Month: April 2010

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Without a paddle

The continued exodus of high-profile partners from White & Case’s City operation suggests the Global London leader still has serious management issues. It’s time someone took charge

In last year’s Global London issue, White & Case’s newly appointed London executive partner Oliver Brettle reacted defiantly to LB’s suggestion that the office had morale issues. It wasn’t correct that ‘one or two vocal former members of the team should give rise to a more general impression that there is a problem with morale in the office’, he insisted.

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Talent scouts

With the City’s law firms bogged down by plummeting profits and disaffected partners, the Americans have seized the chance to hire some serious big cheeses. Here, LB names our top ten laterals of the year

If you thought one of the most turbulent 12-month periods that the legal market has ever seen would result in partners hunkering down and getting on with whatever work they could find, then think again. Since our last Global London survey a year ago, no fewer than 64 partners have opted to up sticks and join US firms on this side of the Atlantic, and not all of them were moving because they were pushed.

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Crunch time

The past few years have seen dramatic changes at Lawrence Graham and Nabarro, two firms hit hardest by the real estate downturn. But as LG approaches its 300th anniversary, it is looking its age, while Nabarro still has its bite

Before you embark on a rebrand there’s so much to consider. How much are you willing to invest in a renaming and follow-up marketing campaign? How do you attract new clients without alienating longstanding business partners? Will you share your identity with a household-name electronics manufacturer? Evidently, the last issue is easily overlooked. Continue reading “Crunch time”

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Reinventing the wheel

With the SRA on the verge of overhauling the regulatory system yet again, our third annual Legal Business/Marsh risk management round table looked at how ever-moving goalposts will affect successful risk management in the new decade

At the top of a rain-lashed Gherkin on a chilly February night, yet another review of thelegal profession’s regulatory system was discussed, as industry experts came together for dinner to debate some of the most important issues facing law firm managers as we enter a new decade. Continue reading “Reinventing the wheel”

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A hive of activity

bees

Israel has the highest number of lawyers per capita of any country in the world – one lawyer for every 166 people – and so far it has managed to keep them all busy. For a country with a population of 7.3 million, a legal profession boasting 44,000 participants is quite some feat (the UK has 150,000).

In the past decade many of the top Israeli firms have doubled in size and have regularly been outperforming the wider market. The economy has flourished, international business has taken off and law firms have reaped the rewards. Now they just have to keep up the momentum. Continue reading “A hive of activity”

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Waltzing on

Austria’s banking system was rocked by the near-collapse of Hypo Group Alpe Adria and its resulting nationalisation. Legal Business looks at the law firms called in to save the country’s sixth-largest lender, and the lucrative mandates picked up by Austria’s top legal advisers in response to recent events

For Austria’s law firms, it looked like party time when BayernLB acquired Hypo Group Alpe Adria (HGAA) back in 2007. HGAA was a top player in Balkan markets such as Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia. BayernLB expected the profits to roll in and HGAA’s IPO was eagerly anticipated. Continue reading “Waltzing on”