Alex Novarese

March 18, 2012 | International Edition

More than 5,000 solicitor jobs in the UK would need to go to deal with substantial over-capacity in the legal market, according to a new report by one of the leading law firm bankers. A report released today (19 March) by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) argues that the legal profession is over-resourced in the face of a "permanent structural change in market forces in the UK" and has the "opportunity" to remove 5% of the fee earner base.

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

March 15, 2012 | International Edition

"In business coverage, getting to what's really relevant matters. A lot. Superficial is easy – superficial is everywhere. But if you can get to accurately targeted and authoritative writing on hard-to-grasp subjects, you are doing something right"

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

March 08, 2012 | International Edition

"Though the firm continues to pursue global expansion at a frenetic pace, the effort to get larger will not be in every area. In some fields, DLA is aiming to tilt upmarket and this means leaving some areas of its business behind..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

March 08, 2012 | International Edition

"We were very concerned about treating this like the Millennium Bug – it's easy for lawyers to drum up hysteria..." - advisers strike a low-key note as clients' eurozone event preparations quietly unfold. Alex Novarese reports...

By Alex Novarese

8 minute read

March 01, 2012 | International Edition

As this week's analysis reminds us, for all the intense focus on cracking the key emerging economies, it's the vast US legal market that remains the prize London's elite can neither ignore nor seize. After all, despite high growth and large economies, the increasingly heavily lawyered legal markets of some of the most touted Asian jurisdictions are still currently worth about as much as Belgium's professional services sector. I exaggerate, but not by that much. The pull of the US' $250bn (£158bn) market, by some estimates constituting half of the global value of legal services, means that building a credible US practice is still the overriding strategic issue for London's big four. And don't think the current frenzy in Asia is unconnected. Many City firms have concluded that a quality US union is their ideal endgame, but can probably only be secured with the additional leverage of a commanding global network.

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

February 24, 2012 | International Edition

Everyone knows clients get bombarded with legal information, much of it from law firms. How much of that material they are interested in or find useful is a good deal harder to divine...

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

February 23, 2012 | International Edition

"When you are on the receiving end, particularly if you are running a business that is facing tough times, media coverage can feel like you're under siege..."

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read

February 17, 2012 | International Edition

Linklaters managing partner Simon Davies faces his reappointment going to a physical partners meeting in April after falling to secure enough support during an electronic vote. In an unusual move thought to be related to the City giant's sweeping partner restructuring, Davies has failed to secure a high enough margin of support in an electronic vote for re-election for a second term as managing partner, despite being the only candidate put forward.

By Alex Novarese

2 minute read

February 16, 2012 | International Edition

Mounting turmoil engulfing the eurozone and political wrangling over the US economy hasn't been enough to hold back the world's largest legal market, with early results confirming that America's leading law firms have remained in growth mode for a second year.

By Alex Novarese

4 minute read

February 16, 2012 | International Edition

I remember several years back working with another reporter on a piece about women in law, which focused on the relative lack of female partners. The article tried to assess the prospects for changes to the industry's working practices that would ease the conflict for female lawyers between parenthood and making partner. After the piece came out, my colleague told me that he didn't think law firms needed to change at all, in the sense that it wouldn't damage them commercially to keep losing huge numbers of expensively-trained women lawyers. I knew he was right.

By Alex Novarese

3 minute read