Linklaters is relocating 10 back office staff from its London and Colchester offices to a low-cost business services centre in Warsaw. The move follows a decision by the firm to bring 60 business and financial services staff back in-house in the Polish city after choosing not to renew its contract with outsource provider Infosys last […]
The move towards alternative business models was the key theme in last week’s top 10 stories, with flexible working and cutting costs at the top of the agenda. Our top story of the week was the news that BLM is offering all its London-based staff flexible working contracts as it moves into a new, smaller […]
Clifford Chance has reported a 6.8 per cent increase in its cash reserves for 2013/14, with cash at the bank and in hand rising to £110m from £103m according to the firm’s LLP accounts. The increase comes on the back of a strong year for the firm, which confirmed a turnover of £1.359m, up 6.9 […]
A growing number of firms are taking a punt on new ventures that you wouldn’t necessarily expect. Take Bird & Bird. The IP and technology-focused firm has just become the latest to launch a new consultancy arm, which would appear to be a world away from its traditional legal practice. Kick-started by several Bird & […]
Western misconceptions about opportunities for female professionals in the UAE persist. Berwin Leighton Paisner’s appointment earlier this month of its first female managing partner (3 February 2015) has turned the spotlight up even brighter on the issue of the progression of women in the profession. But it is not just a UK spotlight. The legal community is a global […]
Taylor Hampton partner and phone hacking victims’ lawyer Mark Lewis has joined Seddons as a partner. Lewis represented a number of claimants in the case against News International following the News of the World phone hacking scandal in 2012, including the Dowler family and a number of American citizens against News Corporation in the US […]
Bird & Bird has become the latest firm to launch a consulting arm, with several of its partners jointly setting up a new venture focused on IT change programmes. The joint venture, which several Bird & Bird partners have formed along with IT change business ASE Consulting, will focus on all stages of major change […]
Norton Rose Fulbright moved into a cash-positive position in the 2013/14 financial year, with an increase in cash and reduction in borrowings leaving the firm in the black. The firm’s LLP accounts show that cash flow grew 18.4 per cent from £47.8m to £56.6m in 2013/14. That was offset by a 6.2 per cent reduction […]
US firm Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman has posted a 3 per cent boost in turnover, from $543.5m to $560m (£364.3m), in its 2014 year-end financial results. Profits per partner grew by 6 per cent, up from $1.1m to $1.165m in 2014. Revenue per lawyer also increased from $920,000 to $950,000. Pillsbury’s headcount stayed flat at […]
Building a law firm brand is a complex business. It involves everything from culture, client service, operational efficiency, ethical values – and then communicating that whole package to the outside world. As our recent analysis shows, tailoring that message to Generation Y, firms’ future trainees, presents even more challenges. Recruiting Generation Y Skadden retains top […]
There’s no denying it has been a sluggish few years for the public M&A market. Not only has the total volume of deals plummeted, but their value has also slipped on a downward trajectory. Unsurprisingly, the amount of fees shelled out to the legal advisers with a foothold in the market has also dropped. However, […]
Ashurst doubled its cash reserves from £15.5m to £30.4m in 2013/14, according to its latest LLP accounts filed with Companies House. The firm began the 2013/14 financial year with net debt of £13.9m, and finished the period with net funds of £3.2m, largely due to its increased cash flow. During the last full financial year, […]