Page 90 | Features | Law.com International

The weak link

By Legal Week | March 9, 2011

Five out of seven failing banks identified by the European stress tests in 2010 were Spanish savings banks. Rafael Nunez-Lagos reports on their future
Benefits for housing - financing options for the social housing sector

By Legal Week | March 1, 2011

With almost 1.8 million on the social housing waiting lists, the need for funding in the sector is clear. David Coulter and Mark Dennison discuss the options available in 2011...
Flying high - the rise and rise of Europe's high-yield bond market

By Legal Week | March 1, 2011

Last year was very busy for issuers and underwriters of high-yield debt securities and the lawyers who act for them. After closing down in August of 2007, the high-yield market in Europe re-opened in the latter half of 2009 and became increasingly busy in the following months. In 2010, global new issuances of high-yield debt securities reached an all-time high of approximately $317bn (£196bn), up from $189bn (£117bn) in 2009. In Europe alone, new issuances amounted to $66.1bn (£40.8bn), up from $44.1bn (£27bn) in 2009. In January 2011, $35.1bn (£21.6bn) of high-yield debt securities were issued globally, of which $9.4bn (£5.8bn) was issued in Europe. If this trend continues, 2011 will be an even bigger year for high-yield than 2010.
'Trainees spend all their time photocopying' and other misconceptions about US firms

By Legal Week | February 15, 2011

Perception: You need an American accent and a US law background to fit in. Reality: How untrue- just as an example Shearman & Sterling's London office has around 75% English law practitioners. You are more likely to hear an English, continental European or Antipodean accent here. Lawyers work with clients from around the world (not just the US) on cross border deals and matters with colleagues from continental Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America as well as the US. Away from our US offices, some lawyers are US qualified but most are locally qualified.
One site wonder - why the focused single-site model has helped Farrers prosper

By Legal Week | February 8, 2011

As far as I know there is no name for the section of firms rated 51-75 by revenue in which my firm finds itself. When you have run out of circles (and even Dante would have run out of circles), I am not sure where you go. When tables were first published in 1988, Farrer & Co found itself ranked around 66 and we have stayed there ever since, despite almost doubling in size since then. We have remained a one office firm and have expanded organically by retaining as many trainees as we can (over the last three years all our trainees have qualified here) and recruiting laterals to strengthen existing areas of expertise.
Heading the same direction - why a more imaginative approach to billing is required

By Legal Week | February 8, 2011

When it comes to innovation in fees the UK leads the world. A recent survey by consulting firm Altman Weil found that 94.5% of the 218 US firms they interviewed - and 100% of those with 150 lawyers or more - offered non-hourly billing. But the billable hour is institutionalised in the US, albeit at a lower rate with more diligent time recording. Fixed fees (or, crucially, flexible fixed fees) have typically been used by UK nationals and heavyweight regionals - but even the most traditional of London firms are finding they need to be more imaginative as it becomes increasingly difficult to access the levels of work enjoyed in the past.
Searching new opportunities: one student's guide to setting up your own business

By Legal Week | January 26, 2011

I studied the GDL and LPC at the College of Law in Guildford from 2008-2010. I enjoyed my time immensely and participated in a broad range of activities. But when I reached the end of my time there, in common with many of my friends and peers, I found myself without a training contract to go into.
A stint abroad: lessons from a seat in Hong Kong

By Legal Week | January 12, 2011

I was born on board a plane so I attribute this to be the root cause for my desire for adventure. My interest in learning from different cultures and gaining international experience as a corporate lawyer led me to apply for an opportunity for a professional secondment in Hong Kong.
Private client: Home is where the tax is

By Legal Week | December 1, 2010

Imagine yourself, if you will, as a successful lawyer in 1850. You have a thriving practice and, with your wealth, you have built a house on a nice plot of land in the open fields two miles from Marble Arch. It is the envy of your neighbours - smart, spacious and comfortable. Over the years with your growing family it suits you very well and you are able to hand it on to the next generation.
Private client: Where there's a will, there's a way

By Legal Week | December 1, 2010

The world of wills and probate has recently become a battleground over whether writing a will should be a reserved legal activity. A reserved legal activity may only be carried out by regulated legal professionals such as solicitors and barristers. However, people who are not subject to any regulation at all may complete a great deal of legal advice and services including - to the vexation of the legal profession - the writing of wills. This has resulted in a whole industry of non-lawyer will writers fuelled by the fact that the majority of adults in the UK do not have a will, meaning that there is a significant underlying demand for their services. It is, of course, in the legal profession's interest that will writing becomes a reserved activity, but lawyers argue it is in the public's interest, too. Arguments have been advanced both for and against regulating, based on the need for consumer protection on one hand and the cost burden and effectiveness of regulation on the other.

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