Addleshaw Goddard: ETHNICITY. TALENT. LAW.
Blackstone Chambers Pupillage Webinar – Thursday 23 November
Join Blackstone Chambers for a free pupillage webinar.
You’ll listen to insights from senior barristers and former pupils about various aspects of pupillage, ranging from the application process, through mini-pupillage, interviews and the training itself, to establishing yourself in practice and experiencing life as a barrister.
Details:
Thursday, 23rd November 2023
5:00pm – 6:00pm
5.00pm – Introduction & Recruitment Process – Gemma White KC, Head of Pupillage Committee & Barrister
5.10pm – Life as a pupil – Aislinn Kelly-Lyth, New Tenant
5.20pm – Life as a barrister – Ajay Ratan, Junior Barrister
5.30pm – Q&A session – Gemma White KC, Aislinn Kelly-Lyth & Ajay Ratan
For more information and to sign up click here.
Demystifying mini-pupillages
Malcolm Glover, law student, president of Roehampton University Law Society, and aspiring barrister explains what a mini-pupillage involves and how to get the most out of the experience.
The allure of the Bar has caught your eye and has led you to seek a mini-pupillage.
A mini-pupillage usually involves directly reporting into a barrister and could include observing hearings in court, reading relevant paperwork (e.g. bundles, draft skeleton arguments and brief summaries), and demonstrating relevant legal research on a particular area of law your supervising practitioner specialises in.
Undertaking a mini-pupillage helps aspiring barristers in determining whether a career at the Bar is right for them. You‘ll be able to widen and diversify your network by forming professional relationships with experienced and junior practitioners alike.
Depending on the type of set you complete your mini–pupillage at, you may be ‘assessed’, with constructive feedback provided on a specific task performed in written or oral advocacy.
Completing a mini-pupillage demonstrates a level of assertiveness and dedication to pursuing a career at the Bar, which other experiences cannot substitute.
Who Can Apply for mini-pupillage?
Golden tickets to complete a mini-pupillage before university are scarce, with competition now more fierce than ever.
Due to the sheer amount of interest, generally chambers are interested in taking on mini pupils who are:
- Studying law at university;
- Studying for a Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL);
- Studying the Bar Practice Course (BPC); or
- Postgraduates
It’s imperative to stay organised and updated with chambers websites as eligibility, deadlines and the application processes can differ from chambers to chambers.
An Excel spreadsheet taking note of all deadlines with a short, focused list of chambers of interest is a great starting point in helping you stay on top of application deadlines!
What can you expect?
The exact structure of any mini–pupillage is difficult to foresee, as it‘s dictated by the caseload or area of law of the barrister you’re shadowing. If they’re busy, your tasks may be diverse and exciting. Alternatively, if they’re having a quieter period, it may be more challenging to find tasks you can get stuck in.
Some chambers may expect you to undertake a short assessment at the end of your mini-pupillage as a summary test of what you have learnt. Other sets may simply ask for feedback.
How many mini-pupillages should I complete?
There is no magic number. The real question is ‘how many evidential mini-pupillages should I put on my future Pupillage Gateway application?’
Hypothetically, you may seek a future pupillage in construction law. One Mini Pupillage in Construction law might be more beneficial than five in areas of law which are not relevant to the area you wish to practice in as a future pupil.
Be strategic and open minded in your approach, while resisting the urge to complete all your mini-pupillages in one practice area.
It doesn’t necessarily matter where you do your mini-pupillage; what matters is that you’ve been gaining experience. Most chambers won’t expect you to have completed a mini-pupillage at their set when you apply for pupillage, as they’re aware that they only have a finite number spaces each year.
Top Tips!
Here are some tips to keep in mind:
Make sure your application explains why you’re interested in visiting a particular set – this will show assertion in understanding the work of the chambers you are applying to.
Show enthusiasm during your mini-pupillage and re member that 55% communication is nonverbal.
Be professional at all times – you may come into close contact with clients, clerks and other Barristers while undertaking your mini-pupillage.
Don’t worry if you have limited legal knowledge – although you won’t be expected to be an expert in the area of law you aspire to practise in, doing some relevant research and reading through a chambers website or will be helpful.
Ask questions, but at the right time – barristers are notoriously busy, sometimes less is more so make sure to read the room and ask questions at an appropriate time.
Take notes on your mini-pupillage – these notes will be useful to refer to when asked in the future ‘what exactly did you do on your mini-pupillage?’.
And finally, be yourself! – there is a good reason why you have been successful in getting a mini-pupillage. There is no need to be anyone apart from yourself.
Allen & Overy suffers ‘data incident’ as ransomware group LockBit claims responsibility
Allen & Overy has confirmed that it has suffered a ‘data incident’. Posts from X user and self-described ‘threat intelligence platform for cybersecurity’ @FalconFeedsio on Wednesday 8 November suggested that cybercriminal group LockBit had targeted the firm, with a threat to release ‘all available data’ by 28 November.
‘We have experienced a data incident impacting a small number of storage servers’, said an A&O spokesperson. ‘Investigations to date have confirmed that data in our core systems, including our email and document management system, has not been affected.
‘The firm continues to operate normally with some disruption arising from steps taken to contain the incident.’
The firm claims that the incident is under control: ‘Our technical response team, working alongside an independent cybersecurity adviser, took immediate action to isolate and contain the incident. Detailed cyber forensic work continues to investigate and remediate the incident.
‘As a matter of priority, we are assessing exactly what data has been impacted, and we are informing affected clients. We appreciate that this is an important matter for our clients, and we take this very seriously. Keeping our clients’ data safe, secure, and confidential is an absolute priority.’
A&O declined to comment further. The firm did not respond to requests to confirm LockBit’s involvement.
In June, GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) issued a joint advisory alongside agencies from the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and New Zealand stating that LockBit was ‘almost certainly the most deployed ransomware strain in the UK and that it continues to present the highest ransomware threat to UK organisations.’
LockBit hit Royal Mail with a ransomware attack in January and leaked Royal Mail’s data on 23 February after Royal Mail refused to pay both an initial ransom demand of £66m and a subsequent demand for £47m. The cybercriminal group also announced that it had hit Boeing in late October. Boeing confirmed the cyberattack in early November and was re-added to LockBit’s list of victims on 7 November after disappearing from the list on 30 October, according to FalconFeeds.
The SRA in June 2022 issued a risk outlook report entitled ‘Information security and cybercrime in a new normal’. In the report, it noted that ‘increased dependence on IT’ since the Covid-19 pandemic ‘creates more opportunities for cybercriminals.’
A&O is not the first major firm to suffer from a data breach. DLA Piper was shut down by a cyberattack in 2017. And in June, ransomware group CL0P posted the names of Kirkland & Ellis, K&L Gates, and Proskauer Rose to its leak site, although none of the firms responded to requests for comment.
BCLP, meanwhile, discovered it had been hacked in late February, in a breach that exposed the personal data of more than 50,000 current and former employees of client Mondelēz International. In June, a class action suit was filed against BCLP in the Northern District of Illinois. The case remains ongoing. BCLP did not respond to requests for comment.
‘These [data breaches] are causing a tremendous amount of harm’, said Thomas Zimmerman, an attorney at Chicago-based Zimmerman Law Offices, which is bringing the class action against BCLP. ‘Clients I represent who have had data stolen have dealt with loans being opened up in their names, their credit score hijacked, mortgages opened up in their names for homes. And they’re stuck with it, you can’t change a social security number like you can open a new bank account, people suffer the consequences for years.’
There has never been a data breach group action litigated in an English court. The prospects for bringing such a claim are complicated by the fact that opt-out claims can currently only be brought in England at the Competition Appeals Tribunal (CAT). And many in the market are sceptical that a data breach claim could be adequately formulated as a competition claim.
The A&O data breach was first reported in the Financial Times.
This story first appeared on Legal Business.
Social media influencers: Social circles
Back in the spring, Legal Business asked whether a professional social media presence is now a ‘must-have’ for the modern lawyer, in a feature which also acknowledged that ‘what is trending one week can be quickly forgotten the next’.
And while the post-Covid return to the office has since gathered pace, lawyers’ love for LinkedIn shows no sign of slowing up. Autumn is of course the season when the platform comes alive with the hum of humbled and delighted lawyers posting their Legal 500 endorsements, a process which is now more compulsory than ever (not least due to the requirement to make your charitable #humblebrag donation to Save The Children – get involved if you haven’t done so yet).
However, at the same time, social media evangelists are also coming to terms with the slow demise of the site formerly known as Twitter, following its questionable rebrand as ‘X’ and Elon Musk’s trollish tinkering with a platform many once viewed as the social media site of choice for forward-thinking lawyers.
With many now falling out of love with that platform, the legal community which once coalesced around Twitter has splintered away, and while LinkedIn has become the default for many, it is perhaps harder than ever before to know where to look online for valuable legal content and community.
So with that in mind, we went back to canvass opinion from some of the people we featured in our earlier article, to ask who they follow online, with the intention of compiling a list of ‘recommended by the recommended’.
Those individuals, who feature in the following pages, are drawn from all corners of the legal profession, from solicitor-apprentices to the new president of the Law Society, and showcase a wide range of approaches to social media success, from podcasts to video, TikToks and technical content delivered with just the right amount of personality.
We’re also shining a spotlight on five lawyers who have made a professional success of social media:
We’re aware that there are plenty of stories of lawyers making a success of social media, so if you have a tale to tell, please get in touch – we’d love to hear more.
This story first appeared on Legal Business.
Applications, applications, applications
It’s that time again.
If you’re applying for winter, spring or summer vacation schemes this year, now’s the time to start. Most firms have opened their application windows and are eagerly awaiting your applications.
Here at Future Lawyers, we definitely recommend applying for vacation schemes; they’re the best way to find out about a law firm, and for them to find out about you.
You’ll still be under pressure to perform; but you’ll also have the opportunity to prove yourself over the course of one or two weeks, rather than in a stress-inducing hour-long interview.
Most vacation scheme applications close at the end of January (though deadlines vary so do check). In any case, we recommend starting your research now, especially if you’re planning on doing a few.
This is where The Legal 500 Future Lawyers vacation scheme deadline table comes in.
In one handy table, you can see all firms’ deadlines in one place, helping you to keep on top of your research, and making sure you never miss a crucial closing date.
Happy applying!
It’s a ‘yes’ from them – A&O and Shearman partners vote through landmark $3.5bn transatlantic deal
Allen & Overy (A&O) and Shearman & Sterling are set to go ahead with their transatlantic merger, after partners at both firms voted overwhelmingly in favour of the union, with support from more than 99% of votes cast at each firm.
The pair is expected to combine as A&O Shearman from May 2024 at the latest – creating ‘the first fully integrated global elite law firm’, with nearly 4,000 lawyers across 48 offices and 29 countries.
With combined revenue of roughly $3.5bn, the merged firm will sit comfortably within the top five of the LB global 100 – behind Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins and DLA Piper.
Partner voting on the combination kicked off on 28 September, and was scheduled to run until 13 October, with the firms needing to secure the approval of 75% of partners to get the deal over the line.
Announcing the move, A&O senior partner Wim Dejonghe (pictured) said: ‘This is a historic moment for both firms and our profession. We are delighted that our partners have voted so resoundingly in favour of this merger, which is a transformational step for the legal industry. We have long admired Shearman & Sterling for its outstanding reputation, talent, and client base, and we are confident that together we will create a truly exceptional global firm that will serve our clients’ needs in an increasingly complex and dynamic world.’
Shearman senior partner Adam Hakki added: ‘Our partners have recognized and welcomed this unparalleled opportunity to combine our individual market leadership and brands to serve clients as an integrated global law firm, preeminent in all our markets. A&O Shearman will be a firm unlike any other in the world, built to achieve exceptional outcomes for our clients through an intentional focus on quality, excellence, and collaboration. We are creating a new industry leader, with truly global capabilities, and we are excited for what is to come.’
The firms announced they were in merger discussions in May this year and the deal had been widely expected to go ahead, with management at both firms embarking on a series of roadshows around the world over the summer to shore up support.
The combination marks the first transatlantic merger involving a Magic Circle firm since Clifford Chance’s ill-fated union with Rogers & Wells in 2000 and comes after A&O held unsuccessful talks with O’Melveny & Myers in 2019.
Shearman, meanwhile, was engaged in talks with Hogan Lovells as recently as this year, with the pair announcing the end of discussions in March. The firm has struggled to keep pace with New York rivals in recent years. With its traditional banking client-base, it has not made the same push into private equity as its rivals, something management at the combined firm is keen to rectify.
Shearman has also been hit by partner exits around the world, including finance partners Philip Stopford and Korey Fevzi, who left in March this year to launch the English-law offering at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in London. The firm named respected litigator Adam Hakki as the senior partner successor to David Beveridge the same month.
Market reaction to the deal has been largely positive. Jomati founder Tony Williams, who was previously managing partner at CC before its US merger, commented: ‘A&O was lucky. The previous discussions with O’Melveny made partners understand how difficult getting a US deal is. The partners were more amenable to compromise on issues that, if not for that experience, might have been sticking points.’
Another commentator noted: ‘It’s been handled extremely well. Both firms have had failed merger attempts recently. Both sides understood the importance of managing communications – even simple things like who gets informed in what order. Communications strategy is crucial and has been really well handled. The whole thing was presented as a proper corporate deal.’
The deal will heap pressure on the remaining magic circle firms to come up with credible offerings of their own in the US. There has not been a significant UK/US merger since 2018, when BCLP was created. This deal came after Eversheds Sutherland was formed in 2017, while Norton Rose Fulbright happened in 2013 and Hogan Lovells in 2010.
As Williams commented: ‘It’s transformative in one key respect: it is a fundamental shift in what the top UK firms have been able to achieve in the United States.’
‘You’ve now got one more 64,000lb gorilla, with a unique capability that doesn’t really exist elsewhere’ adds a former UK firm head. ‘A&O Shearman now has a capability that the other Magic Circle firms don’t have. These things don’t change overnight – no one will be out of business all of a sudden. But over time, over around 10 years, it could be transformative. It’s like a snowball. It gathers momentum. It’s really a challenge for the [rest of the] Magic Circle.’
Maurice Allen, founder of legal consultancy LTN & Partners, argued that in addition to the direct benefits from the merger itself, the merged firm will also be a more attractive proposition for other lawyers, potentially making it easier to further build on the corporate side: ‘It’s a big leg up for clients and for recruitment. There’s no doubt A&O is more attractive now.
‘For people sitting in London, either at a US firm where they’re not enjoying life, or at a UK firm where they feel they aren’t reacting to the challenge of the US firms, A&O Shearman starts to look very attractive.’
This story first appeared on Legal Business.
Latham, Macfarlanes and TLT up for the top prize as shortlists unveiled for Legal Business Awards 2023
Latham & Watkins, Macfarlanes and TLT are among the firms competing to be named Law Firm of the Year at this year’s Legal Business Awards.
Also shortlisted in the flagship category for the awards, which will take place at Grosvenor House Hotel on 19 September, are Bird & Bird, Squire Patton Boggs and Stewarts.
The full shortlists, revealed below, will see high-calibre law firms, in-house teams and individuals competing across 30 categories at the 26th Legal Business Awards.
The finalists for the coveted In-House Team of the Year award are HSBC, Vodafone, SSE, Compass Group and Twitch.
City giants Slaughter and May, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Herbert Smith Freehills are among the firms fighting it out to be named Corporate Team of the Year, while in the Commercial Litigation category, Quinn Emanuel, Simmons & Simmons, and CMS are among those in contention.
Meanwhile, our ESG Programme of the Year award sees a host of major law firms and chambers up against each other, including DLA Piper, Keystone Law, and New Square Chambers.
This year sees a number of new categories introduced, including Barrister of the Year, Energy/Infrastructure Team of the Year, In-House/Law Firm Collaboration of the Year, Life Sciences Team of the Year, and Marketing Initiative of the Year.
The winners, which will be unveiled at the gala ceremony hosted by actor, writer, and producer Sally Phillips, are decided by an independent judging panel of senior in-house counsel.
This year’s panel comprises: Nicola Putland, GC – Data, Digital & Delivery at Lloyds Banking Group; Ruwan De Soyza, group GC and company secretary at Xplor; Alessandro Galtieri, deputy GC at Colt; Dan Guildford, GC, The Financial Times; Matthew Wilson, GC, Fremantle; Terra Potter, GC EMEA/AP, Hexcel; Clare Wardle, GC, Coca-Cola Enterprise Partners; Rosie Teo, GC & chief compliance officer, Salary Finance; Angus McBride, EVP and GC at News UK; Natalie Salunke, GC, Zilch; Lara Oyesanya, Group GC and Company Secretary, Zepz; Joy Van Cooten, Associate GC- EMEA & APAC, ACI Worldwide; Rupa Patel, GC, Awaze; Merley Okine, GC, Ebiquity; Vivienne Inmonger, Head of Legal, Risk and Compliance, McGee; Nigel Paterson, GC at Dixons Carphone; Nayeem Syed, senior legal director technology procurement at London Stock Exchange Group; and Samantha Thompson, consultant and former head of legal global M&A, Anglo American.
Major winners last year included Shoosmiths, which was named Law Firm of the Year and Travers Smith, which won two awards.
This article first appeared on Legal Business.
‘If Zoom is doing it, everybody probably needs to be’: Growing number of US law firms mandate four-days-in-office week
Lawyers adhering to a minimum of four days in the office a week policy is gaining traction among US firms, with Vinson & Elkins now joining the trend, while UK firms appear less inclined to follow suit just yet.
Vinson & Elkins announced on 9 August that it will adopt a four-day in-office schedule from 11 September, allowing the choice of remote work on either Monday or Friday, marking a change from their previous three-day hybrid policy introduced in March last year.
According to an internal memo viewed by Legal Business, the firm said it aimed to strike a balance between in-person interaction and remote work post-pandemic. However, with an increasing number of firms shifting towards a four-day model, Vinson & Elkins is concerned that remote work may hinder connectivity, yet the firm continues to endorse remote work when the need arises.
One partner at a US firm notes: ‘Zoom recently announced they’re going to bring back their people back to the office, so if Zoom is doing it, everybody probably needs to be if their business model depends on interaction.’
In a similar vein, Ropes & Gray joined the trend a week ago, while Weil announced its four-day office policy in July, following Davis Polk’s announcement a month earlier.
Ropes & Gray will require its lawyers to come into the office from Monday to Thursday with Friday being an optional remote working day, beginning on 6 November.
‘We are making this change because success in this highly competitive marketplace requires us to invest in what makes Ropes & Gray extraordinary—our culture, teamwork in furtherance of excellence for clients and our steadfast commitment to developing the best lawyers in the world,’ according to a firmwide memo sent by chair Julie Jones and managing partner David Djaha.
‘These strengths, which define and differentiate us, can only be realised to their fullest extent through in-person collaboration, learning and mentoring. Simply put, we need more people together, more often, more consistently.’
Mirroring this approach, Weil said it will require all US lawyers to come into the office four days a week, starting on 5 September, and Davis Polk will enforce a mandatory Monday to Thursday schedule for US lawyers following US Labor Day in September.
Skadden was one of the first adopters, announcing its four-days in the office model back in May, which will also take effect following US Labor Day. Skadden lawyers are expected to be in the office from Monday to Thursday, indicating a shift from their previous policy of three days of in-office attendance from Tuesday to Thursday.
Other US firms have been less clear about potential changes down the line. Legal Business understands that Kirkland & Ellis currently adopts a three-day office attendance policy, requiring lawyers in the office from Tuesday through Thursday, however the firm declined to comment on the matter.
Aymen Mahmood, partner and co-head of finance, restructuring and special situations at McDermott Will & Emery, said: ‘Firms are seeking to encourage their people to be in the office for a host of reasons, including providing the best possible training opportunities for associates, maximising best practices for firm culture and indeed increasing the likelihood that opportunistic business openings can be quickly addressed among partners.’
But interestingly, the Magic Circle firms are taking a different route. Freshfields maintains its policy of lawyers spending three days in the office a week, while Slaughter and May and Allen & Overy grant the flexibility of remote work up to 40% of the time. Similarly, Clifford Chance and Linklaters maintain a hybrid-working approach, requiring lawyers to be in the office at least 50% of the time.
Another partner at a US firm noted: ‘Magic Circle firms have always been more formal in terms of expectations from their associates. Probably what is going on is that UK firms say you need to be in three days a week, but everyone is in much more than that anyway.’
‘It’s just generally dictated by the expectations that the firm has set, the feedback of their people and the type of business it is. Certain businesses lend themselves to more remote working than others. Each business is weighing up the question: “How does attendance at the office assist our business relative to our value set, employees and the client work we have or aspire to have?”,’ said an executive at a UK firm.
Outside of the Magic Circle, other UK firms seem to be standing by a three-day week policy too. Taylor Wessing announced its hybrid remote-working policy in 2020. ‘We have reiterated that approach and it hasn’t been altered,’ says managing partner Shane Gleghorn. Using the word mandate is adopting a slightly declarative tone that doesn’t really match reality because most firms have been expecting attendance at their offices for some time. And to a large degree, they’re reinforcing the message that has pertained for a considerable period of time.’
Other firms, such as LB100 firm Fladgate, maintain a three-day-a-week office policy, albeit with more flexibility.
Managing partner Grant Gordon said: ‘It’s a recommendation though, we’re not hard and fast on it. But we’d like to see our partners and our associates and our other support staff teams in for three days. If someone comes in two days a week, but next week comes in four days, no one going is going to jump up and down and say, “are we taking a register?”. We’re happy with that for the time being.
‘I don’t know what will happen going forward, but we’re showing good growth and good productivity three days a week. If our people are happy and they’re finding ways to achieve a work-life balance and if this provides the architecture for both happier lawyers, and for more fulfilled lawyers because they can attend to everything they need to, then that’s what we’re doing.’
Over the coming months, it will be interesting to see which other firms jump on the bandwagon, and whether UK-centric firms adopt a stricter stance. Nevertheless, one executive at a UK firm said that the distinction between these firms may not be as clear cut. ‘The difficulty is that there’s so many differences between approaches which are driven by the type of culture and business that that you are, so I’m not sure it divides neatly between the US and UK, international or European firms.’
This article first appeared on Legal Business.
‘The strategy delivers’: Freshfields sees 8% revenue rise but PEP growth stalls
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has announced its 2022/23 financial results, marking a seventh consecutive year of revenue growth for the firm.
Its revenue has increased by 8% to £1.84bn from £1.7bn in the previous financial year, a similar increase to last year’s 10% rise. Freshfields is the last of the four international magic circle firms to reveal its results. However, unlike Allen & Overy and Clifford Chance, Freshfields is yet to break the £2bn barrier. In its recently released financials, A&O’s revenue increased by 8% from £1.94bn to £2.1bn, while CC achieved a revenue increase of 5% from £1.969bn to £2.062bn.
Freshfields’ profit per equity partner (PEP) has remained flat with a 1% increase to £2.09m from £2.07m last year, in contrast to last year’s solid 8% growth.
The firm has made significant investments in its workforce and operational model, including embedding cloud-based software Salesforce, making 26 new lateral appointments and 30 internal partner promotions, and launching a shared business services centre in Slovakia.
Global managing partner Rick van Aerssen told Legal Business: ‘We are happy with the strategy and the strategy delivers. We will continue on with our global growth strategy.’
‘With the waters being choppier, we think macro trends typically play to a firm like ours, where we have broad offerings and are at the complex end of the market. Where it matters most, we see people increasingly turn to us,’ he added. ‘That is true in terms of products but also where international interconnections are concerned. Take the US – we want to grow our US business, but we can also offer something to our US clients that a lot of US firms can’t offer in Asia and Europe. That is a growth driver for a firm like ours.’
Key mandates from the last financial year include advising UBS Group on its acquisition of Credit Suisse Group and advising Volkswagen and its subsidiaries on its global emissions litigation. The firm was also lead counsel defending Google in the Google digital advertising antitrust litigation and advised the independent directors of Qualtrics on the $12.5bn sale of the company.
The firm also published its second diversity and inclusion annual review. Key highlights include 48% of new partners joining the global partnership being women and doubling the number of black associates at the firm over the last two years. It has also achieved their 5% LGBTQ+ global partnership target three years ahead of schedule.
In its statement, the firm was keen to highlight its US growth ambitions, noting that over the last three years it has delivered advisory services to 70% of the 1,000 largest US corporates in the US and/or globally. It also noted that it has made 14 lateral partner appointments in the US over the last year.
Although unable to give a figure for how much of the global revenue the US offices contributed, Aerssen said: ‘It’s not growth in one area at the cost of one area, we believe in growing the business as such because there are many pockets where we think we can win work.
‘At any given time, we are looking at opportunities to grow the business, we’ve made 14 lateral partner hires in the last year in the US. We’ve always been clear that that is a key pillar of our growth strategy. We want to grow more in the US and internationally, but we don’t have a target number because it’s also a question of opportunity. What this shows is that ultimately the quality of the business is driven by the quality of our lateral hires, we’ve been very fortunate with our lateral hires that we have had such a high quality come into the firm.’
However, the US is not the only Freshfields office looking to grow. ‘London is a key market and still a growth market,’ Aerssen concluded.
This article first appeared on Legal Business