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  • January 12, 2009 |

    Clydes LLP accounts reveal £4m office improvement expenses

    Clyde & Co spent nearly £4m on office improvements last year as part of the expansion of its international network, according to the firm's latest limited liability partnership (LLP) filings. Clydes' LLP accounts for 2008 reveal that the firm spent £2.6m on fixtures and fittings and roughly £1.2m on new leasehold improvements.A spokesperson for the firm said that the expenditure was linked to the firm's recent international growth after office launches in the US and the Middle East. Meanwhile, Clydes' LLP accounts also highlight a £13.6m increase in staff costs after the firm increased its headcount by 128 this year, including the hire of 88 new lawyers.

    1 minute read

  • January 5, 2009 |

    Barlows set for Brazil with Sao Paulo launch

    Barlow Lyde & Gilbert has initiated plans to launch its first office outside of the UK and Asia, with the firm intending to open in Sao Paulo later this year. The City firm will relocate London-based aviation and insurance litigation partner Jeremy Shebson to Brazil once the office launch is approved by the Brazilian authorities.Aerospace associate director Fernando Albino will join Shebson once the office opens.

    1 minute read

  • December 3, 2008 |

    Judith Selby joins Clyde & Co's New York office

    Clyde & Co has bolstered its New York office with the hire of Judith Selby from Duane Morris. Selby joins as a partner, advising alongside the insurance and reinsurance practice. She is experienced in Bermuda law and has expertise in defence claims arising from pharmaceutical litigation.

    1 minute read

  • November 28, 2008 |

    Herbies faces fees cut after Talco case settles

    One of the most expensive cases in British legal history - the epic Talco battle in which Herbert Smith advised the Republic of Tajikistan in a dispute with a group of aluminium traders - has settled midway through trial. The settlement, which comes just four weeks into an 18-week trial, means Herbert Smith's fees - expected to hit $100m (£65m) - are likely to be reduced.The firm fielded a team led by disputes partner Simon Bushell, with the estimated total fees also including costs for counsel - Herbert Smith in-house advocate Murray Rosen QC and One Essex Court's Neil Kitchener QC.

    1 minute read

  • November 26, 2008 |

    Analysis: Up in arms

    On 12 May last year, when US Department of Justice officers at the Houston airport slapped a subpoena into the hands of Michael Turner, then chief-executive of BAE Systems, it was a smack heard round the world. They also grabbed and examined his computer and documents he was carrying. BAE, with major subsidiaries in the US, Australia and India, is Europe's largest military defence contractor. And US prosecutors had stepped in where the UK prosecutors feared to tread. The subpoena sought evidence about payments the company had made to secure an $85bn (£56bn) arms deal with Saudi Arabia. Company officials had contended that they paid perfectly legal commissions to an agent, and that the payments were approved by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. But the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) thought they sounded a lot like bribes.

    1 minute read

  • November 6, 2008 |

    Quarter of UK top 50 could make job cuts in H2

    Almost a quarter of the UK's top 50 law firms are considering making redundancies in the current financial year, with 10% saying cuts in the next six months are probable.Five of the UK's top 50 law firms are anticipating job losses by the end of the financial year, saying job cuts were either 'likely' or 'very likely', according to research by Legal Week. An additional 12% said cuts were 'possible'. Not one firm in the top 50 would rule out redundancies altogether.The news comes as Hammonds emerges as the latest firm to make redundancies. The top 30 law firm launched a redundancy consultation earlier this week (4 November) which is likely to affect a number of fee earners and support staff, across all offices in real estate and corporate.Hammonds joins firms including Clifford Chance, DLA Piper, Eversheds and Simmons & Simmons in making redundancies, bringing the number of top 50 firms to cut jobs to a third (32%). So far more than 350 jobs in the top 50 are thought to have been affected by cuts, with real estate the worst affected practice group. Cobbetts and Dickinson Dees have so far confirmed the most severe cuts, with 69 and 64 jobs respectively under threat.Hammonds managing partner Peter Crossley commented: "This is a matter of real personal regret for me. However, in the current climate you have to look at anticipated market conditions during the next six months. There is a lot of uncertainty out there so we are taking a cautious view of the way ahead."However, the survey, which was carried out under condition of the firms remaining anonymous, also revealed that 28% of respondents thought it 'unlikely' that redundancies would become a reality, while 4% said lay-offs would be 'very unlikely'.Shilton Sharpe Quarry director Gavin Sharpe told Legal Week: "Law firms are often late in the process when making cutbacks in comparison with the banks. So far this year, many have been doing their utmost to redeploy their staff but come the first quarter of the next calendar year they will not have much choice but to make substantial cuts to their business - although I hope I am wrong."Seven firms refused to comment on the question altogether. They are Linklaters, Clyde & Co, Irwin Mitchell, Burges Salmon, Mills & Reeve, Maclay Murray & Spens and Watson Farley & Williams.

    1 minute read

  • November 6, 2008 |

    Clydes posts double-digit revenue growth for H1

    Clyde & Co has become the latest City firm to reveal its turnover figures for the first half of the financial year, posting double-digit revenue growth. The top City firm boosted revenues by 10% for the H1 period with the firm bringing in £83.6m, up from £76m last year.Clydes attributed the growth to an increase in commercial litigation and its international network of offices, in the particular the Middle East - where the firm is seeing an increase in corporate activity - and the Americas, which is heavily focused on litigation.

    1 minute read

  • October 31, 2008 |

    Going up, going down

    Commercial barristers and solicitor-advocates are bracing themselves for a busy few years. As 3 Verulam Buildings' Andrew Onslow QC explains: "When there's less money around, people fight harder over what remains." Firms and chambers may claim that economic conditions do not affect their trainee and pupil recruitment policies, but as all those credit-starved business ventures morph into bitter wrangles, it is likely that they're going to have to bulk up on litigators. Expect a resultant spike in law school mooting society membership levels.

    1 minute read

  • October 30, 2008 |

    Skadden defends Roman Abramovich in £2bn claim

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom has successfully defended Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich (pictured) against a claim worth more than £2bn, in a ruling which could further increase the attraction of the UK as a jurisdiction for disputes involving oligarchs. In a judgment handed down by Mr Justice Christopher Clarke in the High Court yesterday (29 October), the claim brought by OJSC Oil Company Yugraneft - which alleged fraud against Chelsea FC owner Abramovich and his adviser Millhouse Capital in relation to a stake in an oilfield in Siberia - was thrown out.Mr Justice Clarke refused jurisdiction in the UK and went on to strike out the case. The case had already been unsuccessfully brought in Russia and the British Virgin Islands.

    1 minute read

  • October 16, 2008 |

    Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank unveils first-ever external panel of legal advisers

    Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) has completed a review of its external advisers and created its first-ever legal panel. The changes follow January's appointment of Simon Copleston as the bank's first general counsel. Copleston has selected a 10-firm panel including long-standing adviser Reed Smith as well as Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Allen & Overy, Linklaters, Norton Rose, Clyde & Co and Middle East practice Al Tamimi & Company.

    1 minute read