Mark Kelly: Our culture sets us apart

Interview with...

Vinson & Elkins’ Chairman talks about the ‘V&E family’ and why he believes it makes a huge difference in the firm’s ability to attract and retain talent

How would you define your firm’s culture? How important is firm culture to you? Culture is vitally important to our Firm and to me personally. We often talk about the V&E Family, which I believe is real. Our lawyers and administrative staff become part of that family when they join the firm. We have a …

Rich Gold: every administration brings to Washington its own style and cadence

Interview with...

Rich Gold featured image

Holland & Knight’s managing partner outlines issues clients need to understand regarding the current administration, and where the trend of
government investigations work might be heading

The notion of government work has risen in recent years, with general counsel realizing how critical it is – do you see this trend continuing? Yes, we do. Our country has weathered the Great Recession and now has fully emerged from those historically tough economic times. Even so, our national focus continues to be on …

Malcolm Simpson: Misconceptions don’t hold us back

Interview with...

Walker Morris’ managing partner talks about being pigeonholed as a firm, the largest professional services relocation in Leeds for almost 15 years, and how to stand apart in a crowded market

How would you define your Walker Morris’ culture? How important is firm culture to you? If I had to summarise our culture in one word it would be collaboration. By that I mean not only collaboration internally and with clients, but also with other professionals, including from other law firms. Having all our employees based …

Bridging the gap between independence and management

Interview with...

Luther’s co-managing partners, Elisabeth Lepique and Dr Sebastian Lorenz, discuss Germany’s talent war, nurturing future partners, and the challenge of managing entrepreneurial lawyers

How would you define your Luther’s culture? How important is firm culture to you? At Luther, we are living an open, teamwork-oriented, and business-driven culture with a clear focus on the needs of our clients. We also encourage an environment of continuous learning. The firm culture is very important since it holds us together and …

Brad Karp: I don’t sleep much!

Interview with...

Brad Karp explains how he finds the time to bill so many hours, run a top-level law firm and still be meet with firm clients every day

How would you define your firm’s culture? How important is firm culture to you? The Paul, Weiss culture is grounded in our shared values of professionalism, collaboration and deep mutual respect. We value transparency and collegiality, and we share a longstanding and passionate commitment to diversity, pro bono and public service. Our commitment to inclusion …

Scott Harris: no place for guarding proprietary interests

Interview with...

Hogan Lovells’ new Australia managing partner discusses client protectionism, talent mentoring, and growing a firm with client needs in mind

How would you define Hogan Lovells’ culture? How important is firm culture to you? A culture which is demonstrative of the firm’s values is critical to our success. Our clients come first, so we strive to satisfy them by achieving a deep understanding of their business, industry and needs, and by providing an excellent, responsive …

Javier Robalino: This is how the firm needs to feel, behave and believe

Interview with...

Ferrere’s managing partner in Ecuador talks about the firm’s switch to a lock-step model, the importance of culture and treating you partners as your bosses

How would you define your firm’s culture? How important is firm culture to you? Culture is of the utmost important to me. Culture is more important than work climate or work environment – they are also important but less so than culture. Culture is what bring us together, what connect us, what make us grow, …

Alan Keep on how to run an ‘integrated’ African firm

Interview with...

Alan Keep orange background

Bowmans’ managing partner talks competition in the South African market, embracing technology, providing talent with top-end work, and why he still undertakes client-facing work

How would you define your firm’s culture and how important is firm culture to you? As an integrated African firm, our culture is driven by a need to operate as one team across all of our offices – and often in countries that we do not have a presence in – to engage seamlessly with …

Taking chambers to a new level

Interview with...

Hardwicke chief executive Amanda Illing talks to John van der Luit-Drummond about the challenges facing the modern Bar, staying relevant, and inspiring the next generation of leaders

‘Many years ago, when I first started out in chambers, a male colleague said to me, “It’ll take you years to pick this up, darlin’”.’ Although patronising at the time, Hardwicke’s Amanda Illing now laughs at the memory. It might not rise to the worst example of sexism or misogyny in a clerks’ room, but …