Partners at Linklaters and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer are among the 500 lawyers to have cashed in on the billion-dollar joint venture between Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). The pharmaceutical giants will swap assets as part of the deal, with GSK acquiring Novartis’ global vaccines unit, excluding its flu division, for $7.1bn. Novartis will take on GSK’s […]
When one door closes, another swings opens – a saying that is perhaps laminated in Brown Rudnick’s boardroom. The US firm has pulled offers from half of the associates set to join the firm in autumn, a move that comes weeks after it announced plans to bolster its London IP team. Associates in New York […]
Norwegian firm Wikborg Rein’s five-year formal law alliance with Singaporean firm Pan Asia Law has come to an end. Wikborg Rein has had an office in Singapore since 2000. It established a formal law alliance (FLA) with Singaporean firm Pan Asia Law in May 2008 in a bid to offer clients combined Singaporean, English and […]
For UK managing partners, the end of April doesn’t just equal chocolate eggs and hot cross buns. It means year-end financial results, a thought that could push some back to the buttery bun cupboard. But it doesn’t look like comfort eating will be necessary this spring. The Lawyer asked a range of UK top 20 […]
We’ve had the silks round, but there other long-running themes emerging from our coverage of the bar. They include commercial court costs and criminal barristers’ struggle with the Ministry of Justice. Below is a selection of reports highlighting the current issues. 21st century silk Commercial court costs budgeting to be raised to £10m Row between […]
The UK’s top 20 firms by revenue are gearing up for the recovery, with most expecting to see a turnover increase of at least 5 per cent for the year ending April 2014. The expected revenue rise is in line with figures for the first six months of the current 2013/14 financial year, when firms […]
French giant Fidal is focusing on building up its cross-border capabilities in a bid to change clients’ perception of the former accountancy-tied firm. Fidal has merged its two Paris bases into a single office, joining up its ‘international’ team and its ‘Paris’ team – which formerly worked out of separate buildings on opposite banks of […]
Brown Rudnick has pulled offers from half of the associates set to join the firm in the autumn, a move that comes weeks after it announced plans to bolster its London IP team. In a statement the US firm said that the demand for first year associates had declined in recent years, with the firm’s […]
Good news for the folk over at ACAS – or the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service, for those who prefer to see the name in full. From 6 May, any employee wanting to take an employer to a tribunal will first have to contact ACAS to see if the dispute is suitable for an attempted […]
Supreme Court president Lord Neuberger’s focus on collegiate working is resulting in fewer dissenting opinions on the bench As the Supreme Court approaches its fifth anniversary, the highest court in England and Wales is entering a period of relative stability. Lord Hodge is the last judicial appointee expected to join the court until 2016, when […]
How much dissent is appropriate? In the Supreme Court, which celebrates its five-year anniversary this October, it is a timely question. Our cover story this week reveals data that tells a story of growing unanimity on the bench. Statistics reveal that since Lord Neuberger took over from Lord Phillips as president of the Supreme Court […]
Why well-connected PE partners are worth their weight in gold When it comes to their legal affairs, private equity (PE) houses are creatures of habit. While corporate law is relationship-driven, PE houses take it to the next level. Individual partners working in that space carry just as much weight – if not more – than […]