Addleshaw Goddard made the most sizeable move, after a recruitment drive in Manchester which saw six partners from Irwin Mitchell boost the firm’s already-sizable real estate team.

The six partners from Irwin Mitchell include outgoing head of real estate Anita Weightman, alongside Paul Barnard, Patrick Duffy, Chris Perrin, Tony Weightman and Emily Williams, and increases Addleshaw’s 2018 partner hires to 13.

Manchester real estate head Peter Kershaw said the appointments displayed a commitment to the real estate market and the growing local market. ‘Manchester has a key part to play in the ambitious strategy we have set for ourselves to service new clients and deepen some of our existing institutional relationships.’

Meanwhile in London DWF has launched a private capital team in the City with a double lateral hire. Partner Amanda Chapman and director Roger Holman both join from boutique practice Brecher.

Chapman specialises in advising high-net-worth individuals and has extensive experience in UK and cross-border succession, estate and tax planning. Meanwhile, Holman possesses over 20 years’ experience specialising in private wealth tax both in the UK and internationally.

Jon Gould, national head of private capital at DWF, said: ‘As we launch our private capital presence in the City and look to grow the practice nationally and internationally, Amanda and Roger bring technical knowledge and a strong commercial, client-focused approach that will ensure a strong start to the next phase of our growth.’

Pinsent Masons was among those to hire internationally, with Anne Henry being appointed to its Dublin office as it continues to expand its sector-focused, all-Ireland capability. Henry joins from Philip Lee with experience in commercial litigation, handling multiple disputes for some of the world’s leading energy, financial and pharmaceutical brands. She is Pinsent Masons’ fourth partner hire in Dublin.

David Isaac, head of the advanced manufacturing and technology sector group at Pinsents, said: ‘Ann is a skilled strategic litigator whose expertise in data and IP law is an excellent addition to our sector offering in Ireland.’

Elsewhere, French stalwart Gide Loyrette Nouel secured the hire of Olivier Diaz in Paris coup which sees him return after twenty years. The M&A expert has previously had stints at Linklaters and Darrois Villey Maillott Brochier before moving to Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in 2014. Diaz will now see him occupy a role to explore opportunities for growth with clients and major partner firms alike.

Paris also saw activity for Dentons and Simmons & Simmons. Dentons boosted its Paris office with an intellectual property and life sciences team from Dechert. Partner Marianne Schaffner is among those who will strengthen the firm’s presence in the French capital and the firm also enhanced its French real estate practice with the addition of Pascal Schmitz from King & Spalding. Meanwhile, Simmons & Simmons boosted its offering in France with the hire of disputes partner Guillaume-Denis Faure from Winston & Strawn.

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Latham has taken on a significant advisory role for Telenor as it agreed to sell its assets in Central and Eastern Europe to PPF Group for €2.8bn. The deal includes Telenor’s wholly-owned mobile operations in Hungary, Bulgaria, Montenegro and Serbia, and the technology service provider Telenor Common Operation. Latham fielded a team led by London partner Robbie McLaren. The key mandate will be a welcome relief for Latham, in a week where the firm was faced with fallout from Bill Voge’s shock resignation while Kirkland & Ellis passed it to became world’s highest-grossing law firm.

White & Case advised the bidder PPF Group, with a team co-lead by London partners Ken Barry and Ian Bagshaw and Prague-based partner Jan Andruško.

Meanwhile, HSF managed to liven up a quiet IPO market by winning a key role in Energean’s listing on the LSE. Head of US securities Tom O’Neil and head of ECM Charles Howarth led the advisory roles. The exploration and production company has a market capitalisation of approximately £695m and is expected to receive proceeds up of £330m. White & Case, meanwhile, was Energean’s English/US counsel.

Despite few companies announcing main market IPOs on the LSE this year, O’Neil told Legal Business: ‘Energean is yet another company with primarily a non-UK business choosing a premium listing at the London Stock Exchange. We expect to see more of this. The transaction and the issuer are very ambitious and things have started out well with the post-listing approval of its final investment decision. It is also encouraging to see growth companies like Energean choose London.’

Elsewhere, Baker McKenzie acted on a €2.1bn mandate with Chinese internet giant Tencent, as Vivendi disposed its entire 27.3% stake in famed video game publisher Ubisoft. The Baker team that advised Tencent was led by Paris corporate co-head Mattieu Grollemund and the deal will enable the conclusion of a strategic partnership for the deployment of Ubisoft licences in China. Ubisoft, meanwhile, was advised by Bredin Prat and JP Morgan by White & Case.

Finally Pinsent Masons secured a role advising Yorkshire-based polymer technology company Fenner on a cash offer by Michelin. Both London and Leeds feature in the mandate as Pinsents comprised a team led by corporate partners Andrew Black and Rob Hutchings, while Jacqui Timmins and Alan Davis led on pensions and competition matters respectively. Michelin was advised by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

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The Chicago-bred giant today (22 March) announced its results for the 2017 financial year, confirmed a 19% hike in revenues against $2.65bn the previous year. Profit per equity partner (PEP) surged nearly 15%, to $4.7m from last year’s $4.1m, making it one of the world’s most profitable law firms. Headcount rose 13.5% to 1,997 lawyers, while revenues per lawyer increased 5.2% to $1.585m.

The pace-setting performance underpinned by booming private equity and leveraged finance markets underlines a 20-year ascent that has seen the thrusting US law firm expand dramatically beyond its Illinois roots to become a potent force in New York and London.

And Kirkland has certainly made its presence felt on both sides of the Atlantic in recent months, perhaps most strikingly when it in December hired Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer private equity veteran David Higgins with a market-setting $10m package.

Other major London hires have included Linklaters’ real estate M&A rainmaker Matthew Elliott in 2015 and Freshfields’ restructuring partner Sean Lacey last May. The firm hit the headlines again in January when it enlisted Cravath, Swaine & Moore M&A star Eric Schiele in New York.

London has been one of Kirkland’s fastest-expanding offices, growing 61% since 2013 to 189 lawyers in 2017. The practice currently generates over $300m. New York headcount has increased 42% over the last five years to 503 lawyers.

Aside from private equity, Kirkland’s restructuring practice saw it advise on standout matters, including acting for Toys R Us on the Chapter 11 filing for bankruptcy of its US business in September 2017, as well as a deal with the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) that temporarily saved the company from collapse in December 2017. The firm went on this February to seal a further mandate amid the Toys R Us collapse, with restructuring partners Kon Asimacopoulos and Elaine Nolan advising Moorfields’ joint administrators Simon Thomas and Arron Kendall.

The achievement of overtaking Latham caps a remarkable rise to prominence for a thrusting institution that has long divided peers into critics of a supposed ruthless culture and the admirers of its driven panache. But critic or fan, Kirkland is increasingly impossible to ignore.

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Fletchers Solicitors is one of an increasing number of law firms offering aspiring solicitors an alternative path into the profession through apprenticeship schemes.

The six-year long legal apprenticeship enables participants to gain experience in the legal field and study for the degree qualification simultaneously, and is becoming increasingly popular amongst ambitious individuals keen to build a career in Law.

The Trailblazer Solicitor Apprenticeship is a fantastic alternative route for those who want to enter the legal industry but are dissuaded by the thought of incurring considerable student debts. In partnership with The University of Law, Fletchers offers candidates the opportunity to study for the necessary legal qualifications whilst gaining invaluable practical experience through working at the firm. Apprentices complete their education and required training years in the same amount of time as their traditional university route counterparts, and rather crucially, will be free from financial burden as tuition costs are taken care of by the firm and the government.

Ed Fletcher, CEO at Fletchers Solicitors, said: “We’ve long advocated the investment in young talent, as part of our long-term plan to ‘grow our own’ people and harness talent within the firm that fits in with our core values. I think it’s incredibly important that we encourage diversity in the law profession – not everyone can afford the burden of spending years at university so an apprenticeship is a great alternative.”

Fletchers Solicitors have been running the scheme for two years and it has been well received by participants. Bruce Wignall, a current apprentice at the firm said: “The trailblazer route gives me the chance to learn on the job whilst avoiding tuition fees. I enjoy the work/study balance and this path really works for me. I was delighted to recently receive the Business Apprentice of the Year Award and am extremely grateful to Fletchers and Southport College for the opportunities that have come my way…”

For more information about Fletchers Solicitors, visit www.fletcherssolicitors.co.uk

Launched in January 2017, Condor is a division of LB100 pacesetter Fieldfisher that offers clients a flexible package of process-efficient services. Among those on offer are contract negotiation outsourcing, contract automation and AI and robotics.

The partnership with Integreon, a long-established player in the alternative legal services sphere that has worked with firms including Allen & Overy and CMS in the past, allows Condor to significantly increase its work capacity and offer clients lower prices.

Condor chief Christopher Georgiou told Legal Business: ‘What clients want is better price efficiency and greater choice. One of the other understated things they want is trust and confidence in delivery. Integreon has a lot of history in this space, so we enhance each other’s brands.’

Georgiou also highlighted the multilingual ability that Integreon brings to the table, offering services in more than 50 languages. ‘Clients often ask us on those multijurisdictional projects what language capabilities we have’, he says.

Integreon marks the fourth partnership Condor has entered into since its inception. When the service launched last January, it announced a tie-up with eClerx, a leading Indian business process outsourcer.

In October that year, Condor expanded to South Africa, via a partnership with tech-based legal services provider Cognia Law.

Most recently, in November, Condor joined up with Donaldson Legal Consulting, a Belfast-based financial markets contract negotiation team.

The innovative piece has received considerable endorsement from Fieldfisher’s senior figures since its introduction, with managing partner Michael Chissick telling Legal Business last year that client interest in the division has been ‘phenomenal’.

Condor has grown rapidly since its launch, generating around £2m for 2017/18. According to the firm, the service has already attracted ‘six leading bank clients.’

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The new outpost, which will focus on Lewis Silkin’s core strength of employment law, is set to open on 3 April. To staff the new office it has hired employment specialist Siobhra Rush, who will join from local firm Leman Solicitors. On launch, Rush will be supported by London-based partner Sean Dempsey, with fellow City associates Catherine Hayes and David Hopper offering reinforcements when needed.

Lewis Silkin’s chair Michael Burd told Legal Business that Brexit was a factor in the firm’s decision to open in the country: ‘We have found that clients are looking for a joined-up Irish-UK service. We also have some concern about what will happen in the UK after Brexit but the real driver was client demand.’

He added: ‘We think that there is a real opportunity in the Irish market for this kind of niche firm and we are keen to capitalise on it. So far the reception has been very positive.’

For expansion-shy Lewis Silkin, opening only its second office outside of the UK is a major step, with the firm possessing offices in London, Oxford, Cardiff and Hong Kong. Burd observed: ‘We don’t see ourselves as a world behemoth.’

Pinsent Masons became the first firm to open in Ireland following the Brexit referendum in 2016, launching a three partner office in June 2017. But unlike Lewis Silkin, Pinsent Masons senior partner Richard Foley confirmed ‘it wasn’t a Brexit thing’ and that the decision was made before the UK voted to leave the EU.

Last September, Covington opened its own Dublin office, focusing on regulation, pharma and life sciences. London-based EU life sciences partner Grant Castle and technology partner Daniel Cooper were selected to oversee the new hub.

Simmons opened in Dublin a month later, with a practice initially focusing on asset management. Mason Hayes & Curran’s head of investment funds and financial regulation Fionán Breathnach was drafted in to lead Simmons’ Irish venture.

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Dentons is combining with Hamilton, Harrison & Mathews in Kenya, Mardemootoo Solicitors and Balgobin Chambers in Mauritius, Dinner Martin in the Cayman Islands, Delany Law in the Eastern Caribbean, Hanafiah Ponggawa & Partners (HPRP) in Indonesia, and Zain & Co in Malaysia. The combinations mean the firms become full voting, contributing and participating members of the Dentons group, and are expected to launch later this year subject to partner approval and meeting regulatory requirements.

The combinations will give Dentons a presence in 73 countries, and follow expansions in The Netherlands in early 2017 , Scotland in mid-2017 , and Uganda through a merger with that country’s largest law firm, Kampala Associated Advocates (KAA), in September last year kicking off a strategy to become the ‘first truly pan-African law firm’.

Dentons also expanded in Latin America last year through a strategic alliance with Brazil’s Vella Pugliese Buosi Guidoni and a combination with Gallo Barrios Pickmann in Peru, following the launch of Dentons Muñoz in Central America, Dentons López Velarde in Mexico and Dentons Cardenas & Cardenas in Colombia. It has also recently combined with firms in the South East Asia region.

Dentons said the seven new combinations would grow its offering in banking and finance, corporate, dispute resolution, real estate, tax and infrastructure.

Dentons global chief executive Elliott Portnoy commented: ‘We are growing faster in Latin America and the Caribbean – and with truly high-quality firms – in a way that no one has ever done before. Our new offices in Mauritius and Kenya complement our growing pan-African presence, coming on the heels of our expansion in neighbouring Uganda just last year. And our expansion in Indonesia and Malaysia builds on our presence in Singapore and Myanmar in the dynamic South East Asia region.’

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In a warning notice on the regulator’s website, the SRA has stipulated that NDAs would be improperly used if they sought to prevent a person from reporting misconduct to the police or other prosecution or regulatory authority.

According to the notice, the new guidelines also aim to stamp out the threat of litigation as a means of stopping people from disclosing misconduct. Specifically, the SRA has warned against using defamation proceedings as a threat ‘where such a claim is known to be unsustainable’.

While not explicitly incorporated into the SRA’s handbook, the regulator has cautioned that failure to comply with the new terms will run the risk of disciplinary action.

In a press release, the SRA has cited a ‘widespread reporting of the perception that NDAs, alongside cultural issues within some firms, are resulting in low levels of reporting of inappropriate sexual behaviour’. Between November 2015 and October 2017, the SRA received 21 complaints relating to these kinds of behaviour.

SRA chief executive Paul Philip commented: ‘The public and the profession expects solicitors to act with integrity and uphold the rule of law. And most do. NDAs have a valid use, but not for covering up serious misconduct and in some cases potential crimes.’

Baker McKenzie was most recently caught up in controversy at the beginning of this year, as it emerged it had sanctioned a partner following an allegation of sexual assault. A settlement was agreed with the junior lawyer who raised the complaint, which included confidentiality obligations on the firm and complainant.

The first connection between law firms, sexual harassment and NDAs emerged when magic circle outfit Allen & Overy (A&O) was reportedly involved in a historic incident over the Harvey Weinstein scandal.

A&O was named in an Financial Times article as brokering an NDA with Zelda Perkins, an assistant of the Hollywood producer who accused him of sexual harassment in 1998. Perkins later broke the NDA after speaking out late last year.

A&O declined to comment. Baker McKenzie was contacted for comment.

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In a deal that will create one of the world’s largest auto parts providers, Macfarlanes’ corporate partners Graham Gibb and Richard Burrows acted for Dana as it announced today (9 March) that its shareholders will get a 53% stake in GKN.

Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison’s corporate partner Tarun Stewart also acted for the Ohio-headquartered company, while Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom advised Dana’s board of directors with a team including M&A partners Stephen Arcano, Ann Beth Stebbins and Scott Hopkins.

Slaughters partners Martin Hattrell and Robert Innes acted for GKN alongside Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

Slaughters previously advised GKN on a £7.4bn takeover bid launched by British investment company Melrose earlier this year. Head of M&A Roland Turnill led the Slaughters team as GKN rejected the offer.

As part of its defence against the Melrose takeover bid, GKN announced earlier this month that it was going to split the two main parts of its business – its aerospace division and its Driveline unit, which supplies parts to about half of the world’s makers of passenger cars.

Melrose’s offer sparked a public debate with some worrying that Melrose would break up GKN to hike its value ahead of re-selling it within a few years. A cross-party group of MPs asked in a letter to business secretary Greg Clark that the bid be blocked, as the Pensions Regulator warned that the move could affect GKN’s ability to fund its pension scheme. Melrose now has about ten days to decide whether to raise its offer for GKN.

But GKN chairman Mark Turner said in a statement the combination of GKN Driveline with Dana ‘will create a US and UK-led global market leader in vehicle drive systems. The synergies between these two businesses and our complementary product portfolios make this a great deal for GKN shareholders.’

With customers including Fiat Chrysler and Volkswagen, GKN’s auto parts business generated £5.3bn in sales last year. According to the terms of the deal, GKN’s shareholders will now own around 47% of the new business, which will operate as Dana Plc, have its domicile in the UK and continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange.

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Blundell will focus on corporate criminal investigations and compliance advice, with particular emphasis on regulatory issues. Regarding the move, senior partner Charles Martin said: ‘The introduction of criminal offences across a broad spectrum of regulation affecting our corporate clients – such as bribery, the Criminal Finances Act and environmental matters – makes this area of work a really important one.’

Martin added the move for Blundell reflects a desire to provide complete specialist services on white-collar crime and develop the practice further. ‘If we could find someone outstanding in the market, it meant we could provide these needed services ourselves’.

For Eversheds Sutherland, the move means the departure of a department head who had been with the firm since 2008 and worked on high-profile investigations and proceedings brought by the Financial Services Authority and the Serious Fraud Office. He has been involved in some of most significant investigations around Libor, FX, misleading the market and foreign bribery. Zia Ullah, an experienced corporate crime lawyer, will now take over the leadership of the corporate crime and investigations group at Eversheds Sutherland.

The move extends a rare spell of transfer activity for Macfarlanes, which recently saw Bronwen Jones leave the firm after 14 years to Reed Smith.

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