Page 6 International Feature

gives it access to a broad network of firms outside the magic circle. For James Neish QC, senior partner of Gibraltar practice Triay Stagnetto Neish, acquiring Denton Wilde Sapte’s island practice in 2006 has enabled it to benefit from a ‘best-friend’ relationship with the City firm. TSN, whose key practice areas include corporate and commercial, gaming, shipping, property and private client has doubled in size in recent years to 10 barristers and three solicitors, plus two trainees.Neil Stowe is a partner in the corporate and securities department at Goldfarb Levy, one of the largest law firms in Israel with about 140 attorneys, a third of whom are also members of foreign bars. It engages foreign law firms for clients on a case-by-case basis. Stowe says: ‘We are always looking to expand our horizons. We find that relationships with foreign law firms not only attract work for both parties but, in many cases, create the deals.’

In the Balkans, the English law firm Harrisons was the first international firm to establish offices in Serbia and Montenegro. It remains the only English law firm there and its principal, Mark Harrison, is the only English solicitor practising in the region. He says it works closely with leading UK and US firms but does not want to be part of any formal alliances. ‘Being an English law firm with local lawyers means we don’t necessarily need a Western partner for major transactions, unlike our domestic competitors,’ he says. Al Tamimi & Company, the largest local non-affiliated law firm in the Middle East, is also keen to cooperate with more local UK firms on the basis of mutual understanding, but it too has a policy of not joining any formal associations or alliances. Managing partner Hoda Barakat says that the importance of the UK market to the firm has led it to establish a presence in London, to facilitate the workflow between the UK and other parts of Europe and Al Tamimi’s seven offices in the Gulf. Geneva-based Lalive is a 13-partner Swiss firm with private and public clients. In 2006 it established Lalive-in-Qatar LLP, making it the first continental European firm to open an office in Doha. Partner Domitille Baizeau says Lalive has developed very good relationships with a number of law firms in England, including several of the magic circle and a number of mid-size firms. ‘This is largely due to our “internationality” and our ease in understanding the needs of UK firms, their clients and the way in which UK counsel work and think,’ she says. ‘We are keen to seek more associations but on an informal basis – we have no formal system in place.’

Offshore aspirations

When it comes to the offshore jurisdictions, Ogier has offices in 11 countries covering all time zones and key financial markets. It advises clients on all aspects of Jersey, Guernsey, Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands law. Clive Chaplin, who takes over as the firm’s chairman in February 2009, says the bulk of its work in the Channel Islands comes from City firms, and it builds relationship on the basis of offering first-class service and by giving seminars to the larger firms. He says the firm prefers to open its own offices rather than form ­associations with indigenous firms in any particular jurisdiction so local firms ‘feel free to come to us without feeling they are going to one of their competitors’. Martin Hayes is one of three partners with Poveda Hayes, a general practice offering private client and business services from offices in Valencia and Javea, near Alicante, in Spain.

Hayes says: ‘The huge expat population here means there is a lot of scope for working with UK firms and we are always looking forward to building new relationships. But it’s a two-way experience – UK solicitors need help dealing with matters in Spain, while we have expat clients living here who need help over issues back in the UK.’ Growing areas include expats with construction disputes –‘many of whom have not sought ­independent legal advice before going into a transaction and have come terribly unstuck’ – and in ­family issues, such as where a couple have divorced and assets have to be split or there are ­maintenance issues; enforcement of UK judgments in Spain; or probate where someone dies with property in Spain and assets need to be ­protected. Haibin Xue (above) is managing partner of Zhonglun W&D, the first Chinese law firm with an office in London. Dual qualified as a Chinese lawyer and English solicitor.

‘There are so many international firms ­operating in China that we thought it was a good time to establish our reputation overseas as the only ­Chinese firm to offer unrestricted Chinese legal services to western

Continued on page 8