Racine. I have no idea if there’s any connection to Jean Racine, the playwright, but other than both of them being uncompromisingly French, I can’t see what they have in common. In that slightly no-man’s-land bit of Knightsbridge, the section past Harrods but just before Brompton Road, and opposite the V & A, this is […]
It has been five years since former Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer duo Mike Goetz and Maurice Allen launched Ropes & Gray’s London office – tasked with building an offering from scratch (22 October 2009). During that time, the office has grown slowly but surely. At last count, it was home to 24 partners and boasted a […]
Middle East firm Galadari has added its fourth office with a launch in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The DIFC office adds to Galadari’s existing presence in Abu Dhabi, onshore Dubai and the Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA). The new office will be led by managing partner Abdulla Galadari, with a team including corporate […]
Walker Morris has reaffirmed its commitment to the region by investing in a radical redesign of its office on King Street, Leeds. The refurbishment, the largest in the city for the last five years, was undertaken by leading office fit-out specialist Bluu and has seen a transformation of all areas of the firm’s premises including […]
Kingsley Napley has raided Mishcon de Reya for media partner Charlotte Harris, who is set to kickstart the firm’s new media and reputation management group. Harris, who has been at Mishcon since March 2011 (10 January 2011), is set to join her new firm in January 2015. Prior to joining Mishcon, Harris headed up the […]
David McGuirk, partner and rates expert at Eversheds, has commented on potential measures on business rates to be announced in the chancellor’s Autumn Statement, stating that a well-conceived change to UK business rates structure would ease retailer burden. He said: ‘The business rates system has come under serious scrutiny and criticism in recent years. The hike in rates […]
Next Monday The Lawyer will unveil its annual Global Litigation Top 50 . What, you ask, does this have to do with The Lawyer Management? It’s a fair question but stick with us. This year’s editorial focuses on the booming area of global regulatory investigations. It argues that while much of this kind of work […]
DLA Piper has launched an interactive report ’Build or be Dammed: Meeting Australia’s Infrastructure Challenges’ The report features insights from public and private sector industry leaders. They comment on the increasing vocalisation among Australian communities demanding action on major infrastructure works, the hurdles and potential sources of infrastructure funding as well as the importance of […]
DLA Piper has acted for Sinopharm Group, China’s largest pharmaceutical company, on the issuance of HK$5.5bn (£453m) of new shares. This is the third H-share placement for Sinopharm since its HK$8bn IPO in 2009. The placing closed on 1 December and saw 198,801,600 shares sold to six to 10 non-retail investors at HK$28.40 per share. Sinopharm […]
Ben Jones, partner and tax expert at Eversheds, has commented on potential new changes to the UK patent box in yesterday’s Autumn Statement. He said: ‘The UK government has realised that its much heralded patent box now sits very uneasily with the broad international move to restrict harmful tax practices and tax competition. Sensibly, it […]
Stuart Andrews, partner and real-estate expert at Eversheds, has commented on news that plans to build a garden bridge across the River Thames are a step closer after Westminster City Council approved planning permission. Andrews said: ‘There is little doubt that London is now the capital of the world for tourism and anything that adds […]
Shoosmiths has been named ‘Asset Finance Legal Provider of the Year’ at the Leasing Life Awards 2014. Shoosmiths partner and national head of asset finance Melanie Chell and financial services partner Stephen Dawson flew to Warsaw to collect the accolade at the Intercontinental Hotel on 27 November. An independent panel of judges assessed Shoosmiths’ national asset finance practice […]