Features
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Restructuring and insolvency: Chapter and terse
By Legal Week | November 25, 2009
A curious feature of the 'special relationship' is the recurring enthusiasm of our political leaders for Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code. They are occasionally supported by a chorus of journalists loudly proclaiming the merits of the world's best known debtor-in-possession (DIP) insolvency process. In both cases, the expressions of admiration tend to be unencumbered by much understanding or experience of the process. Their ardour is dampened by research into the subject. The flames are doused entirely by any serious consideration of the practicalities of recreating the Chapter 11 experience in the UK.
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Restructuring and insolvency: Year of the living dead
By Legal Week | November 25, 2009
As the economy began to show signs of overheating during the peak of the credit boom between 2005 and 2007, many insolvency advisers were predicting the next big thing would be a wave of increasingly complex restructurings - accompanied by a frenetic round of debt trading. Accordingly, many of the funds and investment banks active in the sector set about bolstering their restructuring teams. Andrew Wilkinson's 2007 move from the leading London restructuring team of US firm Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, which he built up during the late 1990s and early part of the decade, to head up Goldman Sachs' European restructuring advisory arm was only the most high-profile of a series of such moves.
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US Briefing: The Company's lawyers
By Legal Week | November 11, 2009
It is a dark time for the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) Office of General Counsel (OGC). A CIA inspector general's report released in September reported that the OGC "took the lead" in determining the legal parameters for interrogation, determinations that led to "enhanced" techniques such as water boarding.
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Italy: Protect the little guy
By Legal Week | November 4, 2009
On 3 August 2009, Consob (the Italian securities market regulator) issued a new consultation document to regulate related party transactions carried out by listed companies and companies that issue financial instruments widely distributed among the public. The expiry date for public comment was 31 October 2009. Even though final rules might differ from those proposed, companies may wish to become familiar with the new regulations so as to plan future implementation appropriately.
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Italy: Intricate work
By Legal Week | November 4, 2009
After a long-lasting debate, collective redress for consumer litigation has been introduced in Italy this summer and will come into force on 1 January 2010. Over the last few years, however, the Italian legislator has introduced a number of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) instruments for business-consumer litigation.
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Scandinavia and the Baltics: Rules of the game
By Legal Week | October 28, 2009
Two key Nordic deal markets face new rules for corporate takeovers just as advisers are hoping for an upturn in M&A activity. Hannes Snellman's Klaus Ilmonen and Soeren Lindstroem size up the changing market
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Scandinavia and the Baltics: Strings attached
By Legal Week | October 28, 2009
Lessons from a 1990s crisis helped Norway to weather the credit crunch. Thommessen's Sverre Tyrhaug and Lars Eirik Gaseide Rosas assess current attempts to shore up lenders
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Law firm management: Consulting 2.0
By Legal Week | October 20, 2009
Deloitte's David Hawley assesses how consultants can offer more to lawyers than rising blood pressure and an overdose of PowerPoint
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Law firm management: The capital question
By Legal Week | October 20, 2009
Nearly every law firm today is organised as a private partnership, or something similar. In most countries this is required by laws that prohibit law firms from having external shareholders on a public or private basis. The fundamental reason for this is, because law is a profession, lawyers have an obligation to put their clients' interests ahead of their economic self-interest. Of course, legal work must be properly compensated to ensure a return to the firm and short-term economic sacrifices in serving a client can have large longer-term benefits in terms of future work because of the client loyalty that is generated. Having external shareholders, the argument goes, creates a potential conflict of interest between clients' needs and shareholders' needs. However, external shareholders can provide capital for growth. Since this has historically not been available in the legal profession, the industry is highly fragmented and comprised of a large number of relatively small firms in every country. And there are only a handful of practices - Clifford Chance, DLA Piper and Linklaters - that come close to being global law firms.
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Law firm management: Learning to lead
By Legal Week | October 20, 2009
Harvard started a revolution in leadership training for law firms in the 1990s. Alex Aldridge and Alex Novarese tell the story and assess what management training can offer
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