Pulse UK

  • November 13, 2024

    Ex-CBA Chief Sexually Exploited Law Students, BSB Says

    The English barristers regulator told a disciplinary tribunal Wednesday that Jo Sidhu KC, former chair of the Criminal Bar Association, abused his power and influence to sexually exploit young women aspiring to be lawyers.

  • November 13, 2024

    Barrister Cannot Lift Ban After Mishandling Client's Money

    A London judge has dismissed a barrister's bid to overturn an 18-month ban for mishandling £323,000 ($410,550) of client money, ruling that he was well aware of his actions and couldn't protect himself behind a corporate veil.

  • November 13, 2024

    Plan To Cut Apprentice Funding Could Hinder Diversity Efforts

    A plan by the U.K. government to remove levy funding for solicitor apprenticeships threatens to hinder efforts to make the legal sector more diverse and inclusive, just as the industry was starting to see significant progress in enhancing social mobility, experts say.

  • November 13, 2024

    Kingsley Napley Names Matt Meyer As Next Managing Partner

    Kingsley Napley LLP announced Wednesday that it has recruited a former longtime chief executive at Taylor Vinters LLP to serve as its next managing partner as it looks to continue its growth trajectory after delivering record turnover earlier this year.

  • November 13, 2024

    Shifting Market Winds Blew Kramer Levin To HSF Deal

    In the span of four years, Kramer Levin co-managing partner Howard Spilko went from "very happy" with the firm's geographical footprint to announcing a combination with a more-than-2,000-lawyer global giant. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at the increasing headwinds for smaller law firms that led to that change in position.

  • November 13, 2024

    Wales Solicitor Agrees To Quit Profession Over Stabbing

    The former senior partner of a law firm in Wales has been barred from the solicitors' profession after he was convicted by a criminal court of stabbing a director with a kitchen knife.

  • November 20, 2024

    Greenberg Traurig Hires Capital Markets Pro From Latham

    Greenberg Traurig LLP said Wednesday it has hired a capital markets expert as a shareholder in its London office from Latham & Watkins LLP, the latest departure for the U.S. legal giant.

  • November 13, 2024

    SRA Fines 2 Law Firms Over AML Failings

    The Solicitors Regulation Authority has fined two law firms for failing to take steps to mitigate the risk of being exposed to money laundering and terrorist financing, as it continues to clamp down on legal businesses that fall short on compliance.

  • November 12, 2024

    Ex-CBA Chief Jo Sidhu Loses Privacy Bid In Harassment Case

    The former chair of the Criminal Bar Association on Tuesday lost his bid to have a sexual harassment case against him heard behind closed doors, with a disciplinary tribunal ruling that the case should be held in public.

  • November 12, 2024

    Forsters, Ex-Bank Lawyer Avoid Case Of Failed Property Deal

    Forsters LLP and a former Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi lawyer have avoided being sucked into a philanthropist's £3.5 million ($4.7 million) legal battle over a collapsed property deal.

  • November 12, 2024

    Kramer Levin's Paris Office Won't Be Part Of Combo With HSF

    Herbert Smith Freehills LLP confirmed Tuesday that the Paris office of Kramer Levin will not be included in the merger between the two firms.

  • November 12, 2024

    Mishcon Revenues Hit £162M In 1st Half As Profits Grow

    Mishcon de Reya said Tuesday that the group is on track for a strong 12 months after it recorded revenues of over £160 million ($204 million) and a 13% increase in profits in the first half of its current financial year.

  • November 12, 2024

    Irwin Mitchell To Open New Office In Nottingham

    Irwin Mitchell LLP announced Tuesday that it is launching a new base in Nottingham as part of its plans to continue investing in growing its business.

  • November 12, 2024

    HSF Merger Ups Pressure On UK Firms To Find US Suitors

    The merger unveiled Monday between Herbert Smith Freehills LLP and Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP of New York is increasing pressure on U.K. firms to expand across the Pond, while also underscoring the persistent challenges of finding the ideal strategic partner for such tie-ups.

  • November 12, 2024

    Squire Patton Boggs Hires Tax Expert In Irish Expansion

    Squire Patton Boggs hired a senior associate from Eversheds Sutherland as part of building a tax strategy practice in Ireland, the firm said.

  • November 12, 2024

    BigLaw Bonus Season Starts With A Move By Milbank

    Milbank LLP announced Monday that it will hand its associates year-end bonuses ranging from $15,000 to $115,000 depending on seniority, numbers that nearly align with bonuses the firm and its peers handed out last year.

  • November 12, 2024

    DLA Piper Bolsters Restructuring Practice With Dechert Pro

    DLA Piper has hired an experienced restructuring expert from Dechert LLP to its practice in London, as the firm braces for continued global financial distress driven by geopolitical turmoil and macroeconomic headwinds.

  • November 12, 2024

    Travers Smith's Head Of Private Equity Lucie Cawood Retires

    Lucie Cawood, the former head of the private equity practice at Travers Smith LLP, has retired from its partnership — the latest high-profile loss for the firm.

  • November 11, 2024

    Cleary Promotes 26 Partners, 4 To Counsel

    Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP said Monday that it has elevated 26 lawyers to partner and four to counsel in its latest bumper round of promotions.

  • November 11, 2024

    Lawyer Can't Sue Child Abuse Inquiry Members For Bias

    A lawyer for an inquiry into Scottish child abuse has lost his bid to bring discrimination claims against the chair and chief executive of the investigation, as an employment tribunal ruled that he did not benefit from employment protections.

  • November 11, 2024

    BCLP Promotes 24 Lawyers To Partnership

    Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP named 24 new partners on Monday in one of its largest ever promotions rounds, although the total number of partners at the law firm is falling.

  • November 18, 2024

    Greenberg Traurig Adds McDermott Pro For Munich Launch

    Greenberg Traurig LLP has recruited a senior corporate lawyer from McDermott Will & Emery LLP to lead a new office it is opening in Munich to establish a new hub for private equity work in the healthcare industry.

  • November 11, 2024

    Barings Lawyers Cleared Of Misleading Clients In SRA Case

    A tribunal has dismissed a case against two senior lawyers at the consumer finance firm Barings Ltd. who were accused of misleading clients over payday loans claims and sending out letters on behalf of fictional clients, including Mickey Mouse.

  • November 11, 2024

    Herbert Smith Freehills To Merge With US-Based Kramer Levin

    Herbert Smith Freehills LLP said Monday that it is joining forces with U.S. law firm Kramer Levin to form a global legal powerhouse in a move that could signal further consolidation in the sector.

  • November 11, 2024

    Disabled Court Clerk Wins £13K Over Hybrid Work Refusal

    An employment tribunal has ordered the Ministry of Justice to pay a court clerk more than £13,500 ($17,400) for refusing her request to work from home even though she was suffering from long COVID.

Expert Analysis

  • Legal Technology Is Likely To Flourish In The UK

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    The U.K. may soon surpass the U.S. in legal technology, thanks to regulatory reform, law firm investment and an entrepreneurial environment, says Bridget Deiters of InCloudCounsel.

  • Law & Reorder: The Emergence Of The UK Legaltech Sector

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    Recent market dynamics are driving the U.K. legal industry to adopt nascent technologies in new service offerings as well as pre-existing solutions. The rise of legaltech should also lead to an increase in acquisitions by law firms striving to maintain relevance, says Jo Charles of Livingstone Partners LLP.

  • Why English Courts Are Prepared To Assist Cyber Victims

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    This year, a number of cases have illustrated how English courts are dealing with legal hurdles for cybercrime victims and making it easier to obtain a freezing order or injunction under such circumstances, says Fiona Cain of Haynes and Boone LLP.

  • Extradition To The United States: Fight Or Flight?

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    Recent extradition cases have demonstrated that individuals in the United Kingdom facing charges in the United States can either fight extradition proceedings tooth and nail, or voluntarily travel to the U.S. An approach carefully tailored to the facts of each case is required in order to best protect a requested person's interests, says Ben Isaacs of 7 Bedford Row.

  • UK Internal Investigations Are Taking An Ungainly Turn

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    The London High Court's decision in Serious Fraud Office v. Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation has a lot to say on the vitality of legal professional privilege and the conduct of internal investigations in the U.K., but its flawed logic and lack of pragmatism feel like the latest installment in SFO Director David Green's pushback against U.S.-style investigation procedures, say Matthew Herrington and Tom Best of Steptoe & Johnson LLP.

  • Once More Unto The Breach — Rehearing In Newman?

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    On Friday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York decided to seek appellate review of several aspects of the recent insider-trading decision in U.S. v. Newman and Chiasson. En banc rehearing petitions are rarely granted in any circuit, and are particularly rare in the Second Circuit, which hears the fewest number of rehearings of any circuit in the country, say Eugene Ingoglia and Gregory Morvillo of Morvillo LLP.

  • UK Tax Advisers Are Beyond Legal Advice Privilege

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    A recent judgment from the U.K. Supreme Court in one of the most significant decisions on legal advice privilege for many years. Prudential PLC v. Special Commissioner of Income Tax, which dealt a blow to tax advisers and other nonlegally qualified service providers who provide legal advice to their clients, confirmed that — consistent with the position in the U.S. — legal advice privilege only protects communications to or from a qualified lawyer, say Richard Hornshaw and Daniel Cohen of Bingham McCutchen LLP.

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