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  • November 30, 2010 |

    Sullivan, Bakers and Akin Gump win lead roles on $7.1bn BP asset sale

    Sullivan & Cromwell, Baker & McKenzie and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld have advised on BP's $7.1bn (£4.6bn) sale of a majority stake in Argentinian energy company Pan American Energy. Akin Gump was instructed by Argentina-based energy company Bridas Corporation, which is acquiring a 60% stake in Pan American. The US firm's team was led by London partner-in-charge Steven Blakeley and Dallas corporate partner Seth Molay. China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), Bridas' state-owned Chinese parent company, was advised by longstanding adviser Bakers, which fielded a team led by Shanghai-based corporate partner Bee Chun Boo.

    1 minute read

  • November 29, 2010 |

    Legal Week online briefings database attracts 10,000 users

    Legal Week's new online database of legal developments has attracted more than 10,000 registered users since launching earlier this year. Legal Week Law - an online library of reports and law articles targeted at clients - broke through the 10,000 registered users mark earlier this month. The site, which includes briefings from many of the world's top law firms, was launched at the end of March.

    1 minute read

  • November 24, 2010 |

    Slaughters, Simmons and Bird & Bird top-rated by clients in new research

    Slaughter and May, Simmons & Simmons and Bird & Bird have emerged as the City's top-performing law firms based on client feedback, as part of a major research project from Legal Week. The trio were the top-rated international firms according to Legal Week Intelligence's seventh annual Client Satisfaction Report, which is based on responses from 1,265 senior in-house lawyers and finance directors. The flagship project from Legal Week's independent research arm is its most comprehensive client survey to date and includes rankings of 71 UK and US firms based on responses from 903 companies operating in the UK. The report covers 71% of the FTSE 100.

    1 minute read

  • November 24, 2010 |

    Herbert Smith to open Belfast office to handle disputes document review

    Herbert Smith is set to launch a new base in Belfast to handle volume disputes work. The office, which will open in April 2011, will principally focus on reviewing and analysing large volumes of documents from major contentious work, notably in litigation, arbitration and regulatory investigations. The Belfast base, which will be wholly owned and controlled by Herbert Smith, will be led on the ground by London-based Libby Jackson, a solicitor currently in a practice management role, who will relocate to Northern Ireland in early 2011.

    1 minute read

  • November 22, 2010 |

    Why the Norton Rose 'merger' debate misses the point

    What makes a merger? That's the question being asked this week, after Norton Rose announced deals with Canada's Ogilvy Renault and South African firm Deneys Reitz. The combined business will rank as one of the world's top 10 firms by headcount when the three-way tie-up takes effect next June, boasting more than 2,500 lawyers in 38 offices worldwide and gross revenue of over $1bn (£626m).

    1 minute read

  • November 22, 2010 |

    Ex-UBS chair and GC Kurer takes new role on Schoenherr strategy group

    Schoenherr has appointed former UBS chairman and general counsel Peter Kurer as an external member of its strategy committee. The move comes after the Central European firm formed the committee this summer following a review of its internal structures. The committee will draw up the firm's strategy and business plan, prepare its annual budget and allocate the merit-based portion of the firm's profit to partners. Kurer will hold a full vote on the four-member committee that includes managing partner Christoph Lindinger and partners Gerold Zeiler and Michael Lagler, who are responsible for finance and human resources respectively at the firm.

    1 minute read

  • November 17, 2010 |

    BP kicks off post-Deepwater review of UK legal adviser roster

    BP is set to launch a review of its UK panel of external legal advisers for the first time in three years. The British oil giant plans to kick off the process at the end of this month, with firms on the roster already alerted, although formal requests for proposals have not yet been sent out. Group general counsel Rupert Bondy is formally overseeing the process, with the new line-up expected to come into effect in spring 2011 for a three-year term.

    1 minute read

  • November 16, 2010 |

    Hong Kong shines as global IPO market evolves

    Despite the volatility of markets since the global financial crisis, companies have more choices than ever when deciding where to go to raise capital. One of the big trends in capital markets over the past decade has been the increasing willingness of companies to list outside their home country. This affords them an opportunity to expand into other markets, bolster their international reputation, tap new investors and take advantage of higher valuations and liquidity. According to data published by Ernst & Young, cross-border deals accounted for 72% of the total funds raised on the top four exchanges - Hong Kong, London, New York Stock Exchange and National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ) - in 2009.

    1 minute read

  • November 16, 2010 |

    ...then we take Manhattan - strategic shifts and calculated bets at Norton Rose

    Back in June 2009, in the wake of news that Norton Rose was set to take over mid-tier Australian firm Deacons, Legal Week noted the wall of negativity that greeted the City stalwart's trip down under. Gauging the feedback following Norton Rose's dual takeover of Canada's Ogilvy Renault and leading South African practice Deneys Reitz reveals an interesting shift - while there is plenty of sniping, there is now more grudging admiration and some of the doubters seem to be rather going through the motions.

    1 minute read

  • November 12, 2010 |

    Bakers City arm follows Freshfields with emergency care service deal

    Baker & McKenzie's City office has teamed up with employee benefits company My Family Care to offer emergency care services for the firm's London employees. The new scheme, which will launch next week (16 November), will allow the US firm's City staff to search for and book a qualified and vetted nanny or childminder in the UK at as little as 30 minutes' notice. It will also enable staff to find home care for adult dependents in a location convenient to them.

    1 minute read