Sofia Lind

November 30, 2010 | International Edition

Leading South African firm Deneys Reitz is set to overhaul its partner pay structure as it prepares for next year's tie-up with Norton Rose. The firm sent a note to its shareholders last week with suggestions for changing its remuneration structure from a points-based system that broadly operates as a pure lockstep, to a merit-driven tiered system with greater flexibility to move people up or down. The move is part of a bid to better align partners' remuneration with Norton Rose, which already operates a heavily modified lockstep. The proposals need to be approved by the firm's partners but, if successful, will come into effect from 1 April - the start of the South African firm's financial year.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 30, 2010 | International Edition

Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) is set to lose City finance partner Andrew Baird, who is returning to his previous firm Watson Farley & Williams. Baird, who was a partner with Watson Farley until 2001, was seen as a symbolic hire for BLP when he joined in November of that year, as his hire was a first step in the then newly-merged firm's plans to grow its finance capability.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 29, 2010 | International Edition

Allen & Overy (A&O) has launched an online tool to help banks and hedge funds track and respond to the global wide push for reform of senior financiers' compensation structures. The product - dubbed FIG Global Compensation Tracker - is designed to allow financial institutions to keep up with the stream of national regulatory developments as watchdogs move to clamp down on pay packages that incentivise excessive risk-taking.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 26, 2010 | International Edition

CMS Cameron McKenna is set to take on only 63% of its trainees due to qualify in March 2011. The firm has 19 vacancies across its UK offices but has a 30-strong intake due to qualify as solicitors in its City headquarters.Sixteen of the positions are in London, with the remainder split between Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Bristol respectively.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 26, 2010 | International Edition

Simmons & Simmons has seen revenues drop marginally in the first half of the 2010-11 financial year. The firm has posted fee income of £117.7m for the first six months of the year - down from £120.3m at the same point last year, with the slight decline coming against a 27% increase in profit.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 26, 2010 | International Edition

Royal Mail has cut back its UK legal panel from eight firms to three, with CMS Cameron McKenna, Beachcroft and Bond Pearce winning coveted places on the roster. The trio will formally start their three-year terms on 1 December, with the option of extending it for one year. The panel covers company & commercial, IT, intellectual property, pensions, dispute resolution and the higher value end of property and employment work for both Royal Mail and the Post Office.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 25, 2010 | International Edition

Clifford Chance (CC) has made a high-profile hire for its London corporate practice with the addition of Ashurst corporate finance partner Steven Fox. Fox, who also headed Ashurst's Madrid office between 2003 and 2007, has been a partner in the firm's City corporate department since 2000. His practice focuses on international corporate finance and M&A, including equity capital markets, public company takeovers and cross-border deals.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 25, 2010 | International Edition

Taylor Wessing has improved its financials at the half-year stage with the Anglo-German firm's global turnover up 4% on the same period last year. The increase comes after the firm last year reported a 15% drop in H1 revenues to £77m, with this year's 4% rise increasing turnover to £80m based on that figure. Taylor Wessing this summer posted a 5.3% drop in firmwide revenues to £178m for the full 2009-10 financial year, while the firm's UK arm saw turnover fall 7.3% to £84.5m.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 24, 2010 | International Edition

Essar Group has overhauled its legal function in an attempt to route more of its in-house legal work through London, with the Indian conglomerate also looking at formalising its relationships with outside law firms. Essar Global Limited (EGL), the holding group for companies including Essar Energy, has hired Vinson & Elkins City finance partner Raminder Singh as its first global general counsel.

By Sofia Lind

2 minute read

November 24, 2010 | International Edition

Law firms are set to face new restrictions on international recruitment in the wake of the UK Government's announcement of a cap on the immigration of skilled workers. The changes to the points-based immigration system - announced yesterday and published in full today (24 November) - include the removal of the tier one general category for highly-skilled workers, which will restrict the movement of migrants from outside of the European Economic Area from April next year. The tier one general category has been widely used by law firms to bring in new recruits from overseas.

By Sofia Lind

3 minute read