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International Edition

Is Weil's partner exodus a sign trouble is brewing at the firm's London office?

When Weil Gotshal & Manges last year announced 170 redundancies across its associate and support staff ranks, the market was shocked but viewed it as a difficult but necessary decision. A drop in high-profile restructuring and litigation work had contributed to flat global revenues for 2012 against a nearly 9% fall in profits. Executive partner Barry Wolf admitted at the time of announcing the cuts that some partners may decide to leave as a result of "meaningful compensation adjustments for certain partners" due to the changes in the economy, but no numbers were referenced. Since then more than 30 partners – equating to around a tenth of the global partnership – have left. This included at least 17 partners packing up in Houston and Dallas, as well as several senior partners from the firm's east coast bases. Market sentiment suggests at least some of the senior departures represent collateral damage.
5 minute read

International Edition

The compass points south – how do in-house legal teams in Africa rate their external advisers?

Ian Isdale, group company secretary and general counsel of leading African food and consumer goods company Tiger Brands and immediate past president of the Corporate Lawyers Association of South Africa, is putting it mildly when he says: "There has been a heightened interest in Africa and in the next five years I don't see that interest waning." Recent years have seen a host of UK and US law firms – ranging from Norton Rose Fulbright and Linklaters to Hogan Lovells and even Slaughter and May – attempting to come up with ways to penetrate a market where activity levels have remained buoyant, despite economic challenges elsewhere in the world. So with law firms and corporates increasingly turning their attention south, Legal Week Intelligence has, for the first time, extended its flagship Client Satisfaction Report to Africa, to uncover the key trends affecting in-house legal teams in the continent and their satisfaction with external legal advisers
15 minute read

International Edition

Leaner, faster, stronger – the importance of getting the basics right

Not being the sexiest of topics, Clifford Chance's (CC) publication last week of a white paper on 'continuous improvement in the legal sector' probably escaped most people's notice. But before you switch off completely, it is worth considering that the magic circle firm's five-year efficiency drive has cut client bills or the amount CC writes off by 15% – more in some cases. The paper, which summarises what CC has learned over the course of the programme, also claims the firm has sped up some projects and processes by 50%. These are the kind of numbers that grab the attention of cash-strapped clients.
3 minute read

Legal Week

Leaner, faster, stronger – the importance of getting the basics right

Not being the sexiest of topics, Clifford Chance's (CC) publication last week of a white paper on 'continuous improvement in the legal sector' probably escaped most people's notice. But before you switch off completely, it is worth considering that the magic circle firm's five-year efficiency drive has cut client bills or the amount CC writes off by 15% – more in some cases. The paper, which summarises what CC has learned over the course of the programme, also claims the firm has sped up some projects and processes by 50%. These are the kind of numbers that grab the attention of cash-strapped clients.
6 minute read

International Edition

Should cyber security standards be imposed by regulation or left to discretion?

Late last year London's largest financial institutions stress-tested their cyber security resilience with a series of 'war games' co-ordinated by financial regulators and Government officials. Bank staff had to respond to several simulated cyber incident scenarios, which included challenges such as the availability of cash from ATMs and coping with a liquidity freeze in the wholesale market. Dubbed 'Operation Waking Shark II', the simulation – one of the largest ever conducted – emphasises the potential severity of cyber attacks affecting the financial markets. Along with a similar exercise carried out in New York – and plans for 200 US banks to participate in what amounts to a competition over which is best prepared to handle an attack – it signifies a growing awareness of cyber risk among Government, regulators and corporations.
6 minute read

International Edition

Invensys legal chief Hull to step down following takeover

Invensys chief legal officer Victoria Hull is to stand down from the role in April, following the takeover of the company by France's Schneider Electric. Hull, a former corporate finance associate at Clifford Chance, joined the former FTSE 100 company in 2000 and became senior vice president and general counsel in July 2001.
2 minute read

International Edition

Wragges outlines plans to adapt pay model for incoming LG partners

Wragge & Co is firming up plans to shift Lawrence Graham (LG) partners into an all-equity structure, with the firm set to vote in members of a new remuneration committee to oversee the transition.
3 minute read

International Edition

Google de-lists Irwin Mitchell website from online searches

Irwin Mitchell's main website has been de-listed from Google searches, apparently as a penalty for breaking guidelines on linking from external sites. First spotted by search engine optimisation (SEO) experts last week, the law firm's main domain - irwinmitchell.com - no longer appears on Google searches, except for paid results for its website.
2 minute read

International Edition

A&O's Wickenden on troubleshooting mission to Hong Kong as firm changes China focus

Allen & Overy has relocated US corporate finance partner Jim Wickenden from London to Hong Kong following the departure of one of its most senior US partners in Asia, James Grandolfo.
3 minute read

International Edition

United Nations taps Linklaters to produce GC sustainability guide

Linklaters has secured a high-profile pro-bono mandate to help the United Nations (UN) produce a corporate sustainability guide for general counsel.
2 minute read

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