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Use your law degree to be more strategic in your career

You can become a chartered secretary and get international recognition for your role. With a background in law, you are automatically exempt from two modules of the Chartered Secretaries Qualifying Scheme (CSQS). Many companies offer to put you through CSQS, where you can apply your knowledge with practical in-house experience.

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Upcoming events

Graduate Open Evening

Would you like learn more before committing? Come to our Graduate Open Evening on 1 November 2017 and hear from company secretaries about what drew them into the role, how they qualified, what a typical day looks like and why they love what they do.

Tom Morrison Essay Prize

The Tom Morrison Essay Prize encourages new thinking and recognises original approaches to governance. Entry to the competition is only open to recent graduates with a maximum of two years’ experience in a governance role or ICSA students and other students early in their career. Competition opens – January 2018.

Want more information?

Visit the Graduate Hub and choose from one of our popular insight days, shadowing schemes, or sit in on an AGM (these are limited and available on a first come basis).

Would you like learn more before committing? Come to our Graduate Open Evening on 1 November 2017 and hear from company secretaries about what drew them into the role, how they qualified, what a typical day looks like and why they love what they do.

We are holding an open day to give you the opportunity to find out much more about Mishcon. We will give you an insight into the type of work that we do, the clients we engage with, our working culture and future plans. It’s your chance to get to know us better and understand what makes us tick but we also want to leave you with an increased level of commercial awareness about how a law firm operates, the current legal landscape and the future of the legal market. We will invite successful applicants on a rolling basis so we recommend responding as soon as possible and only Shapers need apply!

Date: Thursday, 16th November

Time: Evening event

Location: Mishcon De Reya Office, Africa House, London WC2B 6AH

Please apply online by 27 October

On 25 September, 28 apprentices embarked on the six-year programme. The cohort consists of A-Level graduates and those who have successfully completed paralegal programmes who recognise the countless benefits of doing an apprenticeship.

The fresh-faced apprentices will undertake a combination of work-based and online supervised study, together with practical and academic activities with the aim of preparing them for the new Solicitors Qualifying Exam Parts 1 and 2. 

Moreover, apprentices will complete specialist ULaw assessments, which will provide them with the opportunity to be awarded an LLB in Legal Practice and Skills (Hons). And it’s not all academic; ULaw will also work closely with employers to ensure competencies in the workplace are developed throughout the course.

Upon successful completion of the programme, apprentices will be entitled to apply to the SRA to be admitted as solicitors.

Jason O’Malley, Director of Apprenticeships at ULaw said: “We are excited to start our new apprenticeship programme for this year which we have developed in close partnership with a number of law firms and employers nationally. At ULaw we are committed to providing world-class education and training and widening access to the legal profession, so it is particularly good to see stories of continuing success, for example where former paralegal apprentices are being given the opportunity to qualify as solicitors via this new route. The employers we work with from both private practice and public sector recognise the determination and commitment required from apprentices but also the great benefits they can bring to the legal workplace. We look forward to continuing to work with them to provide a strong apprenticeship offering to suit their individual needs.”

Emma Cox, Head of HR at Fieldfisher, said: “Ensuring that we have diversity of talent is increasingly important. Our clients are from a wide range of sectors, many of which do not always recruit from traditional backgrounds or via established channels. If we are to best meet their objectives, we need to have teams advising them which are more representative of the communities in which they operate. The Government has been incredibly forward thinking in incentivising companies to take on apprentices and we would certainly urge others to embrace them as we have.”

TfL today (22 September) issued a statement confirming that Uber will not be given another private hire operator licence after the current one expires on 30 September.

TfL stated that Uber’s approach to reporting serious criminal offences and how medical certificates are obtained were among the reasons it came to the decision.

‘Uber’s approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications’, the statement read.

Uber has 21 days to appeal the decision but can continue to operate until that timeframe expires.

Hogan Lovells regulatory partner Charles Brasted is advising Uber, and has instructed Tom de la Mare QC of Blackstone Chambers.

The firm has previous history advising the company, as it acted for Uber last August on its legal challenge against new guidelines proposed by TfL. The regulations included written English tests for drivers and insurance for drivers for the entire time that their vehicle is licensed. In that matter, TfL was represented by its in-house team and instructed Martin Chamberlain QC of Brick Court Chambers.

Paul Dacam, who has since retired from the firm, led for Hogan Lovells and instructed de la Mare QC alongside Hanif Mussa of Blackstone Chambers.

Uber’s European arm has faced an eventful year so far, as the company’s European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) general counsel (GC) stepped down in June. An Uber spokesperson confirmed that Amsterdam-based Jim Callaghan had resigned as a result of ‘family reasons’.

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Four Withers apprentices will undertake the BPP Level 7 solicitor apprenticeship – a six-year course at the end of which successful candidates gain a LLB (Hons) Legal Practice.

The Trailblazers programme is supported by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department of Education as an alternative to higher education. It allows school leavers to join a law firm and ‘earn while they learn’, with the aim of qualifying as a solicitor, paralegal or chartered legal executive. Apprentices join the firm straight from school and can qualify as a solicitor through a combination of working and studying, rather than taking the traditional route of attending university followed by law school. The four lucky Withers apprentices can expect to earn a starting salary of £20,000.

Ceri Vokes, Withers training partner, said: ‘We are delighted to commence the Trailblazer programme this September, after several years of preparation and work. The majority of other law firms offering access to the solicitor Trailblazer course are doing so in their offices outside London, and we are proud to be one of the few that are offering this in the City. Legal apprenticeships are ideal for bright A-Level students who want to pursue a career which could otherwise have been impossible due to the cost of higher education.’

Economic cost of Hurricane Irma ‘could reach $300bn’ – The Guardian

Offshore wind power cheaper than new nuclear – BBC

Robot tank concept from BAE raises questions about computers controlling weapons – The Telegraph

China to ban production of petrol and diesel cars ‘in the near future’ – The Guardian

Apple suffers ‘major iPhone X leak’ – BBC

Londoners turn to ‘micro flats’ or risk being pushed out of the city – The Telegraph

British biotech behind blood tests for cancer strikes deal with German drugs giant – The Telegraph

Noel Edmonds says litigation funder will bankroll his £300m battle with Lloyds – The Guardian

Supporting the firm’s operations globally, the Newcastle operation will move to larger premises on 1 November amid plans to increase headcount in the North East from 28 to 100 over the next two to three years.

The Newcastle centre launched as a one-year trial in 2016 that saw 25 paralegal staff and three associates provide legal support work across all practice groups. The team has also trialled the use of new legal technology, as well as collecting and analysing data for research.

Martin Scott, managing partner of Norton Rose Fulbright, Europe, Middle East & Asia, said expanding the team outside of London would allow the firm ‘to trial emerging technology and working practices, including agile working, in a structured way’.

Kiran Radhakrishnan, head of the Newcastle hub, told Legal Business the firm does not plan to move any employees from London and would prefer to recruit locally. He added that the pace of the team expansion will depend on demand, which at the moment ‘is looking very good’.

‘With its universities, the local talent pool and its growing reputation for technology and innovation, Newcastle seemed the right place to establish the hub. We ran a pilot to see whether the concept worked for us and that’s proved successful: demand is rapidly increasing, so the team needs to expand.’

NRF has signed a ten-year lease with Northumberland Estates for the new 6,950 sq ft premises in Quayside and was supported in the search by Invest Newcastle, a scheme devised by Newcastle City Council to support investment and job creation in the area.

The firm has focused heavily on efficiency in recent years and it is seen as a key plank of its strategy. The drive was illustrated by plans to relocate 170 operational roles, 5% of the global workforce, to a service centre in Manila, in a move announced in May last year. It is only the latest firm to focus on removing legal costs by enhancing efficiency through legal service centres, including Allen & Overy, Herbert Smith Freehills, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Hogan Lovells, among other Global 100 rivals.

Speaking to Legal Business this summer, global chief executive Peter Martyr said: ‘Efficiency is a big trend: that is why we are investing to get a platform that will make us more efficient. Everyone is focusing on that more than ever, because clients are becoming more demanding. The overall size of the legal market has not increased, so to be competitive you have to be more efficient.’

This article first appeared on The Lex 100‘s sister publication, Legal Business.

Two partners from Simmons & Simmons and five from Nordic Euro Elite firm Hannes Snellman will join the new offices, which bring the firm’s global footprint to 66 offices in 32 countries, in what Eversheds’ co-chief executive Lee Ranson (pictured) described as a ‘key element’ of the firm’s 2020 strategy.

The Luxembourg office, opening today (6 September), will initially focus on investment fund and corporate work, while the new Russian operations – which Legal Business understands will open in the next few weeks – will be full service, with a particular emphasis on M&A, real estate, litigation, corporate crime and investigations.

‘Luxembourg and Russia are both a natural fit for us in terms of our client base, practice strength and geography,’ said Ranson.

Partners José Ignacio Pascual Gutiérrez and Viviane de Moreau d’Andoy will join the Luxembourg office from Simmons, along with five associates.

Gutiérrez specialises in fund formation work, with a focus on alternative investment funds. De Moreau d’Andoy advises international clients on matters including the corporate and regulatory aspects of the structuring and distribution of funds.

In Russia, Eversheds has acquired Hannes Snellman’s entire operation, including a team of 22 lawyers led by Victoria Goldman.

Hannes Snellman senior partner Johan Aalto said it was time for the firm to ‘hand over the reins to Eversheds Sutherland, a firm which is more than well equipped to further develop the solid practice at hand’. He added that the firm would recommend the outgoing team to clients and looked forward to ‘co-operating on joint assignments in the future as well’.

Goldman has more than 20 years of experience in M&A and real estate, nine of which was spent as Hannes Snellman’s managing partner in Russia after it entered the market in 2006 by acquiring ETL Law Offices. Partners Yury Pugach, Luke Wochensky, Anu Mattila and Mikhail Timonov will move with her, adding to Eversheds’ local litigation, corporate crime and investigation operations.

For Eversheds, this announcement follows the opening of a Düsseldorf office in August through the acquisition of Grooterhorst & Partners, giving the firm a fourth base in the country along with Munich, Berlin and Hamburg. Meanwhile in Asia, a combination with Harry Elias Partnership gave Eversheds a Singaporean office in February.

Ranson has cited international expansion as one of the main causes for a dip in legacy Eversheds’ profitability in 2016/17, with profit per equity partner falling by 2% to £726,000 against an 8% growth in revenue to £438.6m.

He told Legal Business earlier this summer: ‘Continued strategic investment in people, recruitment and, most notably, our US combination led to an anticipated slight dip in profitability. We are making sure we are investing for the future. The acquisition in Germany [of Heisse Kursawe in 2015], investment in new recruits, systems, technology and the US combination, all of that comes into play.’

This article first appeared on The Lex 100‘s sister publication, Legal Business.

Blanchett, who headed up Sedgwick’s financial institutions (FI) practice, focuses on commercial crime, fidelity, professional liability, directors’ and officers’ liability and media liability as well as other types of insurance. Novak specialises in insurance coverage disputes and Ferguson’s practice covers both domestic and international coverage matters.

Kennedys senior partner Nick Thomas said that the team hire was a substantive move for its institutional practice and would significantly raise Kennedy’s US profile. ‘In addition to complementing our US offering, the team will significantly strengthen our London market capabilities, which is crucial for international FI matters.’

Kennedys merged with CMK in May, adding 43 partners to its offering as well as five offices including New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Texas.

Its recent US investments cap off a frenetic period of international expansion for the top 50 UK insurance specialist. The London-based adviser has opened five offices in Latin America since the second half of 2016. In his time as senior partner, Thomas has overseen the firm’s growth into an international insurance player, with offices in locations including Sydney, Hong Kong and Miami.

Recently the firm has also opened offices in Russia and Denmark and formed associations in Norway, Sweden and Argentina. Closer to home, in March Kennedys hired a 24-strong casualty claims team from Hill Dickinson’s Sheffield branch, resulting in the closure of the latter’s operations in the region.

With insurance clients being among the most canny and thrifty on both sides of the Atlantic, London’s band of specialist law firms are increasingly moving to go global as a means of avoiding a race to the bottom of the value chain. With sector leader Clyde & Co already well into a highly-successful expansion programme in the US, the strategy appears to be paying off far more clearly than for larger City counterparts focused on transactional work.

This article first appeared on The Lex 100‘s sister publication, Legal Business.