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  • March 14, 2014 |

    Freshfields Germany trio quit to set up arbitration boutique

    A team of arbitrators has left Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in Germany to set up their own independent firm. Partner Christian Borris who is based in the firm's Cologne office, is leaving the magic circle firm to set up the boutique along with Frankfurt-based partner Sebastian Kneisel and associate Rudolf Hennecke. The new firm - Borris Hennecke Kneisel - will open in May.

    1 minute read

  • March 14, 2014 |

    KWM to close Berlin after review of German offices

    King & Wood Mallesons SJ Berwin is to close its Berlin office in May, following a strategic review of the firm's Germany practice. The office's venture capital transactional team, headed by partners Frank Vogel and Jan Dirk Heerma, are departing to set up their own boutique firm, while litigation counsel Tilman de Vries will relocate to Frankfurt.

    1 minute read

  • March 13, 2014 |

    Milbank still has big plans for Asia despite bucking trend by giving up local HK practice

    When Slaughter and May cast aside 125 years of tradition to make its first lateral partner hire in Hong Kong earlier this year it said something about the market in the Asian city. But as growing numbers of firms – both UK and US – pile into the region or bolster their ranks in a bid to capture a share of the coveted market, competition for talent, work and on fees is immense. Against this backdrop it is unsurprising that some firms are now reappraising their strategy, with it emerging this week that Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy is planning on winding up its local practice in the city. Having had a Hong Kong law practice for less than four years, the suggestion is that the firm is refocusing on international work and looking to adopt a similar model to the one it employs in Singapore, where it partners with top-tier local firms rather than hiring its own local lawyers. Given Milbank's profitability and the recent hires of two senior partners from Allen & Overy (A&O) in Hong Kong and Japan, as well as this week's capture of Stephenson Harwood aviation finance head Paul Ng in Singapore, the firm certainly seems to be evolving rather than downsizing.

    1 minute read

  • March 11, 2014 |

    Weil's City revenue climbs as global results reflect tough year

    Weil Gotshal & Manges' City arm has posted a 3.6% increase in revenue for 2013, as its global profit and turnover both suffered significant falls. The London office generated $114m (£68.6m) in fee income last year, up on the previous year when it brought in $110m (£66.2m).

    1 minute read

  • March 7, 2014 |

    Reed Smith's City turnover up 13% as global revenue hits $1.08bn

    Reed Smith's London office revenue increased 13% in 2013, the second successive year of double-digit growth for the Pittsburgh-founded firm's UK outpost. The City office hit its revenue target of $190m (£113.6m) last year, up from $168m (£100.5m) in 2012, with the energy and natural resources and financial industries groups performing particularly strongly.

    1 minute read

  • March 2, 2014 |

    Skadden, Shearman win mandates for Weibo's US IPO

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Shearman & Sterling have snared roles on the upcoming US IPO of Chinese microblogging site, Weibo. News of the hotly anticipated listing emerged last week, with media reports estimating that it would take place in the second quarter of this year and raise around $500m.

    1 minute read

  • February 27, 2014 |

    Two sides of the coin – can Travers and Macfarlanes still be classed as City bellwethers?

    With their UK-centric business models and focus on private equity, if anyone was going to be hit hard by Lehman Brothers' 2008 collapse and the subsequent implosion of the global financial markets, it was top 50 UK law firms Macfarlanes and Travers Smith. Traditionally paired together as tight and conservative partnerships with a heavy transactional bent and a distinct absence of international networks, some rivals predicted the two would struggle to quickly regain the form that – pre-crisis – had set them apart from many of their mid-market peers. As Macfarlanes senior partner Charles Martin puts it: "Before the downturn the firm was more heavily transactional: private equity, corporate and real estate. All of this stopped in its tracks in 2008 – it was as though we were hit by a freight train in the night." In fact, while profits per equity partner (PEP) fell by more than 30% at both firms in the first chaotic financial year post-Lehman between 2007-08 and 2008-09, the pair's fortunes subsequently recovered well. Travers saw revenues soar by 11.6% in 2009-10 against a 53.5% rise in PEP, with that year's bumper growth helping to ensure that profits in 2012-13 were 5% higher than five years earlier. And while Macfarlanes has yet to regain its boom-time PEP high of £1.1m, at just shy of £990,000 for the last financial year it has come pretty close in far less buoyant market conditions.

    1 minute read

  • February 26, 2014 |

    Shearman, Jones Day and Covington partners to join Freshfields trio in establishing new arbitration firm

    Partners from Shearman & Sterling, Jones Day and Covington & Burling are set to join three senior disputes lawyers from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in establishing a global arbitration boutique.

    1 minute read

  • February 25, 2014 |

    Paul Hastings and McDermott post revenue rises as K&S joins $2m PEP club

    Paul Hastings, McDermott Will & Emery and King & Spalding each posted global revenue rises in 2013, according to financial results released by the US-headquartered law firms this week.

    1 minute read

  • February 25, 2014 |

    Sidley Austin mulls Germany exit following Frankfurt partner losses

    Sidley Austin has placed the future of its Frankfurt office under review, following a number of recent partner departures. Among the options being considered by management is the closure of the office and the transfer of clients and referral relationships to a German firm, Legal Week understands.

    1 minute read