The Legal 500

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The Legal 500 UK 2009

...since 1988, the largest and most in-depth survey of the UK legal market

Editor's selections from The UK Legal 500...

London - Corporate and Commercial

London - Corporate and Commercial

The decline in the corporate market over the last 12 months has been swift and dramatic. What started with cracks in the US sub-prime mortgage market has exploded into one of the deepest recessions in living memory. Chronic illiquidity, unstable asset prices and lack of investor confidence conspired to burst the seemingly endless bubble of top-end transactional mandates. The collapse in September 2008 of Lehman Brothers - at the time the world’s fifth largest investment bank - was a significant tipping point, with many firms seeing dealflow dry up overnight.

The City’s beleaguered corporate teams have been forced to adapt. With premium new-money transactions thin on the ground, distressed deals have come to the fore, and a lack of conventional M&A has also seen corporate lawyers working alongside finance teams on restructurings and insolvencies. Clients are exerting pressure on pricing, and reports of ‘lowballing’ are widespread as firms attempt to keep utilisation rates high.

Against this background, our corporate rankings remain largely unchanged. The City elite - Allen & Overy LLP, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith LLP, Linklaters LLP and Slaughter and May- continue to dominate proceedings, and once again comprise the top two tiers of both Mergers and acquisitions and Equity capital markets: UK capability. However, with leveraged transactions one of the principle casualties of the credit crunch, Clifford Chance’s reliance on private equity has seen it fall back to the second tier in M&A following its promotion last year. These top firms are also increasingly dipping into the already fiercely competitive mid market.

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South West

South West

Bristol is often seen as a difficult market to crack due to the presence of top-quality, full-service firms such as Burges Salmon LLP, Osborne Clarke and TLT LLP. Many firms expect consolidation in the market due to economic uncertainties. There have been well-publicised redundancies at many of the region’s firms, with property practices hit particularly badly and many high-value deals shelved due to a lack of available leverage. Firms are increasingly seeing mandates shift into insolvency and corporate recovery and expect to experience a significant increase in dispute resolution and professional negligence claims.

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London - Finance

London - Finance

The turbulence in the financial markets in 2008 was epitomised by the historic demise of Lehman Brothers; the ramifications of this event were felt throughout the markets and caused a paralysis in the flow of credit. The effect on law firms has been widely reported, with many experiencing widespread redundancies. Firms that have coped best with the implosion in the markets have been those less regimented in their approach to finance, with the flexibility to adapt to the conditions. Against this background, the Magic Circle firms continue to lead the way, with Allen & Overy LLP, Clifford Chance and Linklaters LLP appearing in the top tier of the majority of the categories in this chapter. However, as the value of deals migrates downwards, there is increased competition in the mid-market, and firms with a strong regional base, and the ability to compete on cost have become increasingly attractive propositions to clients facing their own cost pressures.

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London - Finance

Yorkshire and the Humber

Home to the ‘Big Six’, Leeds is a closely fought market which many claim has reached saturation. However, this has not deterred a number of recent new entrants, including Ward Hadaway and DWF LLP. Distance from the capital has afforded the main regional legal centres with little protection, and the downturn continues to bite hard in Yorkshire with redundancy announcements increasingly common. The recession has already claimed its first victims, including Fox Hayes LLP, which folded at the beginning of 2009.

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London-Dispute Resolution

Given the counter-cyclical nature of dispute resolution, the current global economic downturn would seem the perfect environment for practices in this area. Certainly the number of reported enquiries has risen, and these are slowly translating into concrete instructions, but the tsunami of litigation that was predicted in some quarters has yet to arrive.

Thus far, the main beneficiaries have been those firms with strong backgrounds in banking and commodities, sectors which were the first victims of the fallout of the credit crunch and the resultant downturn. The former category is largely made up of Magic Circle and major City firms, such as Allen & Overy LLP, Clifford Chance, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, Linklaters LLP, Herbert Smith LLP, Lovells LLP, Simmons & Simmons, and Slaughter and May, all of which have excellent track records in financial services related disputes. In the latter, firms with strong experience in areas such as shipping, including Clyde & Co LLP, Ince & Co, and Holman Fenwick Willan LLP, have benefited from an uptick in disputes, thanks largely to major fluctuations in commodities prices.

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Scotland

Scotland

Edinburgh and Glasgow: The country’s transactional landscape has long been dominated by the so-called ‘Big Four‘, although the gap in turnover between the largest, although the gap in turnover between the largest, Dundas & Wilson CS LLP, and the smallest, Shepherd and Wedderburn, continues to widen. The group is completed by Maclay Murray & Spens LLP & Spens LLP and McGrigors LLP, which opened a new Manchester office in 2008.

While no legal market is immune from the impact of the credit crunch, Edinburgh’s reliance on financial services has seen it suffer more than most. The well-publicised travails of RBS and Bank of Scotland, which collectively employ 15,000 staff in Scotland’s capital and represent key sources of instructions for the country’s legal elite, has been of particular consequence. And with RBS and Bank of Scotland both becoming more London-centric following their respective part-nationalisation and acquisition by Lloyds TSB, concerns remain over the long-term significance of Scotland to each institution.

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Press releases

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to

Legal Developments in the UK

Legal Developments and updates from the leading lawyers in each jurisdiction. To contribute, send an email request to
  • Changes to the child visitor immigration rules from 1 January 2010

    From 1 January 2010, students from countries outside the European Economic Area will be able to apply to enter the UK for up to six months on an exchange or educational visit to a state-maintained school, a non-maintained special school, an independent fee-paying school or an independent non fee-paying school. They will not require entry clearance, unless they are nationals of countries who require a visa to enter the UK.
    - Penningtons Solicitors LLP
  • Introduction of biometric processing for tier 2 in-country applications  - a reminder

    Regulations extending identity cards for foreign nationals (ICFN) to skilled workers came into force on 6 January 2010. All tier 2 applications made inside the UK now involve the enrolment of the applicant's biometric information (fingerprints and photograph).
    - Penningtons Solicitors LLP
  • Pulling the plug on a television documentary:a case study

    Out of the blue, you receive a call from a broadcaster proposing to feature your company in a prime-time documentary. The broadcaster tells you that they have footage covertly filmed inside the company by a former employee, accompanied by sensational stories from the same source. After carrying out initial enquiries, you ascertain that the former employee left on bad terms, the footage is staged and the stories are, in some instances, untrue and, in others, wildly exaggerated. You must stop the broadcast. Your next two calls are to your PR or communications team and your media lawyers. These teams will work alongside each other to apply just the right amount of pressure on the broadcaster to ensure that the story is dropped. You gather your team around you and prepare as much information as possible to hand over to the media lawyers.
    - Schillings
  • Stop the press:the Reynolds defence

    Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd & ors [2001] established a new defence for libel claims in which the story is in the public interest and the publisher acted ‘responsibly’. The Reynolds defence is designed to protect serious investigative journalists acting in good faith and reporting on matters of public interest. Even where allegations are false and hugely damaging to the subject of the publication, publishers can make use of this defence. However, Reynolds has also provided a useful tool for subjects to delay, if not prevent, publication of defamatory allegations.
    - Schillings
  • Fire safety: a burning legal issue

    Heralded as the biggest overhaul of fire safety legislation in 40 years, the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order (FSO) 2005 was introduced in April 2006 with the intention of streamlining existing legislation, reducing the burden on business and improving safety by allowing fire authorities (the bodies responsible for fire brigades in each area) to concentrate on high-risk premises; all of which are laudable aims. But over three years on what’s been the reality?
    - Bond Pearce LLP
  • Terminal traps in insurance contracts

    The terms of any insurance contract can be categorised as conditions, conditions precedent, warranties, or terms delimiting the risk. The status of conditions and warranties in mainstream contract law is reversed in insurance law. Breach:
    - Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
  • Samsun Logix and developing cross-border insolvency issues

    With the ever-increasing trend towards globalisation, it is often observed that there are few businesses of reasonable size that do not trade across borders. At this difficult economic time, many are likely to have overseas suppliers, contractors, counter-parties and customers undergoing financial difficulties. For these businesses, cross-border insolvency issues are cropping up frequently. At the same time, the law is rapidly developing, with cases on cross-border insolvency issues regularly brought before the English and foreign courts.
    - Holman Fenwick Willan
  • Agreement finally reached on EU telecoms reform package

    On 5 November 2009 the European Commission announced that the European Parliament and Council of Ministers had finally reached an agreement on the issues outstanding in the reform of the EU Common Regulatory Framework for Communications (CRF). Disagreement between the European Parliament and the member states (via their position in the Council) earlier this year had threatened to significantly delay the vital reform of the CRF.
    - SJ Berwin LLP
  • Dispute resolution clauses in IT contracts

    Given the relatively frequent occurrence of disputes over contracts for the supply of software and IT services, dispute resolution provisions are an important feature. In the recent case of Ericsson AB v Eads Defence and Security Systems Ltd [2009], the High Court had an opportunity to consider such provisions and their relationship with rights of termination and remedies under the contract.
    - SJ Berwin LLP
  • Under review: current consultations and market studies

    THE EU and UK competition authorities are carrying out several consultations on revised legislation and guidance, as well as a number of market studies.
    - Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP

Press releases

The latest news direct from law firms. If you would like to submit press releases for your firm, send an email request to
  • Three new partners and shareholders in Andreas Neocleous & Co LLC

    We are pleased to announce the election of three new partners and shareholders in Andreas Neocleous & Co LLC with effect from 1 January 2010
    Andreas Neocleous & Co
  • Salans Advises Renaissance-Amstar JV on €60m financing of green shopping complex in Russia

    International law firm Salans has advised SibStroyInvest, a joint venture between Renaissance, one of the leading shopping mall development companies, and Amstar Global Partners, a private equity real estate fund active in emerging markets including Russia, on a €60m debt financing consisting of a €40m senior loan from the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development and UniCredit Bank Austria as 50% participant and €20m subordinate loan from the EBRD for the new Aura Shopping Centre in the city centre of Novosibirsk, Russia.
    Salans
  • Ogier to offer Guernsey and Jersey legal and fiduciary services in Asia

    Ogier, one of the leading offshore legal and fiduciary firms, has announced plans to offer Guernsey and Jersey services in Asia. In May, Guernsey and Jersey lawyers will be relocating to the firm’s Hong Kong office, where the firm has an established BVI and Cayman legal practice. This latest move comes in response to increased client demand for Channel Islands legal and fiduciary services in the Asian time zone. This is yet another first for Ogier as it will be the first time that Guernsey and Jersey lawyers will operate in this region.
    Ogier
  • Hassans ‘treble’ called to the Gibraltar Bar

    Hassans is delighted to announce that three associates (pictured from left to right, Lizanne Noguera, Grahame Jackson and Joelle Hernandez) were called to the Gibraltar Bar/ Admitted to the Role of Solicitors last week.
    Hassans
  • Mourant and Ozannes to merge creating offshore law firm leader

    Mourant du Feu & Jeune and Ozannes, two of the leading law firms in the Channel Islands, have announced their intention to merge.
    Mourant du Feu & Jeune
  • Hengeler Mueller advises AudioNova on proposed acquisition of GEERS Group

    AudioNova International - the hearing aid retail subsidiary of the Dutch investment company HAL Investments - and shareholders of GEERS Hörakustik have reached an agreement in principle on the acquisition by AudioNova of a 75% stake in GEERS, the Dortmund-based hearing aid retailer.
    Hengeler Mueller
  • Sarrau Thomas Couderc a conseillé Air Liquide dans le cadre de l’acquisition de DinnoSanté

    Paris, le 3 février 2010. Le cabinet Sarrau Thomas Couderc a conseillé Air Liquide, 1er acteur européen des soins à domicile, dans le cadre de l’acquisition de la société DinnoSanté entreprise spécialisée dans les prestations médico-techniques pour le diabète.
    Sarrau Thomas Couderc
  • Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen Assists Ford in a New Complex Transaction

    Bucharest, January 21st - Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen (NNDKP) provided assistance to Ford with respect to the negotiation and conclusion of the guarantee agreement and of the movable and immovable security agreements for the purpose of securing a EUR 320 million guarantee from the Romanian state.
    Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen
  • A first on the Romanian insolvency market

    Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen lays the foundation for a permanent collaboration with Casa de Insolventa Transilvania
    Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen
  • New Partners at AFR Advocates

    AFR Advocates has appointed two new partners, Advocates Sara Mallett and Simon Geall
    AFR Advocates