Lawyers are regularly underestimating litigation costs by as much as 100 per cent, putting their corporate clients at risk of breaching England’s recently implemented civil justice rules. General counsel and other leading in-house lawyers claim that even experienced law firms are often woefully inept at accurately forecasting litigation costs, with the average disparity between budget […]
You’re an in-house lawyer outside London. Your usual external law firm is spending less time on you but wants to bill you more. You read in The Lawyer that it’s now focused on the big prize of the City market. How do you feel? Dumped, probably. Very few have cracked the trick of balancing the […]
The Young divorce case raises serious questions for big money family battles There was an enormous amount of press speculation and excitement leading up to the final hearing of Michelle Young’s financial claims against her former husband, Scot. To a very large extent, that excitement was not fulfilled. For Mr and Mrs Young, the legal […]
Tax investigations lawyers have the skills to unpick fraud cases – just ask Al Capone When asked if he was a bootlegger, Al Capone once said: ‘Sure, and some of our best judges use my stuff’. His brazen attitude drew the contempt of law enforcement officials who tried for years to convict him of any […]
Foot Anstey is set to launch a training academy, which will enable candidates to qualify as lawyers while working at the firm. The West Country firm is planning to recruit 20 people to join its scheme, starting in September 2014. It has not yet decided which education provider it will use to train its recruits […]
New research highlights the impact of Government cuts on lawyers entering criminal practice Last month, the Government reached a significant agreement with the Law Society; as part of a deal to avoid lowest-bidder-wins tendering for contracts, legally aided criminal defence lawyers will face a pay cut of 17.5 per cent. Estimates suggest the cuts may […]
Pannone deal should see Aussie upstart become the UK’s top legal consumer brand Due diligence is almost complete and Slater & Gordon has confirmed that a sale agreement has been reached for the £33m takeover of Manchester’s most talked-about firm – Pannone. The high-level talks have been dogged by unrest among Pannone partners and the […]
UK firms tempt top talent with lifestyle sweeteners to combat the mighty US dollar The legal market may be saturated, but pulling in the top guns is still a tricky business. The brand power of elite UK firms appear to be losing its edge as US firms glint with fat wads of cash and promises […]
Transport is a sector that offers a wealth of opportunities both for legal roles and puns, with government cash setting in train high-profile schemes and getting projects motoring. According to Red Law senior consultant Christopher Clark: “Transport has picked up considerably, a result of government investment in projects such as HS2, but also the rise […]
Speechly Bircham must look back to 2009/10 with an air of nostalgia. Back then the firm pulled off a merger with Campbell Hooper to boost revenue by 37 per cent, to £58.4m. The tie-up also helped the firm’s average profit per equity partner (PEP) to rocket by 29 per cent, from £331,000 to £428,000. Since […]
‘Safe pair of hands’ Layton to lead Clifford Chance to a future of business-as-usual Three little piggies went to the Clifford Chance management elections. One didn’t think he’d win but wanted to stir things up, one was charming and smooth, and the other ran all the way home. Global corporate head Matthew Layton might have […]
What was your first-ever job? Sales assistant in a boutique. I started when I was only 12 years old but made out I was 15. (You could do stuff like that, back then.) What was your worst experience as a trainee? Leaving my car keys in a bank in Loughborough while I was paying in money […]