No Freudian slip

It has been a good week for Clifford Chance to put in a class demonstration of how the multilayered, super-successful modern law firm should operate.

First, it got the numbers right by announcing profits per equity partner had grown by 25 per cent to more than £1 million for the first time. Then it showed its socially responsible side by staging at Canary Wharf a conference on welfare reform under the title What the Government’s Freud Review means for the Private and Voluntary Sectors. Later on the same day it played the upright, progressive professionals by hosting the inaugural meeting of the Financial Services Lawyers Association. And amid all this, some of the partners and a handful of favoured guests, led by partner-at-large Michael Smyth, found time to pose on the Yellow Carpet along with other fashionable celebrities – including the cross-dressing Times contributor Grayson Perry – at the opening of the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition preview party. Yes, like Grayson, Clifford Chance truly has many outfits. And, also like Grayson, it wears them all convincingly.

Well-employed

For law students sussing out where to send their training applications, there was plenty to pore over in last week’s LawCareers.Net training and recruitment awards.

The winner of maybe the most significant award was Ashurst, which picked up Best Recruiter, Large City Firm, while Jones Day, the US firm, topped the category for the Medium City Firm. Of course, Jones Day has the global resources of a 30-office network to draw on, thereby demonstrating that, in the tussle for talent, mid-ranking English firms face enormous competition. All the more credit, then, to Speechley Bir-cham for winning the award for Best Medium-sized Trainer. And David Gold, Herbert Smith’s senior partner, will be delighted that his firm won the first Commendation for Diversity, a clear sign that his gold standard for treating people properly is being met. For more go to www.LawCareers.Net.

PROs?

The first test of any PR agency is whether it is any good at promoting itself. So full credit to Gus Sellitto for prodding away to get a mention of Byfield, his new specialist legal consultancy. Sellitto, well-known in the legal area, has teamed up with Richard Elsen, the former deputy head of the “rebuttal and attack” media team at the Labour Party, in what looks like a classic “sweet and sour combo”. Interestingly, they claim the scene-setter for their service is the Legal Services Bill and the impending transformation of the legal “profession” into legal “business”. As the recent Dickinson Dees case illustrates (the firm is not selling out after all!), there are likely to be a lot of rebuttals ahead – although I’m ready to be attacked for saying so.

Turn that light out!

Linklaters did a good job cleaning up its act during last week’s World Environment Day. There were screenings of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth, a video address to the firm by David Cheyne, the senior partner, about what climate change means to the firm and discussions about how individuals might minimise their effect on the environment. The firm is promoting a switch-off campaign that encourages people to “switch off their office lights (where applicable)”. I loved the “(where applicable)”. It’s a lesson to us all. Save the world (where applicable).

edward.fennell@yahoo.co.uk

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