Law firm highlights – June 2017

• CMS UK, Nabarro and Olswang announced the completion of their transformational merger, creating the 6th largest law firm globally by headcount. Trading as CMS, and with 70 offices across 39 countries, the new firm blends scale with an exceptional depth of sector expertise, and will create a new legal force across the Middle East and North Africa. With over 100 lawyers in the MENA region, the merger builds on the firm’s combined expertise across its core sectors, with particular focus in the Middle East on Construction, Energy, Infrastructure & Projects, Banking and Islamic Finance, Hotels and Leisure, Life Sciences & Healthcare, Education, Real Estate, and TMT. In Dubai, the team announced that it has relocated to a new office in Burj Daman in the DIFC in summer 2017. Partners John O’Connor (CMS) and Mark Rocca (legacy Nabarro) will lead the new nine-partner strong UAE practice, which over the last year has advised on a combined USD1.1 billion of regional M&A transactions. John O’Connor commented, “CMS has a wholly unique set up covering some of the most exciting growth markets in the world. By combining our unique footprint with Nabarro’s market-leading expertise across Construction and Infrastructure, and Olswang’s technology prowess, we are providing our clients with a very compelling proposition. MENA continues to be an important growth region for the firm and for our clients, and we look forward to embracing the opportunities that the merger brings.”Mark Rocca added, “This combination marks an exciting time for the firm, our staff and our clients. It brings an opportunity to add renewed momentum to our growing MENA offering, giving our clients greater access to sector specialists across our 70 offices worldwide.”CMS has six offices across MENA in Algeria, Iran, Morocco, Oman, Turkey and UAE, with associated offices in Iraq and Lebanon. CMS was the first international law firm to open an office in Iran following Implementation Day.

• Pinsent Masons has announced plans to launch its third international office in less than 12 months, with a Madrid presence that opened last month.The firm has brought together a team of six partners to develop a practice around the firm’s global sectors of advanced manufacturing and technology, financial services and infrastructure.The announcement comes within 12 months of the firm opening an energy-focused office in Dusseldorf and an energy and infrastructure-focused practice in Johannesburg. The firm also bolstered its European corporate practice last year through the acquisition of boutique firm Mayrhofer& Partner in Munich.Richard Foley, Senior Partner of Pinsent Masons, said, “Our vision is to be recognised as an international market leader in the global sectors in which we operate, and we recognise that we can only do that if we are serious about supporting our clients across key commercial centres. We have found a team in Madrid which not only exudes quality but also shares our sector-focussed vision. In particular, they share our passion for innovating for and with our clients to redefine the landscape for private practice. We are looking forward to bringing a very different type of law firm to Spain.”

• Clyde & Co has announced the completion of its network of intellectual property offices across the GCC countries with the addition of an office in Kuwait. The office, which is part of the Clyde IP Services brand, provides trade mark and patent filing capabilities. It adds to the existing network, which also spans the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries: Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE. The expansion comes at a time when the GCC has been unifying its intellectual property laws with a GCC Patent Law and a GCC Trade Mark Law. Clyde & Co is the only international law firm able to offer a trade mark and patent filing service across all six GCC countries. Rob Deans, Clyde & Co partner and head of Intellectual Property, said, “The completion of our GCC network of offices highlights our commitment to expanding our intellectual property capabilities across the Middle East region. Importantly, this coincides with the introduction of the GCC Trade Mark Law, which increases the importance of being able to provide a consistent and seamless service across the region. Our continued aim is to provide our clients with a pre-eminent service for all intellectual property matters across the Middle East region. The efficiencies of our model also enable us to lower the cost to clients of protecting IP rights in the region.” In addition to regional trade mark and patent filing capability, Clyde & Co has a full service IP practice centred on the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

• Kennedys is to merge with US insurance firm Carroll McNulty & Kull (CMK), creating a truly global insurance practice that will offer clients unrivalled coverage and expertise in all their key markets.The merger, which is targeted to be effective from June 1, brings together around 100 lawyers, including 43 partners, from CMK and over 975 lawyers from Kennedys, with additional joint staff numbering 750, creating a firm with an enhanced presence across the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The merged firm will retain the CMK name in the US in recognition of its outstanding reputation there, and will be known as Kennedys CMK. CMK’s core business is, like Kennedys, insurance – with both firms acting for global and domestic insurers, and multi-national corporations. CMK specialises in coverage and defence work including general liability, cyber risk, professional liability, medical malpractice, construction defect, property and casualty, surety and fidelity and reinsurance across all sectors, including marine, aviation and financial lines. It also has significant construction and healthcare practices, and handles commercial litigation, real estate and employment.