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International Edition

Government legal spending - many names, same old problems

No matter what awful name the Government's centralised panel for external legal services is currently going by, complaints about it from those on the roster have for years remained awfully consistent: it's far too unwieldy and work is not handed out evenly. Even so, the latest figures make for startling reading, demonstrating that criticism levelled by panel firms is in many instances justified. In addition to highlighting the huge discrepancy between what individual firms are receiving from the panel, the data - covered in more depth on page 6 - demonstrates the extent to which large City firms have been moving into territory that would previously have been the preserve of smaller London and regional rivals.
4 minute read

Legal Week

Government legal spending - many names, same old problems

No matter what awful name the Government's centralised panel for external legal services is currently going by, complaints about it from those on the roster have for years remained awfully consistent: it's far too unwieldy and work is not handed out evenly. Even so, the latest figures make for startling reading, demonstrating that criticism levelled by panel firms is in many instances justified. In addition to highlighting the huge discrepancy between what individual firms are receiving from the panel, the data - covered in more depth on page 6 - demonstrates the extent to which large City firms have been moving into territory that would previously have been the preserve of smaller London and regional rivals.
12 minute read

International Edition

A&O, Dickson Minto and Ashurst lead on gambling tech company buyout

A trio of City firms have won roles advising on the £208m management buyout of gambling technology provider OpenBet backed by London private equity house Vitruvian partners. The deal saw OpenBet, which is one of the leading software providers in the e-gaming and online betting arena, sold by digital pay TV provider NDS.
2 minute read

International Edition

Linklaters and Weil Gotshal lead on RBS's £925m Priory Group sale

Linklaters and Weil Gotshal & Manges have taken lead roles on Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS) £925m sale of the Priory Group to buyout house Advent International. Linklaters advised the seller with a team of lawyers led by private equity co-chief Ian Bagshaw, who was assisted by corporate partner Iain Wagstaff and managing associate Alex Woodward.
2 minute read

International Edition

Freshfields and Cravath win roles as medical co makes £7bn takeover bid

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Cravath Swaine & Moore have picked up lead roles on US medical giant Johnson & Johnson's attempted £7bn bid for Smith & Nephew. Freshfields has been fielding a team led by corporate partners Barry O'Brien and Ben Spiers advising longstanding client Smith & Nephew, which has not formally confirmed or denied this month's reported takeover approach.
2 minute read

International Edition

SNR Denton advises on £300m Thames Water outsource deal

SNR Denton has advised London's main water distributor Thames Water on a £300m deal that will see it outsource all of its metering services. The 10-year contract will see Vennsys - a consortium led by Veolia Water UK - handle all of the meter readings and meter installation for Thames Water.
2 minute read

International Edition

Local leaders rank alongside Links, Freshfields and Herbert Smith in Middle East/Asia M&A

South African practice Webber Wentzel and Linklaters have topped the rankings by deal volume and value respectively in the Middle East and Africa after deals increased 6.3% last year. While both deal value and volume are up on 2009 figures, with 302 deals worth $49.4bn (£31bn) in 2010 compared to 284 deals worth $32.2bn (£20bn) the previous year, both fall far short of pre-recession figures, according to the latest Mergermarket statistics.
3 minute read

International Edition

Dealmaker: Roger Barron

Linklaters corporate partner Roger Barron explains his fashion rut and name-drops P Diddy...
4 minute read

International Edition

Linklaters and Freshfields lead on $16bn BP/Rosneft joint venture

Linklaters and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have taken lead roles on a multibillion-pound strategic partnership between BP and Russian energy giant Rosneft. Linklaters advised longstanding client BP on the $16bn (£10.1bn) share swap backing the deal, which will see the UK company take a 9.5% stake in Rosneft, worth around $8bn (£5bn).
2 minute read

International Edition

Slaughters and Freshfields lead on UK-China oil company joint venture

Slaughter and May, Bredin Prat and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have taken lead advisory roles on proposed new joint venture agreements between PetroChina and chemicals producer Ineos. Ineos instructed a team of lawyers from Slaughters and its French best friend firm Bredin Prat to advise on the venture that will see the Chinese energy giant partner with Ineos to trade and refine oil at refineries in Scotland and France.
2 minute read

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