Firms report challenge of finding skilled legal professionals

Firms report challenge of finding skilled legal professionals
Seven in ten law firms or legal departments say that finding skilled legal professionals is somewhat or very challenging.

A survey of US lawyers by recruitment firm Robert Half also reveals that 43% of respondents are concerned about losing legal personnel to other job opportunities in the next six months.

"To meet rising demand for business-related legal services, law firms are hiring attorneys and paralegals with specialized expertise, such as commercial litigation and insurance defense experience," said Jamy Sullivan, executive director of Robert Half Legal. "General counsel are also expanding in-house teams to reduce their reliance on outside counsel and increase efficiencies. In particular, they are seeking legal specialists with backgrounds in corporate transactions and labor and employment law."

Litigation roles are the most likely to expand in the next six months, a third of the lawyers said, twice as many as those who said business/commercial.

International firm secures $100 million arbitration award in HK
Ropes & Gray has secured one of the largest ever arbitration awards in Hong Kong or China, almost U$100 million for client LoJack Corporation and LoJack Equipment Ireland DAC.

The award was won against a former LoJack supplier by the law firm’s litigation team in an international arbitration before the Hong Kong International Arbitration Center.

The Ropes & Gray team included Business & securities litigation partners Harvey Wolkoff and Daniel Ward, and business & securities litigation associates Aliki Sofis and Matthew Mazzotta.

Dentons partner is first from Kazakhstan to join ICC arbitration court
Aigoul Kenjebayeva, Dentons’ managing partner for Kazakhstan and Central Asia, has been appointed as member of the International Arbitration Court of the International Chamber of Commerce.

He becomes the first lawyer from Kazakhstan to appointed to the position. The decision was made at a meeting of the ICC World Council on 7 June 2017 in Nairobi, Kenya.