Welcome to The Passport, your regular round-up of the most important stories to come from the European legal market. In this week’s edition, BonelliErede and Chiomenti battle it out in pursuit of PE dominance; White & Case provides a blueprint for growth in Sweden; and Wolf Theiss’ new Brussels office highlights the firm’s growing ambitions. […]
Clifford Chance-repped Shell has won an appeal to overturn an earlier ruling that required the oil giant to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent by the end of the decade. The case goes back to 2018 when Dutch environmental organisation Milieudefensie (also known as Friends of the Earth Netherlands) alongside six other […]
A raft of corporate heavyweights are acting on Clayton Dubilier & Rice’s (CD&R) €16bn acquisition of Opella, a subsidiary of the French pharmaceutical group Sanofi. CD&R will acquire a 50 per cent controlling stake in the business in one of the largest private equity deals in Europe this year. Kirkland & Ellis is leading for […]
Equity partners at Dentons in Europe have chosen the next regional CEO with the firm’s former Dutch managing partner stepping into the role. Amsterdam-based Wendela Raas will replace Tomasz Dąbrowski on 1 November for the first term in the role. The election was understood to have been contested between Raas and three other equity partners […]
Welcome to The Passport, your regular round-up of the most important stories to come from the European legal market. In this week’s edition, Horten’s having a real year to forget as news emerges of its managing partner and co-chair leaving to join one of Denmark’s largest firms; Germany’s GSK Stockmann opens up about some early […]
Last summer, The Lawyer reported that Paul Hastings was on the hunt for growth in its Paris office and this year, the firm made its move in one of the French capital’s hottest markets. With white collar boutique Antonin Lévy & Associés joining Paul Hastings last month, we look at how the team sets itself […]
Fieldfisher has opened its second European office in as many months, launching new operations in Luxembourg through a lateral hire. The office will be focused on finance and funds, with the firm hiring Ingrid Dubourdieu as its managing partner for the country. She joins from local firm D Law, where she has been a partner […]
Ashurst’s Brussels managing partner Carl Meyntjens has left the firm to join Simmons & Simmons.
Paris dominated the European lateral hires market with both international and independent firm hires, while Luxembourg firm Wildgen and Brussels’ Van Bael & Bellis rang in key management changes with new managing partners.
The Shearman team is understood to be led by competition co-head Stephen Mavroghenis and partner Trevor Soames. 2014: Quinn Emanuel launches Brussels office
The District Court of the Hague has overturned a $50bn arbitral award against the Russian Federation in a long-standing dispute with the shareholders of oil company Yukos. The claimants’ lawyers from Shearman & Sterling and Dutch firm De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek said the court had “incorrectly applied” Russian law provisions and articles of an international […]
French firm Veil Jourde has launched a Brussels office, in its first foray outside Paris. The move comes just a year after the firm launched a competition team with the hire of partner Emmanuel Tricot from Winston & Strawn. The Brussels office will advise on competition, state aid, regulated industries such as telecoms, merger control […]
Welcome to The Passport, your regular round-up of the most important stories to come from the European legal market. In this week’s edition, we explain why hearing the names of a select group of elite firms is piquing our interest; and what can be taken away from Hogan Lovells’ Warsaw retreat. US firms are dictating […]
While deals have faltered due to the pandemic, growth in logistics and the rise of renewables offer hope of better days ahead for the region and its lawyers
Domestic firms are being challenged to make a name for themselves as international giants pull out of the CEE region. But can they hold on to talented lawyers and retain the trust of businesses that are used to dealing with big-name firms?
Fallout from the global financial crisis keeps lawyers in CEE busy. But the region’s complexity means the work is best handled by local and international firms working together The EU bailout of Greece is often cited as the pinnacle of national financial mismanagement. Less often spoken about is the situation in Central and Eastern Europe […]
Infrastructure and projects work is a core practice area for many firms operating across the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region. In theory there should plenty of work around because these countries need significant improvements to their transport, energy and public buildings. In practice, things are not quite so clear-cut. “My feeling is that if you […]
Pan-Baltics firm Ellex has sealed a merger with Estonia-based Primus in a bid to consolidate its position as the largest law firm network across the Baltics. Ellex’s Estonian member firm Ellex Raidla will merge with Primus’s Estonia arm on 1 January 2018.
Kramer Levin’s Paris office will not be included in the merger with Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) in order to focus on growth in the US. The news follows yesterday’s announcement that HSF is to merge with US law firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel to create a $2bn revenue firm that will be known as […]
Ropes & Gray has made its first hires for its nascent Paris office, hiring a private capital-focused team from Clifford Chance. Fabrice Cohen, Emmanuel Mimin and Thierry Arachtingi are set to make the move over to the US firm when it finally opens its doors in the French capital. Rumours of Ropes opening a Paris […]
Two of Linklaters’ Continental European offices are to be boosted with new partner arrivals from Freshfields and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek. Both hires join the magic circle firm’s financial regulatory practice. Marc Perrone has joined the firm in Paris from Freshfields, while Mariken van Loopik makes the move over from De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek in […]
Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison is acting for General Atlantic on its bid to acquire 100 per cent of French software company Esker. The Paul Weiss team is led by partners William Aitken-Davies and Dan Schuster-Woldan and associate Richard Bach. They were supported by French firm Bredin Prat. Aitken-Davies and Schuster-Woldan are recent joiners […]
Latham & Watkins has lost another member of its Continental European transactional team, with a leveraged finance partner joining A&O Shearman in Paris. Michel Houdayer has made the move to A&O Shearman today (16 September). He was a Latham lifer, having joined the firm in 2002 and spent almost a decade in the partnership having […]
France’s largest firm Fidal has instructed lawyers to advise it on its ongoing dispute with KPMG, as the row over the accountant’s raid of a 145-strong team earlier this year continues apace. Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier has been brought in to advise Fidal. A mediation period to resolve the dispute between Fidal and KPMG ended yesterday […]
The gap in revenue generation between firms in the UK and Germany has widened drastically in the last five years, illustrating the enduring strength of the UK legal market compared to its European competitors. According to data comparing the domestic revenue of The Lawyer’s top 100 firms with a similar ranking published by German publication […]
Gowling WLG has recruited Ashurst real estate partner Nicolas Deuerling to join its 40-strong Frankfurt office, which opened in May last year. Deuerling was a longstanding Ashurst partner, and specialises in advising national and international clients on complex real estate transactions, along with property finance and project development. He is leaving Ashurst together with his […]
Mayer Brown’s salary hike in Germany now matches magic circle firms, with bonuses for first-year lawyers introduced for the first time too. On 1 January, Mayer Brown’s starting salary in Germany will be brought to a maximum of €155,000, with first-year lawyers also now viable to receive bonuses. That privilege had previously been available to […]
German firm Ypog has opened an office in Munich, with a hire from Hengeler Mueller. Carolin Raspé has joined the commercial firm for its latest office venture. She specialises in tax and corporate crime matters, as well as compliance and investigations. Raspé spent 11 years at Hengeler Mueller in Berlin, most recently as a counsel, […]
The German independent wants to challenge its domestic rivals through international differentiation.
Whether it be ‘Dieselgate’, trucks cartels, Wirecard or Cum-Ex, the last 12 months has seen a dramatic increase in high-value German disputes. Now litigators are preparing for the next big wave of pandemic-related litigation.
Welcome to The Passport, your regular round-up of the most important stories to come from the European legal market. In this week’s edition, we take a look at the Warsaw firm doing succession right; why Norway’s Thommessen is managing lockstep carefully; and a big change takes place in the London office of an Iberian firm. […]
Do you have an idea in your mind for your firm’s perfect headcount size? The more lawyers you have under your roof, the more revenue you can generate. On the flip side, you’re also paying more salaries and the associated costs. That balancing act is never going away. Spain’s Uría Menéndez, however, can tell you […]
After years in the wilderness, the property markets of Spain and Portugal are undergoing a renaissance, creating new opportunities for lawyers
DLA Piper has announced plans to integrate Portuguese relationship firm ABBC after a six-year best friends relationship.
Garrigues partners have re-elected chairman Fernando Vives for a second five-year term at the helm of the firm.
Iberian firm Cuatrecasas Gonçalves Pereira has entered the Colombian market through an association with local firm Posse Herrera Ruiz.
Kirkland & Ellis is leading for KKR in its acquisition of a 25 per cent stake in Eni’s biofuel business. The Kirkland team is led by London corporate partners Toby Parkinson, Sara Pickersgill, Nick Appleton, Serra Tar and associates Claudia Carr, Melissa Sawyer and Shaun Boyle. They are supported by debt finance partners Sinead O’Shea, […]
Dentons has moved swiftly to name its successor as European litigation head, after its former group leader spearheaded an eight-lawyer defection to Italian firm Chiomenti. Rome-based Roberto Fabio Lipari will take the reins to lead the firm’s disputes team across Continental Europe and Central Asia. Lipari joined Dentons five years ago as a partner, having […]
As recession hits the domestic market, Italian firms have been looking abroad for growth opportunities.
In a country where political certainty has rarely been on offer, and with a new government promising radical changes to employment law, Italy’s law firms have to be adaptable
Italian heavyweight Gianni Origoni Grippo Cappelli & Partners is launching an office in Shanghai in its first international expansion for four years. The Shanghai office is Gianni Origoni’s eleventh office globally, and its second in Asia. It launched in Hong Kong in 2014 and signed a formal alliance agreement with Chinese firm Han Kun Law […]
The Unitary European Patent system aims to support innovation by cutting red tape, costs and save time by automatically validating a single patent in all EU countries that have ratified the Unified Patent Court treaty and which have at the same time adhered to the UE regulation on the European unitary patent.
Katten’s growth plans in London have prompted three of the largest Nordic firms to find a new shared office after the US firm reclaimed the space it was sub-letting to them. The Lawyer understands that Katten was sub-letting space on a long-term basis to Norway’s Thommessen, Denmark’s Kromann Reumert, Finland’s Borenius and Icelandic firm Logos […]
Thoughts and prayers for Danish firm Horten, which is contending with a reputational blow that has created unnerving times for partners. Insolvency partner Nicolai Dyhr, understood to be among the firm’s biggest billers, was sacked in June after being named in a Danish TV documentary investigating white-collar crime. Dhyr vehemently denies the allegations. Nevertheless, it […]
Roschier partners have elected Stockholm-based Johan Sidklev as the firm’s new managing partner. Sidklev will replace Helsinki-located incumbent Mikko Manner on 1 December, though tasks are now being handed over from the outgoing leader to the incoming one. Sidklev won the election unopposed, though The Lawyer understands there was a period of informally sounding out […]
Geradin Partners has kept up its blistering expansion push by opening its third office this year in Helsinki. The firm has hired two partners from Roschier – Mikko Alkio and Christian Wik. They join Geradin today, marking the office’s launch in the Finnish capital. A further four colleagues will join of various seniorities, with more expected […]
On 25 June last year, the unthinkable happened. Tragedy struck in what should have been a weekend of celebration. Two people were shot and killed at the heart of the Oslo Pride celebrations. Some of my colleagues were moving in London pub circles, some of them know people who were directly affected, and some of […]
Perhaps, on one of your more wanderlusty days, you’ve considered a move away from the City. Sometimes being packed in on a Northern line commute can cause these thoughts to drift in and, unexpectedly, you’re now thinking about what life would be like if you were a partner at one of Norway’s most prestigious firms. […]
Freshfields is representing GTLK Malta Four, a subsidiary of the ultimately Russian state owned GTLK Europe, in a claim filed in the High Court last month. GTLK Europe, which is headquartered in Ireland, was put into liquidation in May 2023 after applications from four creditors who held various contracts with the company. It is itself […]
Media and reputation firm Schillings has opened its first European office outside of the UK by launching in Dublin. The office will offer advice in crisis management, risk mitigation and “opportunity harnessing” with further service lines in “intelligence, law, communications, diplomacy and security to handle high stakes situations”. Schillings CEO David Imison said of the […]
The Irish M&A market is internationalising – the next few years there will be challengers to the establishment
On the panel: Fergus Doorly, head of corporate restructuring & insolvency, William Fry Ruairi Rynn, corporate restructuring and insolvency partner, William Fry David Baxter, head of restructuring, A&L Goodbody William Day, head of restructuring and insolvency, Arthur Cox John Donald, restructuring and insolvency partner, Arthur Cox Kathleen Garrett, finance partner, Arthur Cox Nicholas Butcher, […]
Irish lawyers involved in deals are predicting the economic fallout from the pandemic as well as Brexit will provide scope for increased activity in future
The country’s money market has seen considerable change over the past three years, but Ireland is well placed to respond to investors’ demands as firms look ahead to Brexit – and beyond. The Lawyer asked industry experts for their views on the shifting landscape
Russia’s largest transport operator, FESCO, had its chance today to block the $13.8bn dispute brought by jailed Russian businessman Ziyavudin Magomedov from going to trial in England, as the case entered its fourth day in a courtroom comprising over 50 lawyers. Magomedov, represented by litigation boutique Seladore Legal, argues that an elaborate conspiracy saw his […]
For those that stayed behind, the only clients left are linked to the Kremlin
It’s a widely accepted fact that oligarchs are a large source of income for both law firms and barristers in the City. Cases involving oligarchs can usually be divided into two larger camps: on the one hand, the ‘traditional’ old-school oligarchs who made their wealth in the final days of the former USSR. Their disputes […]
Telecoms giant Veon – formerly known as Vimpelcom – has made a new pledge to boost the offering in its three global shared services centres, The Lawyer can reveal. This effort is part of Veon in-house legal department’s major drive for efficiency and compliance. Veon set up three global shared services centres (GSS) in Moscow, […]
Sanctions and business lost to overseas jurisdictions is driving legal and technological reform in Russia, a conference in Kazan has heard
The Lawyer European Awards winner this year for the Russia, Ukraine and CIS category was Ukrainian-headquartered Integrites. The firm took home the top accolade for a targeted, international strategy which appears to be paying off with impressive growth and clients.
The choice on offer for a lawyer wishing to work in Scotland is greater than ever before – but that leaves challenges for the firms themselves, as they fight harder to keep hold of their brightest talent.
The recent news coming out of Burges Salmon that its newly qualified (NQ) salary in Scotland has been raised to £68,000 shows this is a firm that – despite its years of protestations to the contrary – is now firmly two-site, intent on building out in Edinburgh and not afraid to splosh the dosh to […]
Burges Salmon has increased its trainee and newly qualified solicitor (NQ) salaries, with what is believed to be a market-topping £68,000 in Edinburgh. In its home town of Bristol, first-year trainee pay rose from £44,000 to £47,000 as of 1 September, with second years getting a boost from £46,000 to £49,000. NQs will get £72,000, […]
This week, a Yorkshire firm is investing to meet its staff’s new demands after doubling revenue in three years, while Walker Morris employees try a new hobby.
Scottish-headquartered firm Shepherd & Wedderburn posted a 7 per cent rise in total revenue for the 2023/24 financial year, with net profit reported as having risen by 12 per cent to £30.2m. In recognition of the firm’s performance, a bonus of 5 per cent of annual salary was paid to all employees. This is the […]
Brodies has posted a 7.5 per cent rise in fee income for its financial year to 30 April, the Scottish firm’s 14th consecutive year of revenue growth. Turnover rose from £106.3m to £114.3m. The bottom line grew less significantly, with operating profit up by 1 per cent from £48.6m to £49.2m and average profit per […]
The big players in the Iberian legal market are not content with their domestic dominance and are looking abroad to increase revenue
Portuguese firm PLMJ has ended its exclusive relationship with China’s Dacheng, a year after the latter announced its landmark merger with Dentons.
“Insurance is a kind of promise: if everything goes south, I’ll be here,” Zurich Portugal general counsel Nuno Bastos claims. But insurers are taking the hit from unstable markets, an increase in regulation and unpredictable natural catastrophes and have to adapt. Quickly
Recovering Portugal is becoming a land of opportunity for Iberian firms seeking a cross-border pipeline of work
Portugal’s lawyers have been busy this year on a number of big deals, but not all have succeeded. Why?
Portuguese firm Vieira de Almeida (VdA) has hired around 20 lawyers, including six partners, from rival Miranda Correia Amendoeira & Associados, boosting its strength in oil and gas and African work. The news follows Miranda’s June announcement that the six partners, including chairman Rui Amendoeira, were quitting the firm (16 June 2015). Amendoeira is joining […]
Clifford Chance and Slaughter and May are advising on SIX Group’s acquisition of Aquis Exchange. On the sell side, Slaughters is working with Aquis on the transaction that is expected to complete in Q2 of 2025. SIX, a Swiss stock exchange group, agreed to buy Aquis, a London-headquartered equities trading company, with a cash offer […]
Switzerland is fighting off rivals as it bids to remain the jurisdiction of choice
Swiss female lawyers face many obstacles in their career paths, but they are fighting back against a system which expects them to care for children and work part-time
Entities such as the Court of Arbitration for Sport continue to provide fertile ground for Switzerland’s top firms, with boutiques increasingly also getting in on the action
This small Alpine country has long been a preferred seat for arbitration, but it needs to stand out from the likes of London, Paris and Singapore.
Switzerland’s stability in a volatile world is fuelling its economy, and local law firms are having to innovate to compete with global players The Swiss market is in good shape but that does not mean there are no challenges to face. The Lawyer asked for the opinions of some of the market’s leading figures on […]
Data business Datalogic has appointed Raffaele Zucca, formerly Europe general counsel at automotive technology company Denso, as its new global general counsel.
King & Spalding and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison are advising two online food delivery companies in one of the largest acquisitions ever made in the sector. King & Spalding advised online food ordering company Delivery Hero on its $589m purchase of Turkish food delivery company Yemeksepeti. Its London-based team was led by partner […]
Tough international competition means that diversification is the watchword in the Turkish legal market. Turkey’s promise of a fast-growing economy and its location as a gateway to the East has turned it into a coveted go-to destination for international firms. The slowing down of the economy, however, has meant that independent firms have had to […]
DLA Piper’s Turkish office has demerged financially from the firm, but the two are remaining linked with Istanbul’s Yüksel Karkın Küçük (YKK) now a ‘DLA Piper relationship firm’. YKK managing partner Cüneyt Yüksel told The Lawyer the firm had “separated from DLA, but the relationship continues as strongly as in the past”. Yüksel said this meant the firm […]
The rise of the Turkish aviation sector reflects a wider trend of prosperity The Turkish banking crisis of 2000/01 wreaked havoc on the country’s economy: its currency crashed, interest rates rocketed and tens of thousands lost their jobs. In the aftermath, however, banking sector reforms meant Turkey was far better prepared for the 2008 global […]
Bird & Bird has further expanded its horizons with the announcement of a cooperation agreement with Turkish firm BTS & Partners. The three-partner Istanbul firm focuses on technology and media, and has already worked with Bird & Bird on “a surprisingly large number of things”, according to CEO David Kerr. The agreement is the latest […]