Lawyers consider ‘virtual’ firms in response to coronavirus September 9, 2020 A growing number of lawyers are pivoting to “virtual” firms as they consider life outside of the traditional office environment due to the pandemic. There has been a seven per cent rise in the number of lawyers at virtual firms in the UK since the outbreak of coronavirus according to business advisory firm Hazlewoods. There [...]
Listed law firm DWF sees revenue jump after coronavirus chaos September 8, 2020 Listed law firm DWF said that strong trading in the first three months of the new financial year had helped offset the impact of the coronavirus. In a first quarter trading update released this morning, the firm said both revenue and earnings were “materially ahead” of where they were last year. DWF also released its [...]
15 years that changed the world of journalism and audit September 7, 2020 The world was a very different place 15 Septembers ago. Tony Blair was settling into his final term as Prime Minister after winning Labour’s third consecutive election. England’s cricketers retained the Ashes after the most thrilling series in memory. Oasis topped the singles charts for the very last time. And in September 2005, the UK [...]
UK consultants paid £100m to advise government on coronavirus August 31, 2020 Some of the UK’s largest consulting firms have reportedly been paid more than £100m to advise the government on its response to coronavirus. Delayed disclosures reveal a total of 106 contracts worth £109m have been agreed between various government departments and consulting firms such as PwC, Deloitte and McKinsey since the pandemic took hold in [...]
UK Supreme Court dismisses Huawei appeal in mobile patent clash August 26, 2020 The UK Supreme Court today unanimously dismissed appeals by China’s Huawei and ZTE in patent disputes over mobile data technology with Unwired Planet International and Conversant Wireless. The first appeal concerned an action brought by Unwired against Huawei for the infringement of five UK patents, which Unwired had acquired from Ericsson and were said to [...]
PwC grows global revenue to $43bn despite coronavirus pandemic hit August 25, 2020 Big Four firm PwC said its global revenue grew three per cent to $43bn (£32.7bn) in 2019-20, despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. PwC said during the nine months to the end of March revenue grew seven per cent, but said the coronavirus pandemic had a major impact on the remaining quarter to 30 [...]
Four in five recruitment firms expect financial hit this year from Covid-19 August 25, 2020 Four in five recruitment firms said they expect a drop in full-year income in 2020-2021 as a result of the Covid pandemic. The majority of recruitment firms forecast a 15-30 per cent drop in income compared to the previous year, the survey by HSBC’s professional services team found. HSBC UK’s head of professional services Chloe [...]
Linklaters tells lawyers they can spend half their time at home permanently August 25, 2020 Magic circle law firm Linklaters today said its lawyers could spend up to half their time out of the office on a permanent basis. The London-headquartered firm, which has more than 2,000 lawyers worldwide, said the new policy was based on its experience during the coronavirus pandemic. The majority of Linklaters lawyers are still working [...]
Top 25 law firm DAC Beachcroft seals £65m deal with HSBC and Lloyds to provide ‘firepower’ during covid downturn August 21, 2020 UK top 25 law firm DAC Beachcroft has sealed a £65m financing deal with Lloyds and HSBC to help give it the “firepower” to push through the covid-downturn. The London-headquartered law firm, which has 19 offices and more than 2,600 people around the world, said it boosted its finance facility to ensure its plans for [...]
PwC delays results over coronavirus partner pay uncertainty August 21, 2020 Big Four accountancy firm PwC UK said it is delaying its annual results by four months because the coronavirus slowdown means it is unsure of what to pay partners and what to distribute in staff bonuses. PwC normally announces its results in September but is now planning on releasing its results for the year to [...]