legalweek

When Legal Disciplinary Partnerships (LDPs) came into force in March 2009 the market did not quite know whether to expect a raft of UK law firms to convert and defy their usually conservative wait-and-see approach in order to bring valued senior non-lawyers into the partnership. As it stands, just over a year down the line and the first stage of change under the Legal Services Act (LSA) 2007 has resulted in a somewhat disappointing but predictable slow drip of largely regional law firms including Mills & Reeve, Irwin Mitchell and Halliwells making the move. Other firms including Bird & Bird have considered converting and actively decided against it.

legalweek

Being a 'happiness guru' is hard work. My years as a labour lawyer battling unions was easy in comparison. So was fighting my way up the corporate ladder at Coca-Cola Enterprises. But since I started working with Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania, a world-renowned expert on the science of well-being, things have got really tough. All people want from me now is the secret to happiness.

legalweek

Some people find silver linings in life's misfortunes. Me - I tend to find dark linings even when the news seems bright and cheery. Recently, there's been a flow of upbeat stories about increased retention rates at many firms, including a number of US firms giving out offers to 100% of their summer associates, including Latham & Watkins, Ropes & Gray and Shearman & Sterling.

legalweek

Do you ever feel awkward about approaching friends for business? It turns out that a lot of people do. I find this especially true of women, who often freeze up when it comes to asking for business. They tell me that they are afraid that their friends will think they are 'using' them, and they don't want to contaminate the relationship. To all of you who are not talking to friends about business, let me tell you that bringing friends into your business world can be enriching and valuable for everyone.

legalweek

Ever wonder what laid-off male lawyers with working wives are up to these days? Alexandria Symonds gives us a hint in a recent article in The New York Observer, and although her focus isn't on lawyers per se, it's easy to see how laid-off lawyers would fit the pattern. She calls them "The Problem That Has No Job: a kind of upside-down Mad Men meets Mr Mom where wives and girlfriends are out all day making money while unemployed guys mop floors, cook dinner, and experience all the attendant ennui."

legalweek

As intellectual property lawyers, the concept behind (RED) is immediately fascinating - a brand that saves lives. It's a bold claim, but then again this is no ordinary brand. In just four years, (RED) product sales have generated over $150m (£96m) to help improve the lives of more than five million people affected by HIV in Africa. The model that generates these funds is striking in its simplicity. Iconic companies like Apple, Nike, Starbucks, Penguin and Gap produce (RED)-branded products with a portion of the profits going to fight HIV/AIDS. It's an idea that has captured the imagination of millions of consumers and received praise from Nelson Mandela and Bill Gates.

legalweek

Disability has not proved an obstacle to second-year Allen & Overy trainee Arunima Misra - in fact, it has been a useful learning experience for both her and her employers...

legalweek

"I go to the office to get away from my children." Over lunch, a senior in-house lawyer blithely makes that confession to me. A mother of two who's married to a fund manager, she says she never seriously considered giving up her full-time job. "Are you kidding?" she says. "It would drive me crazy." For all the talk about women facing work/life balance dilemmas, there's a sector of lawyers who are parents and who are giddy (or maybe just relieved) that they have demanding jobs - and who don't feel guilty about it.

legalweek

Last year, former Labour MP Alan Milburn published a cross-party report analysing social mobility in Britain. He found that our society has become more, not less, socially exclusive in recent years. The report claimed not enough was being done to encourage people from across society into the top professions. Professions like law, journalism and the media were highlighted as not representing society as a whole. Also, the informal system of work experience, so important to getting ahead in a career, was criticised as being biased towards young people whose family or friends may be able to help them access opportunities more readily.

legalweek

Freshfields associate Jonathan Lee, whose first novel ‘Who is Mr Satoshi?’ was published this month, on book readings, the Jeremy Kyle show and his fear of being perceived as pretentious....