By Kiera S Gans and Davide Rossetti In the recent case of American Express co et al v Italian Colors Restaurant et al, the US Supreme Court addressed the validity of a contractual waiver to class arbitration where the cost of individually arbitrating a federal statutory antitrust claim made it cost-prohibitive to raise those claims independently rather than as […]
By Zara Merali, Sharif Hamadeh and Adam Peters In a move that will enhance its attractiveness for foreign investment, Kuwait recently ratified an agreement with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) Commercial Arbitration Centre to establish a representative office in Kuwait. The agreement will take effect only once the Kuwait government notifies the centre that it has completed […]
By Wouter de Clerck Although the Netherlands is not yet recognised as a traditional seat for international arbitration when compared with established seats such as France (Paris), the UK (London) and Switzerland (Geneva), its parliamentary capital, the Hague, is firmly on the international arbitration map as an alternative seat. Home of the Permanent Court of Arbitration […]
Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has unveiled its 2012/13 profit figures, revealing a 39 per cent drop in average profit per equity partner (PEP) and a 38 per cent drop in net profit. In what has amounted to one of the worst-kept secrets in the UK market this year, BLP confirmed that its bottom line had […]
Herbert Smith Freehills saw real estate revenues jump by a third at the 2012/13 year-end, making it the biggest grower in the UK200 top 15 real estate table. Herbies narrowly beat Pinsent Masons in terms of growth, with Pinsents pushing real estate revenues up by 30 per cent. Both firms have seen growth as a […]
Telecoms giant BT has launched a review of its legal process outsourcing (LPO) provision, The Lawyer can reveal. Group general counsel Dan Fitz said the LPO review kickstarted about three months ago. BT currently works with US-headquartered LPO provider United Lex, outsourcing about 30 per cent of its UK commercial work to the company. Fitz […]
Linklaters is understood to have taken over Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s role as the regulatory adviser to Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) concerning payment protection insurance (PPI) mis-selling, one of the biggest scandals to ever hit retail financial services. It is a major project win for Linklaters as the first significant assignment for the retail bank. The […]
Keir Starmer QC is to return to Doughty Street chambers in London after he stands down as Director of Public Prosecutions next month. Sources close to the chambers confirmed to The Lawyer that the 51-year-old silk will rejoin the set he left – and where he was joint head – to take up the top […]
What can needy Manches bring to Penningtons’ party? Manches’ financial decline is of long duration. Despite repeated attempts to reboot growth through management changes and cash-calls, 2012/13 proved a low point. Average profit per equity partner dropped by £100,000 to £135,000, while net profit fell to a 10-year low, dropping by 42 per cent from […]
Follett Stock is unlikely to be the last law firm to fall foul of HMRC “Let me tell you how it will be – there’s one for you 19 for me ’cos I’m the taxman…” sang The Beatles on the opening track of their 1966 album Revolver. Follett Stock may not feel in a singing […]
Vinson & Elkins closing in Shanghai shows China is not a bottomless goldmine after all. Will it be a graveyard for Western ambitions? Five years ago, a Chinese firm that had 650 lawyers and an annual turnover of RMB1bn ($142m) decided to think big. It set out to make a splash, tying up with an […]
Bold Ashurst is first to achieve full financial docking with Australian firm but it will be no walk in the park The full merger between Ashurst and Ashurst Australia is the biggest unsurprise of the year. Their intention to marry was clear at the engagement party in September 2011 and the market has been kept […]