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  • October 12, 2011 |

    Global 100: Strong dollar helps US leaders set the pace as City firms face fierce competition

    Rising profits at expansive US law firms and continued weakness in sterling look set to sustain competitive pressure on globally ambitious UK firms for years to come, according to new research. This year's Global 100 – a joint initiative from The American Lawyer and Legal Week – shows leading US players gaining a stronger grip on the upper echelons of the profession globally, based on both profitability and fee income. The three largest law firms in revenue terms are either US-based or the result of unions structured through vereins – with Baker & McKenzie, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom and DLA Piper topping the income rankings.

    1 minute read

  • October 4, 2011 |

    US firms head up $3.9bn private equity buyout

    A trio of top US firms have taken lead roles on the $3.9bn (£2.5bn) private equity takeover of contract drug researcher Pharmaceutical Product Development (PPD), reports The Am Law Daily. The US-based organisation is being acquired by the Carlyle Group and Hellman & Friedman after fielding offers from rival bidders including Blackstone Group and KKR.

    1 minute read

  • October 4, 2011 |

    Orrick seals five-partner haul for New York acquisition finance team

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe has added five partners to its acquisition finance practice in New York with a series of US hires, reports the Am Law Daily. Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy finance partners Ronan Wicks and Patrick Flanagan are among the group moving to Orrick, just 13 months after the duo joined Milbank from Latham & Watkins. Wicks will assume the role of co-head of acquisition finance at his new firm.

    1 minute read

  • September 28, 2011 |

    Herbert Smith and Hogan lead on $1.75bn energy acquisition

    Herbert Smith and Hogan Lovells have advised on the acquisition of North Sea assets from ExxonMobil worth $1.75bn (£1.1bn) by US oil and gas company Apache Corporation. Herbert Smith advised Apache subsidiary Apache North Sea on the acquisition of the North Sea oil and gas assets of Exxon affiliate Mobil North Sea, with global oil and gas head Stephen Murray leading a team that also included corporate energy partner Steven Dalton, tax partner Isaac Zailer and employment partner Andrew Taggart.

    1 minute read

  • September 28, 2011 |

    Cracking China – has Mandarin become de rigueur for modern Asian counsel?

    For would-be new hires at several international law firms in China and Hong Kong, speaking Mandarin has come to be a strict and unyielding prerequisite. "Certainly from our point of view, hiring someone in Hong Kong without Chinese language speaking skills is a waste of time," says Antony Dapiran, a fluent Mandarin speaker and capital markets partner with Davis Polk & Wardwell in Hong Kong. "I honestly do not see how they can function, especially if they are dealing with capital markets work."

    1 minute read

  • September 21, 2011 |

    Skadden recruits Macfarlanes partner to launch new City practice

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom is launching an investment management practice in London with the hire of Macfarlanes funds partner Stephen Sims. The launch, which will happen in the coming months after Sims has worked out a notice period, will give the New York firm its first investment management practice outside the US.

    1 minute read

  • September 16, 2011 |

    A&O moves to restock Hong Kong banking team with City partner transfer

    Allen & Overy (A&O) has moved to rebuild its Hong Kong banking practice with the relocation of City partner Ian Powell to the office. The transfer comes after A&O last month saw the departure of Hong Kong finance partner Ashley Young to Kirland & Ellis's local office. Young is moving to the US firm alongside senior associate Douglas Murning, who is joining as a partner.

    1 minute read

  • September 15, 2011 |

    How the top international law firms stack up in Asia

    Clifford Chance: 366 lawyers across eight offices. Hong Kong - 138 lawyers including 32 partners, Singapore - 72 lawyers including 15 partners, Tokyo - 51 lawyers including nine partners, Shanghai - 22 lawyers including five partners, Beijing - 29 lawyers including six partners, Bangkok - 16 lawyers including two partners Sydney - 21 lawyers including seven partners Perth - 17 lawyers including seven partners Key deals include: • advising the underwriters on Prada's Hong Kong listing; • advising the underwriters on Glencore's dual listing in Hong Kong and London; and • advising the managers on Volkswagen's dim sum bond - the first by a German company.

    1 minute read

  • September 14, 2011 |

    Battle royale - the tussle for global dominance shifts eastward

    With elite Wall Street firms finally breaking into Hong Kong law, the stage is set for a high-stakes struggle across Asia between the world's top law firms. Georgina Stanley and Simon Petersen report

    1 minute read

  • September 13, 2011 |

    CC signs up former Linklaters Brussels antitrust chief

    Clifford Chance (CC) has made a high-profile hire in Brussels with the addition of former Linklaters competition partner Johan Ysewyn. Ysewyn, who joined CC yesterday (12 September), was head of Linklaters' Brussels antitrust group and co-head of the firm's global cartel group. Before his departure in March this year, he had spent 16 years at the magic circle firm, including 11 years as a partner.

    1 minute read