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Reuters
04-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Law firms Kramer Levin and Herbert Smith Freehills approve merger
April 4 (Reuters) - U.S. law firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel and global legal giant Herbert Smith Freehills said in a joint statement on Friday that their partners voted to approve a merger, creating a 2,700-lawyer firm. The deal is expected to take effect on June 1. The firms said the combination will create a top 20 firm globally, with over $2 billion in revenue and 26 offices. The two firms had announced plans to merge in November. The combined firm will be called Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer. Kramer Levin has offices in New York, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. The firm had nearly 340 lawyers and generated more than $435 million in total revenue in 2023, according to figures reported by the American Lawyer. Herbert Smith Freehills is the product of a 2012 merger between London-founded Herbert Smith and Australian law firm Freehills. It has more than 2,400 lawyers in 23 offices globally, with New York as its sole U.S. outpost, according to its website. The firm generated more than $1.6 billion in revenue in 2023, the American Lawyer reported. More than 50 lawyers from Kramer Levin's Paris office, which was not slated to be part of the merger, joined Morgan, Lewis & Bockius at the beginning of the year. Paul Schoeman and Howard Spilko, co-managing partners of New York-founded Kramer Levin, in a Friday statement said combining with HSF "enables us to achieve our shared vision and potential for strategic growth in the U.S." Law firms with roots in the U.K. have long sought growth in the U.S. legal market, including through mergers and partner hires in major U.S. cities. London-founded Allen & Overy and New York's Shearman & Sterling last year completed a transatlantic merger to create A&O Shearman, which has nearly 4,000 lawyers globally.
Reuters
17-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Law firm Cleary buys legal tech company in AI bid
March 17 (Reuters) - Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has acquired a legal technology company, a rare move as large law firms race to invest in generative artificial intelligence. Cleary acquired Springbok AI, a London-founded consultancy and company that develops technology products for lawyers, and that has previously partnered with other law firms. New York-founded Cleary said the addition of Springbok's team will help the firm build its own AI tools. Springbok and Cleary did not disclose the deal's financial terms. Artificial intelligence has captured the attention of law firms and the legal industry broadly, with promises to speed up tasks and change the way that lawyers work. Sixty-three percent of lawyers surveyed by Reuters' parent company Thomson Reuters last year said they have used AI for work, and 12% said they use it regularly. Thomson Reuters also markets AI tools for lawyers. Cleary managing partner Michael Gerstenzang said in a statement that the deal "immediately enables us to create custom AI-powered solutions — something that sets us apart from many of our competitors." It is not common for law firms to acquire technology companies, legal industry consultants said, with many instead contracting with outside vendors and working to build their own internal AI capabilities. "It's extremely rare" for law firms to make technology company acquisitions, said Joe Borstein, a partner at Baretz+Brunelle and co-founder of legal technology accelerator LexFusion. Law firms generally "don't have a vision of what they can do with embedded technology," he said. Cleary as part of the deal is bringing on Springbok AI's co-founder and CEO Victoria Albrecht and 10 data scientists and AI engineers who will form a new team at the firm. "We are bypassing the time that it would take to build this team by hand," Ilona Logvinova, director of practice innovation at Cleary, told Reuters. Legal experts said law firms have faced challenges attracting talent to create their own internal technology tools. "Building data science and AI teams in law firms is not easy," said Daniel Linna, director of law and technology initiatives at Northwestern University's law and engineering schools. Logvinova, who joined Cleary about a year ago from McKinsey, said the new team will focus on building AI for the firm's internal use to meet client needs. The firm also has a technology subsidiary, called ClearyX that works on projects directly with clients.
Reuters
04-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Litigation, patent leaders leave law firm Weil in latest exits
March 3 (Reuters) - Rival law firms announced the hires of five partners from Weil, Gotshal & Manges on Monday, including two practice leaders, extending a string of departures from Weil since November. The latest exits include the co-chair of Weil's global litigation department, Jonathan Polkes, who is joining White & Case with two other partners. Weil's patent litigation and life sciences practice leader, Edward Reines, is joining Jones Day with another partner. The departures come after Latham & Watkins and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison separately added practice leaders from Weil in November. Restructuring co-chair Ray Schrock joined Latham, while global litigation and patent litigation leaders Elizabeth Stotland Weiswasser and Anish Desai joined Paul Weiss. In a statement to Reuters, Weil executive partner Barry Wolf said the firm has hired 26 lateral partners in the past 12 months. That includes Sunny Singh, a restructuring group leader at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett who rejoined Weil in December, and Francis Dales, a Los Angeles-based private equity partner from Kirkland & Ellis whose hiring Weil announced Monday. "The firm will continue to focus on strategic growth and attracting the top talent in an increasingly competitive lateral marketplace," Wolf said in a statement. New York-founded, 1,100-lawyer Weil said in February it was reorganizing its governance structure to maximize its "continued, long-term success within a rapidly changing legal marketplace." In addition to an executive partner, the firm now also has two managing partners and a six-person global leadership and strategy committee.
Los Angeles Times
01-03-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
The best places to eat and drink this month, according to our food writers
Clockwise from top left: dumplings from Good Alley, pasta from Marea, an ice cream sundae from Liu's Creamery, a sandwich from Lodge Bread and a breakfast plate from Clark Street March 1, 2025 3 AM PT It's awards season and our restaurant scene deserves recognition. Weeks of catastrophic wildfires were particularly devastating to local restaurants and food businesses, with many damaged or destroyed and contending with loss of business and smaller staffs as a result. But those challenges haven't discouraged chefs and restaurateurs from stepping up to provide continuous aid to those affected, including free community meals, fundraisers for wildfire relief and initiatives to help displaced fire victims replace home kitchen equipment. And new spots continue to open, keeping our dining scene as fresh and exciting as ever. In Koreatown, a Hong Kong-inspired cafe launched a small-batch creamery next door. In downtown L.A., new vendors are switching things up at Smorgasburg L.A.'s weekly market. Recent debuts also include a pair of New York-founded restaurants landing in splashy West Coast digs and the expansion of a handful of locally renowned pastry shops. If you want to stick to tried-and-true staples, you can't go wrong with a family-owned chicken pot pie institution, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year, or San Gabriel Valley spots specializing in rou jia mo, the world's oldest sandwich, which hails from the Shaanxi province in China. Here are 25 places to add to your dining schedule this month, including a vegan Filipino bakery in Long Beach, budget-friendly charcoal-grilled skewers in Torrance and a new seafood restaurant on Melrose. No matching places! Try changing or resetting your filters Showing Places Koreatown Ice cream $ The team behind perennially popular Liu's Cafe has another hit with Liu's Creamery next door. The small-batch creamery is overseen by pastry chef Isabell Manibusan, and the menu includes a seasonal sorbet (currently with pear and ginger) and Philadelphia-style rolled ice cream modeled after popular Asian desserts and flavor profiles, including a pineapple cake sundae and the Night Market special with Taiwan milk ice cream, candied-sesame peanut powder, house cilantro oil and fresh cilantro. Customers can also build their own sundaes with house-made toppings including granola, cured egg yolk, chile crisp and butter cookie crumbles. Read about the new creamery from Long Hospitality. Route Details Beverly Hills Bakery $ The Middle Eastern-inspired bakery has expanded to a new location in Beverly Hills, offering a full espresso program, toasts, loafs, Jerusalem bagels, sandwiches, salads and pastries, plus market items including hummus, tuna salad and dough starter. A Pasadena location is expected to open by the end of the year. Read about the new bakery in Beverly Hills. Route Details Arcadia American $ Juan Valerio Garcia took over Moffett's Family Restaurant & Chicken Pie Shoppe in 2023 after working at the restaurant for decades, first as a dishwasher and eventually a cook. The Arcadia diner will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year and its nostalgic spirit remains the same since Garcia and his family took the reins. The famed chicken pot pie is still rich with gravy, but now diners can choose between white or dark meat, or order pies filled with turkey or tri-tip and beef gravy, all served alongside whipped potatoes and steamed vegetables. Daily specials have been added, ranging from meatloaf on Monday to baby back ribs on Saturday. Columnist Jenn Harris says the restaurant is just as comforting as when she went during her childhood. Read about the comforting pot pies at Moffett's. Route 1409 S. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia, California 91007 Route Details Harbor Gateway Bakery $ After opening a pop-up bakery in Noga, Israel, partners Lee Begim and Avi Sabag moved to Los Angeles, where Begim's family lived, six months after Hamas militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. The couple planned on opening a restaurant, but much like their short-lived bakery in Israel, those plans didn't pan out. In September, Begim and Sabag were able to secure the use of a production company and their Noga Bread pop-up has found a semipermanent home at the Enclave in Torrance, where you'll find fresh focaccia topped with pesto, whipped ricotta and caramelized leeks; date-caramel sticky buns; lamb mergeuz-filled croissants and a host of rotating breads and pastries offered every Wednesday and Saturday. A forthcoming bakery and cafe is set to open in downtown San Pedro later this year. Read about the twice-weekly bakery pop-up in Torrance. Route Details Chinese American $$ Columnist Jenn Harris reviews one of the most ambitious reopenings in the San Gabriel Valley with Panda Inn, from Andrew Cherng and his father, chef Ming-Tsai Cherng, who first opened the Panda Inn on Foothill Boulevard in 1973. The new digs feature an upscale dining room, private rooms, a full bar and sushi bar, but the Chinese American menu feels nostalgic with dishes such as orange chicken and beef and broccoli, plus new dishes from executive chef Aiguo Yang that bridge influence across Yangzhou, China; Taipei, Taiwan; and Yokohama, Japan. Harris suggests focusing on one aspect of the restaurant's expansive menu — either the Yangzhou specialties, sushi or Chinese American staples — for best results. Read about the recently renovated Panda Inn. Route Details Long Beach Filipino Vegan Bakery $ After years of pop-ups, the Filipino-influenced vegan bakery from partners Kym Estrada and Arvin Torres has landed in a permanent space along Long Beach's 4th Street corridor, serving classic buko pie, pandesal, bitsu-bitsu and ensaymadas, as well as unique creations including ube pop-tarts and pandan cinnamon buns, plus coffee sourced from the Philippines by Los Alamitos-based Teofilo. Just down the street from artisanal panadería Gusto Bread, San & Wolves regularly sells out of by the end of the day. Read about Long Beach's new vegan bakery. Route Details Downtown L.A. Eclectic $$ By Danielle Dorsey A host of new vendors joined the lineup at Smorgasburg L.A. for 2025 and will pop up at the free open-air market held at the Row DTLA every Sunday this year, including a boba stand that blends Taiwanese and Chinese bubble tea with Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Indo-Fijian ingredients; Back Yard Jerk for Caribbean staples; withBee, offering cuisines that span West African, the Caribbean and Southern cuisines; and Filipino barbecue pop-up Full Send BBQ. Read about the 2025 Smorgasburg vendors. Route Details Mexican $ By Danielle Dorsey In the semirural community of Muscoy, tucked behind an auto body shop, is a taquería that boasts a specialty from Mexico's Laguna region. The stand from Francisco Salinas and Vanessa Sánchez serves cabrito, or spit-roasted baby goat, in soft tacos, grilled flautas or consomé, as well as an offal sausage with baby goat organs called machitos that are also roasted on the spike. Food editor Daniel Hernandez discovered the stand as part of his investigation into Southern California's pararetes culture, which brings the traditions of Western Mexico to rural pockets with raw goat's milk spiked with cane sugar alcohol and other ingredients. The taco stand is approximately 90 minutes outside of L.A. and regularly sells out by mid-morning. Read about the cabrito and machitos specialist in Muscoy. Route Details Culver City Mediterranean $$ Celebrity chef and humanitarian José Andrés has brought a new location of his long-running Washington, D.C., restaurant to the Shay Hotel in Culver City. Lobby-level Zaytinya serves an array of mezze and large-format plates that draw inspiration from Lebanese, Greek and Turkish cuisines, including spice-rubbed lamb leg kebabs and bone marrow kibbeh, with a full bar available, including Mediterranean wines. On the rooftop and adjacent to the pool, you'll find Butterfly, modeled after Andrés' D.C. restaurant Oyamel with an L.A.-inspired menu featuring queso fundido, tacos, ceviche and salads, plus house cocktails such as the signature Salt Air Margarita. Read about José Andrés' new Culver City restaurant and rooftop bar. Route Details Get our weekly Tasting Notes newsletter for reviews, news and more. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
Reuters
24-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Ex-DOJ criminal division chief Argentieri joins law firm Cravath
Feb 24 (Reuters) - Nicole Argentieri, the former head of the U.S. Department of Justice's criminal division during the Biden administration, is joining Cravath, Swaine & Moore as a partner, the law firm said on Monday. Argentieri oversaw 1,400 prosecutors and staff members as acting assistant attorney general and principal deputy assistant attorney general in the criminal division, which she joined in 2022, the New York-founded firm said. She said in a LinkedIn post that her last day at the Justice Department was December 19. She previously worked at law firm O'Melveny & Myers and as a federal prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York. She joins Cravath's investigations and regulatory enforcement practice and will be based in New York. Top U.S. law firms have been hiring senior officials from the Justice Department and other federal agencies who are moving to the private sector since Republican President Donald Trump took office. Cravath, one of the country's most profitable firms, was historically known for infrequently making outside partner hires, instead promoting from within its ranks. But the firm has made a handful of hires in recent years, including other former government officials. In 2022, the more than 200-year-old firm opened an office in Washington, its second location in the United States. Last month Cravath hired Andrew Finch, who was a top Justice Department antitrust official in the first Donald Trump administration. Finch most recently co-chaired the antitrust practice at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in New York.
