to its publishing model that mean we now produce premium content which is only available to subscribers. The foundation for this shift is our monthly In depth stand, which focuses either on industry or practice sectors or issues of interest to senior decision-makers. The original idea was that by stepping outside the news cycle we could properly focus on issues that are lost in the grind of daily deadlines. We also determined that getting input from clients would be crucial to this format, and I think we've lived up to that so far. For example, this month's In depth, on restructuring and insolvency, saw us canvass professionals of the calibre of PwC's Tony Lomas (pictured), Goldman Sachs' Andrew Wilkinson, Deloitte's Neville Khan and Nomura's Matthew French, among many others. Obviously, we also talked to the top legal practitioners in the restructuring market.

    1 minute read

  • November 24, 2009 |

    Mayer Brown promotes 14 to partner with one made up in London

    Mayer Brown has promoted 14 associates to its partnership, with the firm's City office gaining one new partner. Insurance litigation specialist Andrew Westlake has been made up in London, with the Anglo-American firm's European network receiving the majority of the new partners.

    1 minute read

  • November 24, 2009 |

    Mayer Brown completes merger deal with Paris litigation boutique

    Mayer Brown has sealed a merger deal in Paris that will gift the firm a seven-lawyer litigation and arbitration team in the French capital. The firm's Paris office has completed a tie-up with boutique Ayela Semerdjian & Associes, which is led by Christophe Ayela and Renaud Semerdjian, who both join Mayer Brown as partners.

    1 minute read