MANCHESTER and London firm Elliott & Company could be swallowed by Dibb Lupton Broomhead if talks between the two are formalised. Both practices confirm they have held merger talks. Claims that Dibbs has offered equity partnership to only four of Elliotts’ partners have been denied, and the two maintain that no deal has been struck […]
Leigh Day & Co solicitor Charlie Hopkins, barrister Charles Pugh, and Environmental Law Foundation chair Martin Polden are among the speakers lined up to address the first conference of the ELF. The conference, to be held at London’s National Council for Volunteer Organisations on 9 November, will provide a practical overview of environmental litigation and […]
SOLICITOR involvement in Jewish divorce cases may be increasing the number of people “chained” to their spouses by ancient religious laws. Some sources believe the trend has weakened the ability of Rabbis to find amicable solutions when one party – usually the husband – refuses to grant the “get” or final bill of divorce. The […]
THE EUROPEAN Parliament has warned member state professions to find common ground over rights of establishment or face a ruling from on high. MEPs have recommended that the Council of Bars and Law Societies of the European Union (CCBE) reaches an agreed position on the issue at its plenary session in Dresden next month. If […]
WANTED: high-powered law-yer with an eye for the fast lane. The company embroiled in a legal dispute over its London “taxi-bike” service is looking for a lawyer with transport litigation experience. Mini-cab and courier firm Addison Lee is appealing against a magistrates’ court conviction and £500 fine for using the term “taxi” to describe its […]
Field Fisher Waterhouse advised long-standing client Wynnstay Properties on its admission to AIM.
TOP City firms have stayed cool over the US firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges’ bid for a slice of London’s legal work, despite some of their best lawyers being targeted by the firm’s recruitment drive. Weil Gotshal, which enjoys per-partner profits of up to $750,000 in the US, is also expected to offer competitive salaries […]
In response to widespread dissatisfaction with the current defamation law a working group was established under Lord Justice Neill to investigate how to streamline the procedure. The committee’s report has resulted in the Lord Chancellor’s Department issuing a consultation paper that includes a draft Defamation Bill. The aim of the Bill is to introduce new […]
City firm Clifford Chance has been ordered to pay costs on an indemnity basis to Zappia Middle East Construction company after a writ was issued through solicitors Zaiwalla & Co. Judge Wilcox made the order after Clifford Chance decided to withdraw an application to strike out the action,which related to a claim for damages following […]
LAW Society president Martin Mears’ could face an embarrassing U-turn over his aim to bring the functions of the Solicitors Complaints Bureau in-house. Paul Boateng MP, Labour legal spokesman, is to meet both Mears and Bar chair Peter Goldsmith QC to discuss his plans for the legal system, as framed in the Access to Justice […]
A HUGE legal battle is unfolding in New York where the Maxwell pensions trustees, represented by the five-partner firm Orans Elsen & Lupert, are taking on investment bank Morgan Stanley and the 106-partner Lexington Avenue firm, Davis Polk & Wardwell in their $100 million claim. The lawsuit launched by the Mirror Group Newspapers Pension Trustees […]
Black communities should be targeted for magistrate recruitment campaigns, a report by the Justices’ Clerks’ Society says. The document, Black People in Magistrates’ Courts, says that the measure would help boost under-represented minorities. Other recommendations to improve the racial equality of the courts include reviewing the role of the oath and providing greater translation of […]