U.S. law firms have been making big moves in London.
For years we’ve heard about them poaching talent from so-called Magic Circle firms, driving up salaries, fomenting talent wars, moving in on valuable deals, and more. But could we now be seeing them set the tone for the U.K. legal market in other ways?
On the hiring front, the trend is shifting. Poaching still goes on, but the U.K.’s elite firms aren’t the only target.
Last week, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett hired a partner who was a managing director in Blackstone’s European real estate business. Angus Lennox, who is joining the firm’s real estate team in London, is a private equity real estate attorney with more than 15 years of experience working in the space.
What makes the hire stand out, other than the fact that he wasn’t brought in from a top U.K. firm, is that he came from a big name in the private equity market. As institutional lenders and more traditional forms of debt have become less attractive, law firms are finding value in lawyers who have connections and experience in the private credit and private equity space. (Last week Simpson Thacher also hired the deputy general counsel from SVB Capital in New York.)
While strong relationships with institutional banks used to give a law firm a leg up, now the private credit markets and relationships with players like Blackstone, Apollo and SVB are equally valuable—sometimes more so. Will U.K. firms start pushing to hire from private equity firms as well?
Meanwhile, Kirkland & Ellis also made a big move in London last week...
