Issues

London

Osborne Clarke hires Taylor Wessing private client partner Goodman in practice re-launch

Osborne Clarke has hired two new private client partners in a bid to re-launch its private client offering, which it previously scrapped in late 2013. The re-established group will be headed up by two new partners: Andrew Goodman who joined from Taylor Wessing, and Stuart Janaway who previously worked at boutique private client firm New […]

Rolls-Royce

Rolls Royce head of legal steps down after role split

Rolls Royce company secretary and head of legal Nigel Goldsworthy has stepped down from his role at the company after his role was split in two last year. Goldsworthy held both roles of company secretary and head of legal at Rolls Royce since 2012. He had been at the company since 2004, where he was […]

Singapore 620px

Norton Rose Fulbright continues to shuffle global energy team with Singapore relocation

Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) has sent the head of its Asia-Pacific energy team from Sydney to Singapore just as global practice head Simon Currie arrives in Sydney from London. Vincent Dwyer, who joined NRF from Australian firm Gilbert & Tobin in 2010, spent four years in Singapore as an Allens Arthur Robinson (now Allens) associate […]

Manchester

Pannone Corporate to take up residence in iconic local chapel

Pannone Corporate is preparing to move to dedicated premises on 2 February, one year after the firm’s demerger from legacy Pannone. Pannone Corporate has agreed a 10-year lease on 11,000 sq ft of office space in a former chapel at 380 Deansgate, Manchester. The iconic building was once home to 80s music producing outfit Stock […]

Amsterdam

De Brauw notary team splits away as Dutch boutique trend gains momentum

A team of corporate law notaries from Benelux firm De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek have used the growth of the boutique market in the Netherlands as the catalyst to establish their own spin-off practice. De Brauw partner René Clumpkens, counsel Anne-Marie Struycken-van Daelen and senior associate Cindy Smid, together with two paralegals, started Zuidbroek Corporate Law Notaries […]

Cat Griffiths index

Why the Cooley effect is one to watch

It took a while, but it was worth it. Cooley’s launch in London had been awaited for over a year, but it didn’t diminish the impact. Indeed, The Lawyer’s revelation ten days ago that the firm was opening in the UK with 19 partners dominated our most-read stories list. Quite apart from the magnitude of […]

Tim Bratton

New year is a time for small steps rather than giant leaps

The key to new year’s resolutions is to rein in your ambitions in the first place. New year’s resolutions are a bit like warranties. (Note to pedants: ignore the fact there is no consideration. Anyway, I execute mine as a deed.) They’re well-intentioned, some thought is usually given to them before the commitment is made […]

Northern Ireland Index

Northern Ireland – Talent trouble

Belfast has become the focus for UK and international firms’ back office expansions. Are local players finding themselves increasingly sidelined? Northern Ireland has become the latest magnet for office openings and expansions in the past few years. Allen & Overy , Baker & McKenzie and Herbert Smith Freehills all now have back office functions in […]

dublin bridge

Republic of Ireland – Firms see green for go

How was 2014 for Irish firms? And how is 2015 shaping up? Looking at elements such as workflow and financial performance, how would you say 2014 was for the firm? John Cronin, chairman, McCann FitzGerald: Very satisfactory. We’ve been recruiting record numbers: our trainee intake increased by over 40 per cent in 2014 and solicitor […]

Asda

The top 20 cases of 2015: global disputes in the English courts

This year’s case line-up has an international theme running through it, underlining the English High Court’s reputation as a global litigation centre. If there was any doubt remaining that the English High Court has become a global litigation centre, this year’s round-up of the 20 cases to watch will surely eliminate it. Because while 2015 may […]

Oil

Insolvency – The spillover effect

Collapsed oil prices and Ebola have hit businesses hard, while European plans to copy UK restructuring tools could challenge British courts’ dominant role. City Link, Phones 4U, London Mining – in recent months we have witnessed the unexpected collapse of some industry giants. However, for the most part, the market was kind to ailing companies […]

Helen Selby

The in-house interview: Hovis GC Helen Selby

Bread might sound a little humdrum for an ex-Royal Air Force officer but Helen Selby has been able to spread her wings at freshly-sold Hovis. Helen Selby joined Hovis as general counsel in May last year after Premier Foods sold off a 51 per cent stake in the business to Gores Group in April, ending […]