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  • October 5, 2009 |

    A&O recruitment drive continues with Skadden partner hire

    Allen & Overy (A&O) has made its second hire in the space of week after bolstering its London equity capital markets practice with a hire from a US rival. Robert Williams joins the magic circle firm's partnership today (5 October) from Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, where he has been a partner for ten years.

    1 minute read

  • October 1, 2009 |

    Citigroup now using alternative fees for one third of all work

    Citigroup now manages nearly a third of its external legal work under alternative fee arrangements, according to the banking giant's general counsel, Michael Helfer. Speaking at a panel debate last month, Citigroup's Helfer told a US audience that the bank now manages around 30% of its external legal work under alternative fees, mainly in the form of fixed or contingency fees.

    1 minute read

  • September 25, 2009 |

    Sullivan vs Harvard – and you thought campus recruiting was crazy in Blighty

    Everyone seems to agree that this is the craziest, most stressful recruiting season the US has seen in recent memory (and that's saying something). More top law schools have moved what used to be autumn interview dates into late August. That has led to much debate over whether the entire recruiting season should be pushed back into the middle of the academic year. US law firms, concerned about the economy, are trying everything to manage the size of their 2010 summer class, from making all their job offers on a single day (Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom) to extending the offers on the spot at call back interviews.

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  • September 23, 2009 | International Edition

    Renewable energy: Great light hope

    There are growth markets, there are long-term bets and then there is renewable energy. But however many false dawns alternative energy has had over the years, in the long run the business of green energy and nuclear power looks certain to ultimately establish itself as a huge, globally-significant industry.

    1 minute read

  • September 23, 2009 |

    Renewable energy: Great light hope

    There are growth markets, there are long-term bets and then there is renewable energy. But however many false dawns alternative energy has had over the years, in the long run the business of green energy and nuclear power looks certain to ultimately establish itself as a huge, globally-significant industry.

    1 minute read

  • September 17, 2009 |

    Slaughters and Linklaters take lead roles on $12bn Barclays debt sell-off

    Slaughter and May and Linklaters are among a host of top firms advising as a group of former Barclays bankers set up an offshore company to manage $12.3bn (£7.4bn) of the bank's most toxic debt. In addition to the magic circle duo, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Sullivan & Cromwell and Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft have all won roles in the creation of Protium Finance, a new hedge fund registered in the Cayman Islands.

    1 minute read

  • September 16, 2009 |

    Commentary: The gloom lifts but recovery seems to be the hardest word

    After all the talk about how much hinged on September, for M&A lawyers the post-summer kick-off couldn't have gone much better. Nine out of 10 economic indicators have been pointing north for the last month, the FTSE 100 last week broke back through 5,000 - marking a five-month revival - and this month has seen a string of notable bids. In particular, Kraft's £10.2bn unsolicited offer for Cadbury's, which threw up roles for Clifford Chance (CC) and Slaughter and May, was exactly the kind of deal needed to give the market a lift after nearly 15 months of strategic buyers sitting on their hands. Add in the joint venture talks between T-Mobile and Orange - CC again and Norton Rose - and it seems a growing number of trade buyers are calling the bottom of the market. This potentially clears the way for non-distressed M&A activity to revive after the enforced stasis since the collapse of Lehman Brothers a year ago.

    1 minute read

  • September 8, 2009 |

    Dealmaker of the Week: Morton Pierce of Dewey & LeBoeuf

    Three months ago, Dewey & LeBoeuf's M&A chair, Morton Pierce, was called in to Disney's Burbank offices...

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  • September 7, 2009 |

    CC and Slaughters lead on rejected £10.2bn Cadbury bid

    Clifford Chance (CC) and Slaughter and May are advising as US food giant Kraft Foods attempts to takeover Cadbury. Cadbury announced today (7 September) that it had rejected a £10.2bn offer made by Kraft at the end of August, however the US company is still committed to reaching a deal.

    1 minute read

  • September 4, 2009 |

    High-profile Skadden litigation partner quits firm to join Hogan

    Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom partner Robert Bennett is leaving the firm to join Hogan & Hartson, reports The Am Law Daily. Bennett, who was co-leader of both the international government enforcement litigation group and the criminal and civil litigation practice in Skadden's Washington DC office, will join Hogan along with fellow defence litigator Carl Rauh. The pair had been at Skadden since 1990.

    1 minute read