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  • March 31, 2009 |

    BT set for online auction in legal adviser review

    BT has kicked off a sweeping review of its panel of external legal advisers, piloting an eBay-style online auction for its real estate panel as part of the process. Panel firms were contacted last month, with the review being led by group general counsel Anne Fletcher. It is expected to be completed within the next three to six months. The review comes after the telecoms giant launched an e-auction pilot for its real estate advisers earlier this year. The pilot saw seven firms bidding against each other on various criteria, including hourly rates and fixed prices, with the process also including formal interviews with each firm.

    1 minute read

  • March 26, 2009 |

    US firms in City reach new high for lateral hires

    Lateral partner hiring across the top US and international firms in London has almost doubled over the last five years, according to research from Legal Week.A survey of hiring trends at 33 US and transatlantic firms with operations in the City found the group made a total of 79 lateral partner hires during 2008 - 11 more than in 2007, despite the banking crisis and the onset of the global recession.

    1 minute read

  • March 18, 2009 |

    Proffitt and loss

    Thacher Proffitt & Wood real estate partner Donald Simone was at his desk on the 40th floor of the World Trade Center's south tower early on 11 September, 2001, pushing to close a deal, when United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the building about three dozen floors above."When it hit, my whole office moved," Simone recalls. With the electricity off and ceiling tiles falling, he made his way to a stairwell and then to safety.

    1 minute read

  • March 18, 2009 |

    Policing the business

    "Everything goes back to reputation," says Michael Blacker, general counsel of FTSE 100 project management and services company AMEC, while discussing the increased importance of compliance issues - to all companies, not just banks - in the post-Lehman world. "The old cliche is true: a good reputation is difficult to acquire and easy to lose. And one of the easiest ways to lose it is by breaking the law."He cites the nuclear sector - in which AMEC has invested heavily during recent years - as an example of where senior management must be made fully aware of the implications of falling foul of regulation. "Not only is nuclear highly regulated, but it is extremely vulnerable to negative publicity. Naturally, this impacts on strategy. As general counsel, it is about knitting all those aspects together," he says.

    1 minute read

  • February 19, 2009 |

    New QC appointments round sees 104 take silk

    The latest round of QC appointments has been announced today (19 February), with more than a hundred barristers claiming the elite kitemark. One hundred and four out of a total of 247 applicants have been awarded QC status, a success rate of 42% - a significant increase on the 2007-08 figure of 29%.However, the total of 247 applications received by the QC selection panel was a sharp drop from last year's total of 333 and a further drop from the 443 applicants in 2006-07.

    1 minute read

  • February 18, 2009 | International Edition

    That's entertainment

    The halcyon days of unlimited cash to splash on boozy client lunches and blagging the day off to cut up turf at the golf course may have passed for the immediate future, but that doesn't mean clients don't still expect a little love now and again. But in leaner times, how should lawyers strike the balance between rewarding good business and cutting into profits?With every firm out to maximise the work available from existing clients, as well securing work from other people's clients, any cutbacks to marketing and entertainment budgets at this point have to be measured. And while showing clients you appreciate their business is one thing, decorum is required if you don't want them to start questioning whose bill their ostentatious gift was funded by.

    1 minute read

  • February 18, 2009 |

    That's entertainment

    The halcyon days of unlimited cash to splash on boozy client lunches and blagging the day off to cut up turf at the golf course may have passed for the immediate future, but that doesn't mean clients don't still expect a little love now and again. But in leaner times, how should lawyers strike the balance between rewarding good business and cutting into profits?With every firm out to maximise the work available from existing clients, as well securing work from other people's clients, any cutbacks to marketing and entertainment budgets at this point have to be measured. And while showing clients you appreciate their business is one thing, decorum is required if you don't want them to start questioning whose bill their ostentatious gift was funded by.

    1 minute read

  • February 11, 2009 |

    US firms see record year for laterals as 2,500 partners swap firms in 2008

    Leading US law firms saw a record year for lateral moves in 2008 despite the financial downturn, with a 4% increase in partner moves during the year. Research from Legal Week sister title The American Lawyer found that 2,509 partners in Am Law 100 and 200 firms transferred to rivals over the course of 2008. K&L Gates took on the most lateral partners, bringing in 185 over the period, followed by Reed Smith with 74, DLA Piper with 58 and Jones Day with 57.

    1 minute read

  • February 11, 2009 |

    EU/Competition: Seeking guidance

    The European Commission is currently reviewing the procedures for the assessment of horizontal cooperation agreements (that is, cooperation agreements between actual or potential competitors) under the EC competition rules. The review presents an important opportunity for the Commission to adapt its guidance to the changed circumstances since the current regime was adopted.The Commission's current approach is set out primarily in its guidelines on the application of Article 81 of the EC Treaty (which, broadly speaking, prohibits anti-competitive collusion in the EU) to horizontal cooperation agreements (known as the Horizontal Guidelines) and in separate block exemption regulations relating to cooperation under specialisation and research and development agreements. Those provisions were adopted by the Commission in late 2000 and early 2001. The Horizontal Guidelines in particular were widely welcomed when they were introduced, not least because they sought to place a greater emphasis on economic criteria and made the Commission's approach to enforcement more transparent.

    1 minute read

  • February 11, 2009 |

    Clydes and Pinsents win Dubai Holding panel roles

    A raft of City firms have scored seats on Dubai Holding's new panel of preferred firms. Clyde & Co, Pinsent Masons, Eversheds and DLA Piper have all won spots on the panel. Clydes won its role on the back of its relationship with the investor and will advise on real estate, intellectual property, construction and corporate matters.All firms have a strong presence in the Middle East, with Clydes having opened in the region twenty years ago and Pinsents holding offices in Dubai. DLA Piper recently launched an office in Oman and Eversheds has offices in Abu Dhabi and Doha.

    1 minute read