Fides Weekly Update – 12th July 2019


Hello and welcome to the Fides Weekly Update, your digest of this week’s key legal trends, moves and developments from across the globe.

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This week:

 

1).  Norton Rose launches legal operations consultancy with the hire of Barclays MD

Former Barclays legal executive Stephanie Hamon has joined Norton Rose Fulbright to launch a legal operations consulting practice.

The division, which will launch in August, is part of the firm’s innovation programme NRF Transform, and will offer advice to in-house legal teams on strategic legal consulting, legal operations and legal operations delivery.

Previously Managing Director and Head of External Engagement at Barclays, Hamon joined the bank from Clifford Chance in 2015 where she was head of business development in the Hong Kong office.

She is known for transforming Barclay’s legal purchasing process, cutting the bank’s roster from 400 to 140 firms in 2016, and again to under 100 firms in 2018 before the bank phased out its legal panel process altogether.

The framework she implemented – known as ‘active relationship management’

established defined expectations against which legal advisers were assessed and pushed the use of ‘effective fee arrangements’ (EFAs) ahead of hourly rates. Alongside alternative pricing structures, law firms were also assessed on their use of innovation and progress on diversity and inclusion.

Based on this model, the new practice will operate with no hourly rates, with Hamon telling Legal Business NRF’s openness to alternative fee arrangements was one of the main factors in her decision to join the firm.

When commenting on the move, she said: ‘There is a growing need in the market for legal operations advice and there are not many people delivering it.’

‘In my view legal operations it is all that helps [GCs] run their legal department like a business. From analytics, demonstrating the value your team can bring to the company, to pricing and relationship management. Some companies already have legal ops teams but the level of maturity can be very different.’

NRF’s move into consulting is a challenge to the Big Four and other alternative legal services providers as firms look to expand their offering.

Last month, Eversheds Sutherland launched its new law offering Konexo, whilst Deloitte Legal hired Bruce Braude from BCLP as its first Chief Technology Officer earlier this week.

 

2). Movers & Shakers 

Moves

Three partners to exit Greenberg’s London office

Real estate partners Tim Webb and Emma Maher are leaving the firm for KPMG, while corporate finance partner Kate Eades is moving to KPMG’s legal services business

Kirkland UK Tax Partner Departs for Private Debt Provider ICG

Mark Ingram, who was made up to partner in 2017, will make the move in August

Jones Day Partner Leaves to Set Up Boutique Firm

Capital markets and funds partner Jonathan Bloom has left the U.S. firm’s London base to found a new three-lawyer boutique firm Avonhurst, with PwC Legal’s former head of banking and finance Laetitia Costa, and Nigel Heilpern, head of London real estate at King & Spalding until he left the firm last year

Milbank adds first new City partner of 2019 from A&O

Sarbajeet Nag, senior associate in A&O’s leveraged finance and capital markets team, is to join the London office of Milbank as a partner

Ex-Barclays Exec Stephanie Hamon Resurfaces at Norton Rose

Former Barclays legal executive Stephanie Hamon is joining Norton Rose Fulbright to launch a legal operations consulting practice for in-house teams

Greenberg Traurig Expands in Amsterdam with Norton Rose hire

Greenberg Traurig has expanded its labour and employment practice capability in Amsterdam, hiring partner Thomas Timmermans from Norton Rose Fulbright

Jones Day Makes Rare London Partner Hire

Jones Day has made a rare hire in its London office with the addition of construction litigation partner James Pickavance from Eversheds Sutherland

Baker McKenzie Picks Up Third White & Case London Partner This Year

White & Case tax partner Prabhu Narasimhan is set to make the move to Bakers to grow the firm’s corporate, banking and finance, private equity, capital markets and tax practice

 

Mergers & Alliances

Ince France Rebrands After Merger Search Frustrates

The 32-lawyer former Ince branch has offices in Paris, Le Havre and Marseille and will now be known as Stream

 

Financials

Travers Smith Joins NQ Pay War as Revenue Jumps 10%

Macfarlanes PEP Flat as Revenues Edge Up 7%

Bird & Bird Adds £24M to Top Line as PEP Growth Slows

Ashurst PEP Rockets by Nearly a Third Amid Strong Global Growth

Macfarlanes PEP stabilises after last year’s jump to £1.7m

Pinsents PEP stumbles after a year of global expansion

Pay War Reaches Mid-Market as Stephenson Harwood Raises NQ Salaries

Linklaters Rebounds With Double-Digit Profit and PEP Growth

A&O Posts 5% Rise as Magic Circle Firm Revenues Align

Ashurst rises NQ pay

 

Inclusion and Diversity

Leading lawyer ‘bullied suicidal young employee’

Half of young judges are women

 

Technology and Innovation

BLM Launches New Business Consultancy Arm

How Machines Could Help Build Legal Panels

 

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