RBS finalises timeline and criteria for 'less onerous' UK panel review
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is poised to invite law firms to pitch for its UK panel review, which is likely to see cuts to law firms with a limited City presence.
November 09, 2014 at 07:11 PM
3 minute read
The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is poised to invite law firms to pitch for its UK panel review, which is likely to see cuts to law firms with a limited City presence.
According to a source close to the process, the review is likely to place "less onerous" demands on time and cost saving commitments than the last review in 2012, when the bank's in-house team felt it extracted large cost savings from its advisers.
Despite this, the bank still expects to make a number of cuts to the existing UK panel, which – following a 40% reduction in 2012 – saw spots awarded to just under 60 firms. In sharper focus will be national and regional firms, which are most likely to be affected by the cuts.
Legal Week understands law firms will be sent pitch documents in the first quarter of 2015, with a submission deadline pencilled for the end of June. Firms are expected to be informed of the outcome in the fourth quarter of the year, with the roster coming into effect on 1 January 2016.
Legal services consultant Richard Susskind, who was drafted in earlier this year to advise the bank on the review, is also finalising his recommendations. These are thought to include requests for firms to show how they are committed to their own legal process outsourcing (LPO) centres or struck agreements with third party providers.
Susskind has previously called for both law firms and in-house teams to make better use of technology, automation and innovative cost models.
Firms appointed to the panel last time round include Linklaters, Clifford Chance, Allen & Overy, Herbert Smith Freehills, Simmons & Simmons, Ashurst, Eversheds, Travers Smith, Watson Farley & Williams, legacy Squire Sanders and Stephenson Harwood.
That overhaul also saw RBS reduce the number of sub-panels on the roster from 13 to five, including a new alternative provider sub-panel, made up of a mix of law firms with volume expertise and legal process outsourcing providers.
"It's a generalisation, but I think that banks are becoming more appreciative of the benefits for both sides, if the relationships are more focused," said one senior banking partner.
"What we have seen for some time is people asking for alternative ways of delivering the service – it can mean cheaper, it can sometimes mean quicker. It's not necessarily a one-size fits all for all departments in a firm."
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