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  • May 5, 2011 |

    US law leaders shrug off tough market to hike profits by 8%

    America's largest law firms returned to growth last year despite turbulent market conditions, with many US leaders achieving sharp increases in profits on the back of a prolonged squeeze on costs. Financial results for the 2010 financial year from Legal Week's affiliate title, The American Lawyer, show gross revenues across the US top 100 grew by 4% to $67.4bn (£40.4bn) against a healthy increase in profits per equity partner (PEP) of 8.4%.

    1 minute read

  • May 3, 2011 |

    Simpson Thacher launches Hong Kong law practice with magic circle duo

    Simpson Thacher & Bartlett has hired two partners from magic circle rivals to launch a Hong Kong law practice, writes The Asian Lawyer. Celia Lam, the joint Greater China managing partner for Linklaters, and Christopher Wong, the former head of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer's China corporate practice, will join Simpson Thacher in the autumn.

    1 minute read

  • April 28, 2011 |

    Cravath and Shearman take headline roles on $21.3bn healthcare takeover

    Cravath Swaine & Moore and Shearman & Sterling have taken the lead roles on Johnson & Johnson's $21.3bn (£12.8bn) acquisition of orthopaedic devices manufacturer Synthes, reports the Am Law Daily. Cravath is acting for Johnson & Johnson on the deal, which ranks as the healthcare giant's largest to date. The US firm's team is led by corporate partner Robert Townsend, alongside corporate partner Damien Zoubek, compensation and benefits partner Eric Hilfers and tax partner Andrew Needham.

    1 minute read

  • April 13, 2011 |

    Kirkland boosts London base with Shearman partner hire

    Kirkland & Ellis has strengthened its City office with the addition of a partner from Shearman & Sterling. Shearman capital markets partner Ward McKimm (pictured) is understood to have handed in his notice yesterday (12 April), with the intention of joining US rival Kirkland.

    1 minute read

  • April 13, 2011 |

    Paul Weiss launches in Canada with double Shearman partner hire

    Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison has announced plans to open an office in Toronto with a double hire from Shearman & Sterling. The office, which will practise only US law, will be the US firm's first presence in Canada, alongside its other international bases in Beijing, Hong Kong, London and Tokyo.

    1 minute read

  • April 4, 2011 |

    Shearman and Sullivan land top roles on $11bn NYSE Euronext counterbid

    Shearman & Sterling and Sullivan & Cromwell have won lead roles on Nasdaq OMX and the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)'s $11.3bn (£7bn) bid for NYSE Euronext, reports The Am Law Daily. Nasdaq and ICE announced on Friday (1 April) that they had teamed up for the bid, around six weeks after German exchange Deutsche Boerse agreed to purchase the New York Stock Exchange's parent for $10bn (£6.2bn).

    1 minute read

  • March 23, 2011 |

    Raft of magic circle, US and Euro firms act on $4.5bn cable buyout

    A raft of US and European firms have taken roles on Liberty Global's $4.5bn (£2.8bn) acquisition of Germany's Kabel Baden-Wuerttemberg (KBW) after a competitive auction led by private equity sellers EQT Partners. US cable operator Liberty instructed both Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and US firm Ropes & Gray on the deal, with the firms advising on M&A and financing respectively.

    1 minute read

  • March 21, 2011 |

    Weil adds partner to City capital markets team with Shearman hire

    Weil Gotshal & Manges has added to its London capital markets practice with the hire of a new partner from Shearman & Sterling. Rob Ferguson, who will join Weil's partnership from his of counsel role at Shearman, has a mainly issuer-focused equity practice, and advises on a range of capital markets transactions including high yield and investment grade debt and equity offerings. His investment banking clients have included Barclays Capital, Credit Suisse, HSBC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Standard Chartered Bank.

    1 minute read

  • March 15, 2011 |

    Then we take Manhattan - can Norton Rose really take on the world?

    Not too long ago, Norton Rose looked like an also-ran. The London firm, known for its financial institutions practice, stumbled badly after its offices were bombed - twice - by IRA terrorists in the early 1990s. It jumped belatedly on the global bandwagon, establishing a network of European offices that did not turn a profit for half a decade. By the early 2000s, key partners were running for the exits. The magic circle, formerly Norton Rose's closest rivals, had pulled far ahead.

    1 minute read

  • March 15, 2011 |

    Partner profits at top New York firms spike on Wall Street rebound

    Partner profits at elite New York firms saw a strong recovery in 2010 after a surge in M&A and capital markets work, reports The Am Law Daily. Six Wall Street firms in the $2m-plus partner profits (PEP) club saw profitability soar last year, including Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison, which saw PEP rise 15% to $3.05m (£1.9m).

    1 minute read