• August 13, 2013 |

    Norton Rose Fulbright boosts newly qualified pay by £1,500 to £63,000

    Norton Rose Fulbright has raised salaries for its newly qualified (NQ) lawyers by £1,500, alongside the announcement of a 92% retention rate for this September's trainee intake. The new NQ salary, which came into effect at the start of 1 July this year but has been backdated to 1 May, has seen pay boosted to £63,000 from £61,500.

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  • August 8, 2013 |

    Eversheds takes advisory role as BPP gains full university status

    BPP has been granted full university status by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and will become BPP University as of 6 August this year. The move - which comes after the College of Law was granted university status last year and rebranded as the University of Law - has been confirmed by BIS after BPP met the criteria for full university title.

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  • August 6, 2013 |

    Asia Transfer Window: recent moves including CC, White & Case and KWM

    Clifford Chance is to boost its project finance practice in Tokyo with the relocation of its Paris-based project finance partner Ross Howard in September 2013. Howard, who typically advises public sector entities, sponsors and lenders on projects in the energy, natural resources and infrastructure sectors, is expected to add to the Asia finance practice as sources of project finance become more diverse.

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  • August 2, 2013 |

    Client demand and intense competition set the agenda as law firm leaders look back on another difficult year

    "This is a rapidly changing market and you cannot afford to stick to one formula. You have to be responsive..." Emerging markets provide source of comfort as law firm leaders lament patchy deal flow...

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  • August 1, 2013 |

    DLA stretches global rankings lead as mergers reshape legal hierarchy

    DLA Piper continued to expand its global business at a greater rate than the magic circle last year, according to Legal Week's global rankings, which account for revenues generated across both UK and international profit centres. Combined revenues for DLA's international and US partnerships grew by 9.9% to £1.54bn for 2012, 50.7% of which came from the international partnership, which includes UK revenues. Global lawyer headcount grew 13.9%, while partner numbers fell 2.7%. The results consolidate the firm's status at the pinnacle of the global revenue rankings for UK firms, ahead of second-placed Clifford Chance, which recorded a 2.5% fall in revenue to £1.27bn.

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  • August 1, 2013 |

    A longer road? New partners offer career advice to frustrated associates

    The top 30 law firms made up fewer partners this year, while there was a worrying dip in the number of women promoted at the magic circle. James Boxell, Anna Reynolds and Alex Newman spoke to new partners to seek their advice for frustrated associates, both female and male...

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  • July 26, 2013 |

    MoFo lands two Norton Rose veteran dealmakers

    Norton Rose Fulbright has lost high-profile dealmakers Jake Robson and Adam Summerly to Morrison & Foerster (MoFo) in Singapore. Robson and Summerly, who have been based in the city-state for eight and 14 years have been brought in to support increasing demand from MoFo's clients for work based in and out of South and Southeast Asia. The English-qualified Robson focuses on M&A, private equity, cross-border investment and joint venture work throughout Asia, as well as capital markets transactions in public securities offerings in the region.

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  • July 25, 2013 |

    Norton Rose Fulbright and Mayer Brown lead as China insurer buys Lloyd's building

    Norton Rose Fulbright and Mayer Brown have taken the lead roles on Commerz Real's high-profile sale of London's iconic Lloyd's building to Chinese insurance giant Ping An. The One Lime Street landmark, the headquarters of insurance market Lloyd's of London, has been sold for £260m in a deal that closed earlier this month. Norton Rose Fulbright's real estate practice advised a fund managed by longstanding client Commerz Real on all legal aspects of the sale, with a team led by City real estate partner David Hawkins. Frankfurt partner Oliver Sutter provided support on German law matters.

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  • July 25, 2013 |

    Dentons sets ambitious post-merger strategy to ramp up partner profits

    Dentons has set out ambitious plans to ramp up profits per equity partner (PEP) across the UK, Middle East and Africa (UKMEA) following the three-way merger that created the firm earlier this year. The firm, formed this March by the combination of SNR Denton, Salans and Canada's Fraser Milner Casgrain, has laid out a three-year strategy to increase profitability in the UKMEA region, with lateral hires forming a key part of the growth plans. UKMEA chief executive officer Matthew Jones (pictured) denied that a specific target for PEP had been set; however, several partners told Legal Week that the firm was aiming for UKMEA PEP to reach that of firms such as Norton Rose Fulbright and DLA Piper (£477,000 and £596,000 in 2011-12 respectively), with other sources citing targets as high as £850,000.

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  • July 23, 2013 |

    Credit Agricole kicks off review of external legal advisers

    Credit Agricole is conducting a review of its external legal advisers, with all firms previously appointed to the French bank's panel asked to re-pitch for a place. Clifford Chance (CC), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Ashurst, Hogan Lovells, Linklaters, Gide Loyrette Nouel, Norton Rose Fulbright and Baker & McKenzie are all understood to be re-applying for places on the bank's global roster.

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