Alex Novarese

May 31, 2012 | International Edition

"Look, the reality is that this guy hadn't been performing for a while, and you know what happens in these situations…" My response was admittedly a bit schoolyard: "A US firm comes along and doubles their money? That'll teach 'em..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

May 25, 2012 | International Edition

"The legal profession has the luxury of being a high status occupation to which many flock. What usually happens with high status careers is that they become colonized by social elites that have privileged access to high quality education and useful social networks..."

By Alex Novarese

5 minute read

May 24, 2012 | International Edition

"The myth that law firms are badly run compared to the brilliantly high standards seen in most companies is a curious thing. Governance standards have risen materially over the last 15 years in the profession..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

May 17, 2012 | International Edition

As Dewey & LeBoeuf this week officially became the world's largest legal failure, it seems an appropriate moment to return to a theme touched on often in this column: the difference between success and failure in the high-end legal market. Years of covering the profession have made me believe it has surprisingly little to do with business models or market positioning. Though law firm leaders and commentators often belabour the 'right' strategy or shape for a firm, the global legal market offers a bewildering array of successful outfits operating wildly different models. What have Latham & Watkins, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, DLA Piper, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, Clyde & Co and Travers Smith got in common? Not much. There is also often confusion between correlation and cause. Is Freshfields successful because it is magic circle, or magic circle because it is successful? That isn't semantics (though there is no clear answer).

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

May 03, 2012 | International Edition

Only two months after news first emerged of financial problems at Dewey & LeBoeuf, the spectre of bankruptcy looms large over the US giant. Such a course would make Dewey on many measures the largest-ever law firm collapse, signalling the end of a practice that at its peak had more than 1,300 lawyers and revenues of over $800m (£493m).

By Alex Novarese

4 minute read

April 26, 2012 | International Edition

"The College shouldn't kid itself about the realities of getting into bed with private equity. While Montagu looks a good match given its reputation as a conservative buy-and-build investor, it will be a robustly commercial owner..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

April 19, 2012 | International Edition

"Even if the individual is a superstar, why would you ever want to base a business on such recruits? And forget fluffy stuff about collegiality, why would high performers want a guarantee? They're selling the chance to profit from their delivery..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

April 04, 2012 | International Edition

I'm always torn when the subject of social mobility rears its head, as it does in this week's analysis. After all, law genuinely struggles to counter the UK's ridiculously variable standards of state education. The profession is based on structured learning, and it's hard to utilise bright kids if schools can't give them the foundation upon which to build complex professional training. But where does such 'counsel of despair', as David Morley puts it, lead? Increasingly, the result looks like a profession which, on some measures used by researchers, is becoming more socially exclusive as the impact of post-war mobility dies.

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

March 29, 2012 | International Edition

There's nothing like calls to trim lawyer numbers to trigger howls of outrage or agreement. The most recent example was a piece carried by Legal Week based on a report by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which argued that the profession is carrying thousands of excess jobs given the bleak commercial environment...

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

March 22, 2012 | International Edition

"There is being wise after the fact, and then there is doggedly resisting wisdom's advances in the face of recurring events. What else to make of the storm battering Dewey & LeBoeuf, a firm that has managed to get itself into considerable difficulties despite being a top 25 US practice with revenues north of $900m (£570m)?"

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read