US firms learn to keep their heads in London frenzy Some US firms in London are beginning to count the cost of over-eager growth, but others are still hiring like there's no tomorrow. Rufus Jones looks at how US firms are pacing themselves in Europe's financial centre
UK firms play the dating game in New York So far no top firm has followed Clifford Chance’s January 1 lead and completed a transatlantic merger. But as non-US firms in New York rapidly seek to build their US practices, behind the scenes negotiations are taking place at a frenzied pace. Tom Nicholson reports
Legal update Judith Lawless of McCann FitzGerald, Dublin, looks at the new rules governing netting and credit derivatives in Ireland
ABA delegates derail accountants' global plans US lawyers have voted overwhelmingly against plans to allow lawyers to join forces with other professionals, striking a blow against the ambitions of accountancy firms as they try to build global legal networks
Orrick Herrington and LeBoeuf Lamb gain new partners US firms Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe and LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae have hired partners to expand their public finance and banking practices respectively.
Baker & McKenzie unveils Mexican expansion Baker & McKenzie is to become the first large foreign firm to open in Guadalajara, Mexico's second largest city. The firm's fifth office in the country and 61st world-wide will have five lawyers. Edmundo Elias-Fernandez will take charge, working closely with the firm's 120 local lawyers.
SEC loses another top lawyer Debevoise & Plimpton is the latest US firm to gain at the expense of the SEC. Kenneth Berman, associate director of the SEC's Investment Management division, will join Debevoise's Washington practice as partner in August after 12 years with the commission.
Troubled internet companies bring new opportunities to strategic buyers The closure of internet companies like boo.com are creating new hunting grounds for companies seeking strategic acquisitions in the US. Richard Mason, Mitchell Presser and David Silk of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz in New York examine issues they must face
Cutting edge close up: Project Dolphin brings Gulf region closer together Steven Bryan, partner in the corporate department and member of the energy group of Simmons & Simmons explains the detail behind one of the world's largest energy projects
Comment Tony Williams, worldwide managing partner of Andersen Legal responds to the recent American Bar Association (ABA) vote blocking multi-disciplinary practices in the US and says it is time for a new perspective
Canada opens the door to new ownership of financial institutions Robert McDowell and Robert Elliott of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin, Toronto, explain the highlights of Canada's new financial legislation. Part one of a two part series looks at the new rules for ownership of banks and insurance companies
KBC's synthetic CLO breathes life into Europe's asset-backed market Cormac Kissane of Brown & Wood in London explains the structure of KBC Bank's innovative CLO transaction and looks at the consequences for the European market
EU seeks mutual recognition for insolvency procedures Leanne Tilbrook and Helen Anderson of Freshfields, London, report on new EU regulations governing insolvency proceedings and their implications for creditors
China faces up to the new challenges of securization Over the next few years, the vast scale of China's infrastructure and financing needs will give rise to increasing reliance on flexible and creative financing methods. Gao Peiji and Paul Kruger of Clifford Chance, Hong Kong, explain the obstacles facing clients for asset securitization in China
Opening China's oil reserves to the world PetroChina's March listing in Hong Kong and New York was the biggest sale of PRC oil industry assets to date. Its IPO is the latest step in a long march towards a thorough restructuring of China's oil industry. But Mark Day of White & Case, Hong Kong, asks if the industry can survive WTO
