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  • April 8, 2009 |

    Generation why?

    When it comes to law firm prestige there is no denying that the magic circle tag still works its, well, magic. And there are few other groups that buy into the brand power of these five firms more so than the student population.Given free choice to name five law firms they would rate highly, students consistently turned to the magic circle group, viewing them as offering the best career options, work-life balance, partnership prospects and training - not to mention prestige - of all law firms.

    1 minute read

  • April 8, 2009 |

    Arrested development

    Over the last few months, increasing numbers of firms have been asking their 2009 graduate intake to delay their training contract start dates.Clifford Chance (CC), Norton Rose, Herbert Smith and Simmons & Simmons are among the firms to pay off recruits due to start in September, giving them the opportunity to put off their entry into the working world for a year. Some of the offers are dependent on the firms getting enough volunteers to defer; otherwise compulsory deferral may be introduced.

    1 minute read

  • April 3, 2009 |

    LG, Dundas & Wilson latest to defer trainees

    LG and Dundas & Wilson have become the latest firms in the top 50 to announce that they are deferring trainee start dates in response to the poor market conditions. LG has asked its September 2009 and 2010 trainees to defer for 12 months, also opting to halt recruitment altogether in 2011 to balance out the deferred intakes.

    1 minute read

  • April 2, 2009 |

    Faegre boosts London arm with Crowell & Moring double partner hire

    Faegre & Benson has bolstered its London corporate practice with the hire of two partners and a special counsel from Crowell & Moring. Paul Finlan, who previously headed Crowell's London office, and fellow partner Gary Laitner joined the firm as partners last month (23 March) with their colleague Linda Crow joining as special counsel.Finlan and Laitner had been at Crowell since 2005 when they were brought in to kick-start the practice from Pinsent Masons. At Pinsents they were two of the national firm's most senior partners.

    1 minute read

  • April 2, 2009 |

    Hammonds partner quartet resign from firm

    Hammonds is to lose four of its most senior partners, with human capital partners David Beswick and Jay Doraisamy and corporate finance partners Amanda Allen and Martin Letza all opting to leave the national firm. All four handed in their notice earlier this week (31 March) - on one of only two days each year on which equity partners are able to resign from the firm.Employment specialist Beswick - head of the firm's Birmingham employment practice, is set to join national rival Eversheds' employment group. It is unclear where Doraisamy, Allen and Letza are headed.

    1 minute read

  • April 1, 2009 |

    Pinsents, Simmons and MoFo line up for £340m placing as SIG moves to cut debt

    Pinsent Masons, Simmons & Simmons and Morrison & Foerster have won lead roles on a £341.3m fundraising as building materials company SIG moves to cut its debt burden. Sheffield-based SIG is raising money in order to pay off creditors and avoid breaching loan agreements, making additional shares available to existing shareholders as well as on open offer.

    1 minute read

  • March 31, 2009 |

    BT set for online auction in legal adviser review

    BT has kicked off a sweeping review of its panel of external legal advisers, piloting an eBay-style online auction for its real estate panel as part of the process. Panel firms were contacted last month, with the review being led by group general counsel Anne Fletcher. It is expected to be completed within the next three to six months. The review comes after the telecoms giant launched an e-auction pilot for its real estate advisers earlier this year. The pilot saw seven firms bidding against each other on various criteria, including hourly rates and fixed prices, with the process also including formal interviews with each firm.

    1 minute read

  • March 31, 2009 |

    Lovells and Eversheds land roles on new LV= panel

    Lovells and Eversheds have won panel roles as financial services group LV= finalises its first official roster of external legal advisors. The insurance, investments and pensions group, formerly known as Liverpool Victoria, launched a review earlier this year aimed at selecting a smaller group of firms to offer specialist and general advice.Lovells and Eversheds have been chosen to advise on corporate and finance matters and will sit alongside employment boutique Dermot Scully on the specialist panel.

    1 minute read

  • March 23, 2009 |

    - 2009 Partnership Round: a Legal Week Wiki special -

    Welcome to Legal Week's 2009 partner promotions round-up. Here you'll find all the latest news stories about partner promotions gathered in one place, as well as links to relevant blog entries and any other bits and pieces we think might be of interest.

    1 minute read

  • March 20, 2009 |

    Herbert Smith seals Buncefield win for Chevron

    Herbert Smith has scored a victory advising Chevron in one of the largest pieces of commercial litigation ever seen in the UK, as its joint venture partner Total is found liable for the 2005 Buncefield disaster. In a judgment handed down in the High Court this morning (20 March), Mr Justice David Steel ruled that Total - which has a 60% stake in Hertfordshire Oil Storage Ltd (HOSL), the joint venture that runs the Buncefield depot - was responsible for the explosion and liable for the financial consequences.The aftermath of the explosion - which has been described as the largest incident of its kind in peacetime Europe - has seen approximately £750m of claims from around 4,000 local businesses, residents and other oil companies with facilities at Buncefield, such as Shell.

    1 minute read