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  • April 2, 2008 |

    Monsieur is spoiling us...

    With French premier Nicolas Sarkozy last week charming the bejesus out of us impressionable Brits with his Gallic panache and dazzling other half, the ever-contrarian Diary this week had its beady eye on Paris instead. Jones Day is currently making waves of Sarkozian proportions in the French capital, with the Yankee powerhouse reportedly in line to take over super-swanky new premises at what is currently the US embassy.

    1 minute read

  • April 1, 2008 |

    Gibson Dunn bags Bakers man in Munich

    Gibson Dunn & Crutcher has hired an new employment partner from Baker & McKenzie in a boost for the US firm's European network. Mark Zimmer joined the firm's Munich office from Bakers today (1 April). He advises on employment law in restructurings, M&A, collective dismissals and union negotiations.

    1 minute read

  • March 30, 2008 |

    French connection still delivers for Americans in Paris

    If Daniel Hurstel’s schedule on Thursday 27 March was anything to go by, the Paris legal market is in decent health. The head of Willkie Farr &…

    1 minute read

  • March 20, 2008 |

    CC and Cleary win top roles on mining mega-deal as Vale approaches Xstrata

    Clifford Chance (CC) and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton have won key advisory roles on one of the world's biggest potential takeovers - Brazilian mining company Vale's approach to Swiss rival Xstrata for an estimated $90bn (£44.9bn). If the deal goes ahead it would see Vale threatening BHP Billiton's position as the world's largest mining company. CC has won the lead role for Vale, with the magic circle firm fielding a team led by Sao Paulo-based relationship partner Anthony Oldfield and London-based corporate partner David Pudge.

    1 minute read

  • March 19, 2008 |

    Dealmaker: Iain Newman

    Iain Newman is the straight-talking, fleece-wearing head of corporate at Nabarro

    1 minute read

  • March 12, 2008 |

    US duo celebrate key Lords extradition ruling

    White & Case and Jones Day are celebrating after the House of Lords blocked an attempt by the US to extradite a British citizen accused of price-fixing, bringing to an end one of the most high-profile white-collar crime investigations of recent years. The Lords ruled this morning (12 March) that White & Case client Ian Norris could not be extradited over his alleged involvement in the price-fixing of carbon products before the Enterprise Act 2002 made price-fixing a criminal offence in the UK.

    1 minute read

  • March 5, 2008 |

    The art of retention

    The day Walfrido Martinez joined Hunton & Williams to open the firm's Miami office in 1999, all he had to do was show up and start working. The firm had in place a receptionist, a head of office services and secretaries ready for him and the four colleagues who moved with him from Holland & Knight. A group of associates had already been flown in from other Hunton offices to work on their matters. The prep work paid off. In his first month Martinez billed 200 hours. "You can't do that if you don't have the resources in line," says Martinez. He hasn't forgotten that early lesson. Now Hunton's firm-wide managing partner, Martinez has tried to continue-and extend Hunton's lateral integration programme. So far, it seems to be working. Of the 28 lateral partners the firm hired in 2005, 25 are still there.

    1 minute read

  • February 27, 2008 |

    Iberia: Home advantage

    In contrast to their Italian neighbours across the Mediterranean sea, Spanish lawyers and law firms have been a model of stability over the years - particularly at the top end of legal practice. Despite the incursion of international firms, the entrance of the major accounting firms into the legal market and the breakneck growth of the Spanish economy, the legal sector has been characterised by the apparently serene progression of its leading law firms from small local players into some of continental Europe's largest and most successful independent law firms. In 2007, according to Mergermarket, the three leading firms - Uria Menendez (advising on deals worth E99.8bn (£71.8bn)), Cuatrecasas, (E34.7bn (£24.9bn)) and Garrigues (E49.6bn (£35.6bn)) occupied the first three positions, with other local leaders Gomez-Acebo and Perez-Llorca not far behind.

    1 minute read

  • February 20, 2008 | International Edition

    Commentary: AIM lawyers taking a mature view of City's junior market

    "AIM? I'm bloody gasping. Bring on the next cycle," says one battered veteran. Quite. Capital markets lawyers have long passed the pretence of cautious optimism when it comes to the state of London's junior market. Yet such gloom has so far done nothing to shake advisers' long-term commitment to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM). No-one is denying, of course, that the exchange is much quieter than it was during the heady years of 2003-06, with just 12 AIM listings in January worth a paltry £27m. But even though the exchange began to slow long before 'sub' and 'prime' became common parlance, AIM has suffered no worse than other financing markets hit by the prolonged credit malaise - and a good deal better than some.

    1 minute read

  • February 20, 2008 |

    Commentary: AIM lawyers taking a mature view of City's junior market

    "AIM? I'm bloody gasping. Bring on the next cycle," says one battered veteran. Quite. Capital markets lawyers have long passed the pretence of cautious optimism when it comes to the state of London's junior market. Yet such gloom has so far done nothing to shake advisers' long-term commitment to the Alternative Investment Market (AIM). No-one is denying, of course, that the exchange is much quieter than it was during the heady years of 2003-06, with just 12 AIM listings in January worth a paltry £27m. But even though the exchange began to slow long before 'sub' and 'prime' became common parlance, AIM has suffered no worse than other financing markets hit by the prolonged credit malaise - and a good deal better than some.

    1 minute read