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  • September 18, 2013 |

    Shearman becomes best friends with Italian tax outfit Tremonti

    Shearman & Sterling has launched a non-exclusive best-friends agreement with leading Italian tax firm Tremonti Vitali Romagnoli Piccardi. The two firms expect the arrangement to "enhance the breadth and geographic reach of their services" by offering an integrated tax and corporate service to both international and Italian clients.

    1 minute read

  • September 15, 2013 |

    Slaughters' White takes up non-exec position at diversity company

    Former Slaughter and May executive partner Graham White has been appointed to the board of diversity recruitment company Rare. White will take up a non-executive position on Rare's board alongside four other non-executive directors including former Financial Times chairman David Bell and former Unisys general counsel and board member Sandra Teichman.

    1 minute read

  • September 12, 2013 | International Edition

    The home guard – the missing identity of global law firms

    If year-on-year fee increases and a buoyant M&A market imbued a certain stasis, five years of economic woes have certainly driven change through the conservative legal profession. The comparative proliferation of global giants of the ilk of Hogan Lovells, Norton Rose Fulbright and, more recently, King & Wood Mallesons SJ Berwin (KWM) serve as fine examples of the diverging market, with an increasingly international client base driving the case for cross-border mergers.

    1 minute read

  • September 12, 2013 |

    Wall Street weighs up the world – are New York's elite committed to competing on a global level?

    In 1989, only seven million Americans owned a passport – a derisory 3% of the US population and a figure that was oft-brandished by scornful Europeans. Since then the situation has improved markedly, with a far more respectable 110 million of the country's 313 million citizens holding a valid passport at the last count. That still lags the 70% of British passport-holders, but the change shows a US that has taken up full residence in the global village – an unavoidable response to the emergence of rival economic powerhouses such as China.

    1 minute read

  • September 12, 2013 |

    The home guard – the missing identity of global law firms

    If year-on-year fee increases and a buoyant M&A market imbued a certain stasis, five years of economic woes have certainly driven change through the conservative legal profession. The comparative proliferation of global giants of the ilk of Hogan Lovells, Norton Rose Fulbright and, more recently, King & Wood Mallesons SJ Berwin (KWM) serve as fine examples of the diverging market, with an increasingly international client base driving the case for cross-border mergers.

    1 minute read

  • September 12, 2013 |

    BLP launches Africa review as firm eyes new markets across closely watched continent

    Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has kicked off a review of its Africa three-year strategy with a focus on markets driven by energy, mining and infrastructure work. The firm's core Africa group, which comprises five partners in London headed up by banking disputes partner Segun Osuntokun (pictured), has already identified several key jurisdictions it wants to target, including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.

    1 minute read

  • September 5, 2013 |

    Desert dreams – why law firms are reassessing their Middle East strategies

    In Abu Dhabi Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) has been looking in recent months to sub-let half its office space on the 23rd floor of the prestigious Al Sila Tower. The firm stresses it remains committed to the city, but its move nonetheless reflects a broader readjustment of international law firm ambitions in the UAE capital. "It's no secret that we are looking to sub-let half of the floor we originally let," says Zubair Mir, head of HSF's Middle East operations, before adding that "we are not looking to return the lease in any way". He explains: "What happened was we bought an entire floor in Dubai which became more full than we expected, so when we negotiated in Abu Dhabi we took out more space than we needed to try to avoid the situation of not having enough room." HSF is not alone in rethinking its needs in Abu Dhabi. Hogan Lovells closed its outpost there last year and transferred its work to the firm's Dubai office, having decided that it made for a stronger regional hub.

    1 minute read

  • September 3, 2013 |

    Skadden and Simpson Thacher on call for £4.6bn Nokia sale to Microsoft

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and Simpson Thacher have taken the lead roles on Microsoft's €5.44bn (£4.6bn) acquisition of Nokia's mobile phone business. The deal, through which Nokia will also license its patents to Microsoft, is expected to close in early 2014 and will see the transfer of around 32,000 Nokia staff to Microsoft.

    1 minute read

  • September 3, 2013 |

    Shearman re-hires former partner to take up Middle East managing partner remit

    Shearman & Sterling has appointed a new Middle East managing partner with the hire of Citadel Capital managing director Marwan Elaraby. Elaraby takes over management of the Middle East region from Nicholas Buckworth, who will continue as managing partner London, Europe and Africa. Buckworth will also continue to be involved in Middle East strategy. "It was key for me that we find someone with real regional credibility to be on the ground," said Buckworth. "Marwan will really take the business forward with the benefit of the work we have been doing his own vision and relationships."

    1 minute read

  • August 27, 2013 |

    Skadden, K&L Gates lead as Baidu takes stake in group-buying site

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and K&L Gates were lead advisors as Chinese social networking company Renren agreed to sell shares of its Groupon-like subsidiary Nuomi Holdings to Chinese internet search giant Baidu. The deal, which remains subject to approval, will see Baidu take a 59% equity interest in Nuomi for a purchase price of $160m, giving it a bigger share of China's fast-growing group-buying market.

    1 minute read