Towards the tail end of this summer, the titans of law, Kirkland & Ellis, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, and Allen & Overy joined forces with Maples Group, and Chinese based firms JunHe and Shihui Partners, to oversee an industry-first merger. The $1.3 billion dollar deal saw Hong Kong-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Aquila Acquisition Corp,…
Law firms across the globe are grappling with an increasingly contentious issue: employee monitoring. In the pursuit of efficiency and productivity, firms are adopting technologies to track virtually every aspect of their staff’s workaday lives; from badge swipes to keystrokes. The debate around these practices is heating up, with critics arguing the intrusion into personal…
The University of Toronto’s highly-regarded law school has announced that it will return a US$450,000 donation from Amazon. The reason for this dramatic step stems from recent criticism over a lack of transparency surrounding the source of the donation. In a statement, law dean Jutta Brunnée said, “The Faculty of Law upheld the University’s firm…
Concerns about potential risks to client confidentiality and privacy when using public artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT led Australian law firm Allens to develop an alternative. Last year, the firm decided on a hands-on approach to understand generative AI better: to utilise it internally. Rather than resorting to public AI, Allens opted to create its…
In a coordinated effort, two Spanish and two U.S. law firms have paved the way for a deal set to reshape the way FC Barcelona’s content is consumed. The deal involves the merger of Barcelona Football Club’s content creation operation and its future listing on the U.S market. The publicly traded Special Purpose Acquisition Company…
A recent ruling by an employment tribunal judge has led to the dismissal of race discrimination and harassment allegations made by Premila Patel, a former employee at CMS, against the law firm and several previous colleagues. Despite this, the firm continues to grapple with an ensuing claim of victimisation, reported by Law.com. Patel had levelled…
Nominations have now opened for the 2024 edition of the Women, Influence and Power in Law (WIPL) awards. This annual event, going into its fourth year, is organized by Law.com International and aims to recognize and honor leading legal professionals who have made significant contributions to the industry in the last year. Notably, for its…
Addleshaw Goddard and DWF have recently expanded their teams in the United Arab Emirates with new partner hires. Among the notable recruits is Sandeep Puri, who joins Addleshaw Goddard from Baker & McKenzie. Puri brings more than two decades of experience in the UAE, where he has provided advice on banking, finance, and capital market…
Over the summer, legal activity in Paris saw an increase on the lateral hires front, with key law firms, including King & Spalding and Fieldfisher, expanding their partnership roster. This recruitment drive has seen the addition of new partners in critical practice areas within the French capital. Amy Frey, a notable figure in the international…
In a landmark decision influencing the global legal framework around climate change risks, the Australian Government will now disclose these risks to potential investors following a lawsuit. The risks informed will revolve around how climate change could potentially affect the value of the country’s bonds. This comes as a significant move that brings transparency in…
Former Co-Head of Global Arbitration at Allen & Overy, Matthew Gearing KC, has recently joined Temple Chambers, based in Hong Kong, to continue his practice as an arbitrator. This move follows Gearing’s transition to UK’s Fountain Court Chambers as counsel and arbitrator, which occurred over two years after almost 24 years of service at Allen…
New Zealand’s practice management platform provider, Actionstep, has announced its acquisition of Australia’s FilePro, another provider of practice management software. As stated in a press release, the acquisition will enable FilePro customers to access cutting-edge, cloud-based technology. Actionstep’s acquisition will also fuel further product development investment. The move sees Actionstep, which boasts offices in the…
As the legal industry grapples with the enormous potential and myriad implications of artificial intelligence (AI), clients are driving increased demand for AI-focused legal expertise. This phenomenon is leading to a significant uptick in the number of large law firms that are investing resources to meet these demands. To keep pace with clients’ needs, many…
In an increasingly stringent regulatory environment, technology giants could face considerable financial penalties under a new rulebook from the European Union (EU). According to proposed regulations, tech companies that do not implement sufficient measures to mitigate the spread of hate speech and disinformation online could end up facing a fine amounting to 6% of their…
Elite French and international firms have recently finalized the restructuring of Groupe Barrière, a leading five-star hospitality enterprise in France—indicative of a rise in restructuring activities linked to private equity as companies regroup for the post-pandemic era. Worth several billion euros, the deal brings an end to a significant chapter in the life of the…
Change appears to be on the horizon for London’s white collar legal professionals. Lisa Osofsky’s eventful but regularly controversial five-year tenure as the head of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is coming to an end this month, marking an end to a period that has seen high-profile cases involving corporations such as GSK, Unaoil, Rolls…
Proskauer Rose, a leading international law firm, faces significant shifts in its operations in Greater China. All its full-time partners within this region have exited the firm. Key departures include Beijing funds partner Yong Ren, who joined the firm in 2014, and Hong Kong corporate partner Jeremy Leifer, a member of Proskauer since 2011. Details…
Law.com International recently undertook a comprehensive review of a vast array of submissions from leading law firms across Asia. Their objective was to compile Law.com’s inaugural list of Asia Rising Stars within the private equity field. Although the pool of contenders was impressively vast, the list has been meticulously whittled down to the top ten….
The Melbourne law firm Arnold Block Leibler, despite its smaller size of just 43 partners and 150 lawyers, holds significant sway in the legal landscape. This is evidenced by its recently held 70th-anniversary celebration, which played host to a notably influential guest list. An assortment of individuals from across government, politics and corporate Australia were…
The arrest of former Gibson Dunn & Crutcher visiting lawyer, Romero Cabral Da Costa Neto, has shed light on Big Law’s ‘visiting attorney’ arrangements and the vetting processes involved. Costa Neto, previously a visiting attorney from noteworthy Brazilian firm Mattos Filho, was charged with insider trading for allegedly accessing internal law files through Gibson Dunn’s…
Popular Austrian crystal and jewelry firm, Swarovski, announced Stephan Mechnig as its new Chief Legal and Compliance Officer effective from October 1st. This appointment follows the company’s recent shift from a family-managed to a family-owned business. This transition was marked last year, when former McKinsey & Co. executive Alexis Nasard was picked out as the…
In a recent shift within the European legal industry, Stefan Widder, a longstanding partner at Latham & Watkins is set to join competitor Gleiss Lutz in Hamburg. Widder, who has spent 21 years at Latham, will increase the partner count at Gleiss Lutz Hamburg to seven and take the total number of lawyers at the…
US law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges recently implemented a new mandate requiring its London-based lawyers to be physically present in the office for a minimum of four days per week. This move aligns the company’s UK offices with their counterparts in the US, which were notified of a similar policy via a firm-wide email…
The traditional landscape of client entertainment in law firms has significantly changed in recent years, owing to factors such as the financial crisis, anti-bribery legislature, and the Covid-19 pandemic. These days, a simple bowl of noodles is considered standard fare for a lawyer-client meeting, as stated by Addleshaw Goddard London banking partner, Alex Dumphy. It’s…
A recent survey indicates a significant discrepancy in the expectations for contract turnaround times within corporate legal departments in Latin America, potentially raising tensions among business sectors. The study was conducted by ODDS Legal, a consultancy for legal operations. The survey involved interviewing 72 in-house counsels from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Spain….