Mia Drennan: I was selling Macks in Debenhams – now I run a unicorn May 26, 2026 It took Mia Drennan 400 meetings to get her loan agency off the ground. Over 15 years later, she speaks to Ali Lyon about the recent investment that took the firm to fabled unicorn status, and what lies next. It is half-past-five on a balmy Thursday evening and in a cavernous central London office, a [...]
US law firms jostle for highest-stakes London disputes May 25, 2026 US law firms are securing some of the biggest legal disputes in London and positioning themselves at the top of the litigation food chain, according to a new report from consultancy Solomonic. Over 100 US legal outfits have “evidently established themselves as a go-to choice for the most complex, highest-value and most trial-intensive disputes in [...]
Ex-KPMG led accounting giant stalls £1bn sale May 25, 2026 One of the UK’s largest accounting firms founded by a former KPMG head has put a £1bn auction on hold despite receiving a wealth of interest from investors. Sumer, a ‘consolidator’ firm that buys majority stakes in smaller independent accounting companies, had hired advisors at boutique advisory Continuum last September to oversee a review on [...]
Lawyers say fee hikes punishes profession for regulator blunders May 21, 2026 The legal watchdog plans to raise its funding by increasing lawyer fees to address past shortfalls, but the legal profession is frustrated, arguing they are being forced to pay for the regulator’s own failures and legacy issues, writes Maria Ward-Brennan. Lawyers are not chuffed at the regulator’s plan to increase its fees in the upcoming [...]
On this day in 1940: McDonald’s is born in a strange kitchen in California May 15, 2026 On this day in 1940, Mac and Dick McDonald opened an octagonal kitchen in San Bernardino and changed food forever, writes Eliot Wilson.
Mobix Labs to Acquire U.S. Rare Earth and Critical Minerals Company Powering Defense and National Security May 14, 2026 Proposed Acquisition Would Position Mobix Labs Inside Strategic U.S. Supply Chains Powering Defense, National Security, and AI Infrastructure
Starmer serves up his best and empty platitudes May 11, 2026 If today’s relaunch-not-relaunch buys Keir Starmer any additional time in Downing Street, it will only be due to the extraordinary fecklessness of his would-be challengers, none of whom has anything significant to say about change either, says Eliot Wilson Is Sir Keir Starmer all right? There is a reason I ask. At last week’s local [...]
Burges Salmon and Wexler roll out firm-wide legal AI partnership May 11, 2026 Leading UK law firm Burges Salmon is rolling out a new company-wide partnership with legal tech startup Wexler to aid lawyers in litigation work, City AM can reveal. The Bristol-headquartered legal practice said Wexler is “a reliable option” and the firm-wide partnership follows “a successful integration” of adopting Wexler in the Dispute Resolution team in [...]
City law firms put US partner promotions in the spotlight May 7, 2026 As law firms increasingly shift their focus to the US there has been a surge in partner promos across the Atlantic – while London is becoming more selective, writes Maria Ward-Brennan. It’s that time of year when my inbox gets flooded with press releases and Companies House notifications about partner promotions at the City’s finest [...]
City watchdog eyes new laws for claimant firms accused of ‘harm’ May 6, 2026 The City watchdog has threatened enforcement action and new laws to impose “stronger compensation mechanisms” against the claims management market, including law firms that cause harm. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a fresh review of “the root causes of poor practices” across the market, as claims management companies and law firms come under [...]