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  • July 23, 2009 |

    Stuck in the middle with you

    Secondments from advisers to clients are supposed to represent the classic professional win-win. The client gets legal talent at a discount, while the adviser gets to know the client better and cement a valuable commercial relationship. And with law firms now left with spare capacity in light of the slump in commercial activity, and many in-house departments struggling to cover work due to recruitment freezes, secondments should - on paper - be the perfect solution.

    1 minute read

  • July 23, 2009 |

    Morgan Lewis makes MoFo London partner hire

    Morgan Lewis & Bockius has made its first lateral partner hire in London since last October, bringing in a finance partner from Morrison & Foerster (MoFo). Chris Harrison joined the London office of Morgan Lewis on 20 July, becoming the first UK-qualified finance partner in the office.

    1 minute read

  • July 23, 2009 |

    PwC bulks up legal arm with trio of private practice hires

    PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is bulking up its UK legal arm with a triple partner hire, with professional services rival Deloitte also extending its legal capacity. PwC Legal has hired Beachcroft partner Stephen Gummer to head its employment team as well as hiring McDermott Will & Emery employment partner Vanessa Morgan. Both have resigned from their current firms and will join PwC Legal later this year. The hires will take the employment group to five partners, including Ed Stacey, who is joining from PwC's in-house legal team.

    1 minute read

  • July 15, 2009 |

    The life of O'Brien

    Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer veteran dealmaker Barry O'Brien does a good line in 1980s war stories. All-nighters rounded off by pints of Guinness at Smithfield market pubs feature heavily. As do hostile takeover bids, many of them initiated by highly personal full-page newspaper ads

    1 minute read

  • July 15, 2009 |

    Herbert Smith plays major role on charity investment fund launch

    Herbert Smith has played a major role in the launch of a unique charitable investment fund backed by 12 of the best known brands in UK fund management. The Invest & Give fund, an authorized investment fund, has been created as a means of encouraging investors to donate to charity.

    1 minute read

  • July 14, 2009 |

    Nationwide completes first UK legal panel

    Nationwide Building Society has completed its first ever UK panel, with five firms making the grade. Allen & Overy (A&O) is the only magic circle firm to have been appointed to the roster, joining Eversheds, Burges Salmon, Olswang and Nabarro on the panel.

    1 minute read

  • July 9, 2009 |

    Santander and JP Morgan put legal advisers under review

    Banco Santander is finalising a shake-up of its external advisers in the UK, as JP Morgan has launched a review of its preferred law firms. Santander has turned to procurement company Aquanima for the first review of its merged UK panel, which covers the legacy Abbey, Alliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingley brands.

    1 minute read

  • July 6, 2009 |

    Bingham McCutchen acquires McKee Nelson

    Bingham McCutchen is to acquire McKee Nelson , with the two firms to merge from the start of next month, writes The American Lawyer. Partners at both firms were told of the merger this morning (6 July), with the combined firm, which will be called Bingham McCutchen, to take on all of McKee Nelson's lawyers.

    1 minute read

  • July 2, 2009 |

    Law firms under pressure from banks for 'cheap resource'

    Tensions are mounting at City law firms as banks press their legal advisers to provide increasing numbers of secondees, it has emerged. A number of partners at top 10 City firms claim banks are putting them under too much pressure to provide in-house legal teams with lawyers.

    1 minute read

  • July 1, 2009 |

    Kennedys and DWF among firms to win place on SRA panel

    The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has appointed 24 firms to its panel of intervention agents, which deals with firms where there is deemed to be a risk to client money. The panel, which was announced yesterday and will run for three years, was selected after a competitive tender process involving 59 firms. Initially, 166 firms expressed an interest in applying.

    1 minute read