Morning Briefing: Law firm promotes 27 Aussie lawyers

No ordinary Wednesday for 27 lawyers from Australian law firm… Global equity markets set to expand says Baker & McKenzie… India’s Bar Council in talks to open up to foreign law firms… UK lawyers begin boycott of legal aid cases…

Law firm promotes 27 Aussie lawyers
Fourteen lawyers from Australian law firm Allens are now managing associates and a further thirteen become senior associates from today. The managing associate position is part of the firm’s new career path which rewards senior associates for a combination of strong industry knowledge, experience and judgment, and is a step towards partner.

The new managing associates are: Angela Martin, Ed Martin, Chris Blane, Valeska Bloch, and Alison Beaumer in Sydney; Andrew Stirling and Liam Chambers in Brisbane; Kate Austin, Michelle Bennett, Rosannah Healy, Alexandra Pearce, Penny Alexander and Mark Williams in Melbourne; and Eve Lynch in Perth.

The new senior associates are: Aparna Nanayakkara, Catherine Li, Janis Dunnicliff, Thao Tran, Amit Jois, James Kanabar, Nick Beresford-Wylie and Tony Shaw in Sydney; and Matthew De Remer, Andrew Wilcock, Stephanie Malon, Carissa Apps and David Stewart in Melbourne.
 
Global equity markets set to expand says Baker & McKenzie
International law firm Baker & McKenzie says that it expects the global equity markets to rise by 18 per cent in the next three years and for IPO and M&A work to increase. China, Hong Kong, India and Vietnam are among the countries where expansion is forecast. The firm says that cross-border transactions will grow as companies seek opportunities in the expanding markets.
 
India’s Bar Council in talks to open up to foreign law firms
India’s Bar Council and Society of Indian Law Firms are in talks with their government with a view to opening up the country’s legal market to foreign law firms. Rajeev Kher, India’s commerce secretary, has confirmed that discussions are taking place and that a key point is that litigation will not be opened up. He told the Press Trust of India that competition is needed but will be “calibrated” and phased in over a five- to seven-year period.
 
UK lawyers begin boycott of legal aid cases
Lawyers across the UK are boycotting legal aid cases from today (Wednesday July 1st) following the announcement of an 8.75 per cent cut in fees which they say makes performing the work to the required standard uneconomical. The action started in London with representative bodies for solicitors and barristers agreeing to the boycott and other regional groups in the country have followed.