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  • October 31, 2013 |

    DLA's Australian chair to join Gilbert + Tobin

    DLA Piper's Australian chair and head of finance for Asia Tony Holland is leaving the firm to become a partner at domestic outfit Gilbert + Tobin. Holland, who took the role of chairman with the relocation of DLA's UK managing partner Andrew Darwin to Sydney in January this year, will join Gilbert + Tobin tomorrow and will be based in Melbourne.

    1 minute read

  • October 30, 2013 |

    Ashurst, CC, DLA advise on £300m Dr Martens sale

    Ashurst, Clifford Chance (CC) and DLA Piper have landed roles on the £300m sale of iconic shoe manufacturer Dr Martens to private equity firm Permira. CC acted for longstanding client Permira, which has agreed to buy R Griggs Group, the parent company of the Dr Martens brand. CC fielded a team led by corporate partner David Pearson and banking partner Robert Lee.

    1 minute read

  • October 29, 2013 |

    Ashurst grows City energy team with Freshfields hire

    Ashurst has turned to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer to boost its global energy, resources and infrastructure (ERI) team with the hire of Michael Burns as partner. Burns, who was a counsel at the magic circle firm, will be based in London, taking the total number of City partners in Ashurst's team to 12.

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  • October 28, 2013 |

    SJB set to launch in Riyadh as real estate team re-jigged ahead of merger

    SJ Berwin is set to open an office in Riyadh next year, after its merger with King & Wood Mallesons goes live later this week. The firm will launch in Saudi Arabia via an association with an undisclosed local firm, with a base expected to open in the first quarter of next year.

    1 minute read

  • October 21, 2013 |

    Ashurst, Freshfields, CC grab roles on Merlin Entertainments' £4bn flotation

    Ashurst, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Clifford Chance and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett have landed roles on the £4bn IPO of Merlin Entertainments Group. Merlin – which owns Madame Tussauds, Alton Towers and the Legoland theme parks - is controlled by Danish investment company Kirkbi and private equity houses CVC and Blackstone. Merlin's investors will sell some of their stakes but remain shareholders.

    1 minute read

  • October 18, 2013 |

    Ashurst elects Australia chief Padbury as new vice chair

    Melbourne IP partner and Chairman of Ashurst Australia has been elected as the firm's first global vice chair. Padbury will serve a five-year term under chair-elect Ben Tidswell, who produced a shock result by beating current senior partner Charlie Geffen in a vote earlier this week.

    1 minute read

  • October 17, 2013 |

    A&O and Ashurst among firms to win spots on Morrisons' debut panel

    Supermarket chain Morrisons has unveiled its first-ever formal legal panel, with a host of firms winning places, including Allen & Overy (A&O), Ashurst, Eversheds and DAC Beachcroft. The panel review – which has been overseen by recently appointed general counsel Mark Amsden – has been divided into six categories: property, employment, personal injury (PI), licensing and regulatory, Scotland and an 'everything else' panel, which covers corporate, commercial, litigation, pensions and IP. Amsden said Morrisons' debut panel would give the retail giant "better leveraging ability" than it had in the past, when it used an informal roster of firms. He admitted that the retail giant, Britain's fourth-largest supermarket chain, had previously overspent on legal fees.

    1 minute read

  • October 15, 2013 |

    Geffen ousted as Tidswell wins Ashurst chair election

    Ashurst's dispute resolution partner Ben Tidswell (pictured) has been elected as the new chair of Ashurst, replacing current senior partner Charlie Geffen in the firm's top management position. Tidswell - who will take up the role from 1 November - ran against Geffen and legacy Blakes competition and consumer protection partner Peter Armitage. Voting closed at 12pm yesterday (Tuesday) and it is understood that Tidswell won the support of the majority of partners in the first round of voting.

    1 minute read

  • October 14, 2013 |

    Macfarlanes builds real estate practice with Ashurst hire

    Macfarlanes has added to its commercial real estate practice with the hire of Ashurst partner Anthony Burnett-Scott. The announcement follows the recent additions to the practice of partners Clare Breeze, who joined from Shearman and Sterling in July and Ann Minogue, also from Ashurst, in August.

    1 minute read

  • October 10, 2013 |

    Top firms set to do battle at 2013 British Legal Awards

    Linklaters is leading the way in nominations for the top practice awards as the shortlist for the 2013 British Legal Awards has been unveiled. The magic circle has nominations M&A, banking, financing or restructuring, and commercial team of the year categories. However, it missed out on the law firm of the year shortlist.

    1 minute read