DWF LLP

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DWF Group plc

logo
legal form LLP
founding 1977
Seat Manchester United Kingdom , a total of 27 locations worldwide United KingdomUnited Kingdom 
management Andrew Leaitherhand (CEO), Sir Nigel Knowles (Chairman)
Number of employees 1600 lawyers
sales 350 million US dollars (2018/19)
Branch Legal advice
Website www.dwf.law
Status: 2018

DWF LLP is an international law firm with headquarters in Manchester and 27 offices in 15 countries. 

In 2017, the firm reached 10th place in the  Financial Times Most Innovative Lawyers Report as Overall Most Innovative Legal Business in Europe . DWF achieved the highest rating of all companies in the category Innovation in the Business of Law . In 2018, DWF was rated as one of the most prominent legal and financial advisors in the UK and Europe in a market report by the rating agency Experian, placing 7th and 15th respectively.

The firm's London office is at  20 Fenchurch Street , better known as "Walkie Talkie"
View from the Sky Garden Rooftop, the restaurant located on the top floor of the London office.

The company's clients include institutions and  FTSE 100- listed companies such as  adidas , Aviva , Barclays , expedia , Haribo , Leeds City Council, Lidl , Marks & Spencer , Pepsi , Poundland ,  Royal Bank of Scotland , RSA Insurance Group , Uber , Virgin Trains , Whitbread and  Zurich Insurance Group .

In June 2018, DWF announced its plan to prepare for the largest law firm ever to go public, valued at $ 1.3 billion .

DWF saw sales grow 18 percent from £ 201.3 million to £ 236 million ($ 309 million) in 2017/18. The profit per equity partner (PEP) rose by 9 percent.

history

The legal practice started as a four-person law firm in the north west of England and has grown rapidly through a series of international mergers and is represented on several continents. It currently employs around +3,100 people and is the UK's 19th largest law firm in terms of turnover, advising national and multinational corporations, financial institutions and governments.

Davies Wallis was founded in Liverpool in 1977 and merged with Dodds Ashcroft in 1989. A merger with Foysters in 1990 resulted in an office in Manchester and a name change to Davies Wallis Foyster, which was abbreviated to DWF in 2007, shortly after the Ricksons acquisition. The Ricksons acquisition added offices in Preston and Leeds. In 2008 DWF opened its London office at 20 Fenchurch Street.

The DWF Dubai office is located in the city's  Al Fattan Marine Towers  complex.

DWF opened an office in Dubai in March 2015 , the firm's first office outside the British Isles.

In 2017, DWF opened a total of six offices as part of its expansion, including two new ones in continental Europe. The firm opened a location in Berlin after two lawyers were hired by DLA Piper . She also opened her first office in France through a merger with the Paris law firm Heenanan Blaikie. In the Asia-Pacific region, DWF opened two offices in Melbourne and Brisbane through the merger with MVM Legal . The Singapore office was expanded further with former lawyers from the British law firm Eversheds Sutherland. After acquiring claims settlement company Triton in January, DWF opened offices in Sydney, Chicago and Toronto.

In June 2018, DWF prepared to go public for the largest law firm with an initial public offering of $ 1.3 billion.

In September 2018 DWF entered into an exclusive partnership with US law firm Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman LLP (WSHB), a Los Angeles- based full-service law firm with 22 offices in the US, 56 partners and 250 lawyers, which had gross sales of $ 81 million in the past fiscal year.

Awards

  • DWF received another award in the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Report and was ranked 11th as the most innovative law firm in Europe for developing a platform based on Kim, the AI ​​technology underlying Ernst & Young Riverview Law's virtual assistants , to manage labor courts for clients.
  • In a report by Experian in 2018, DWF ranked 7th among the most active legal and financial advisors in the UK and 15th in Europe by transaction volume and value.
  • Nine DWF attorneys have been recognized in the Legal 500 Hall of Fame, an annual industry benchmarking guide that recognizes attorneys who have received peer and client praise over the past decade.
  • DWF received a number of awards in the insurance industry in 2018 for recognition of Insurance Law Firm of the Year at the Post Claims Awards, Best Fraud Prevention Solution of the Year and Legal Partner of the Year at the Insurance Times Claims Excellence Awards, and Outsourcing Partner of the Year at the British Insurance Awards.
  • The company won Litigation Team of the Year at the Manchester Legal Awards and received Gold in the Employers Network for Equality and Inclusion (ENEI) new Talent Inclusion & Diversity Evaluation (TIDE) Awards for its outstanding practices in equality, diversity and inclusion.
  • DWF was ranked 10th in the Financial Times Most Innovative Lawyers in Europe Report 2017 and received the highest score among all companies for innovations in the field of law.
  • The firm won the "Best Internship Program" award (Best in Law Awards 2017).
  • Recommended for Team of the Year - Corporate / Commercial (Manchester Legal Awards 2017).
  • Won the 'Data Analytics Excellence' award (Insurance Times Tech & Innovation Awards 2016).
  • Awarded as "Best Leadership of Innovation" and "Best Managed Workplace" (Managing Partners' Forum Awards for Management Excellence 2015).
  • Awarded "Legal Innovator of the Year" (Legal Business Awards 2015).
  • Awarded "Management Team of the Year" (The Lawyer Management Awards 2014).

Dedicated to creating a diverse business, the firm was the first UK law firm to receive the ClearAssured "accreditation, which recognizes the firm as an inclusive recruiter for disabled talent. DWF has also started and has been a women and LGBT network Listed in the Stonewall Top 100 Employers Index 2016 because of its integrative workplace policy.

Selected mandates

In 2017, DWF moved to the 58th floor of the Republic Plaza , the second tallest building in Singapore .
  • DWF, in cooperation with Jones Lang LaSalle , advised the National Pension Service of Korea as the lead bidder on the purchase of the new London headquarters of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. for 1.56 billion US dollars. With the transaction, Goldman Sachs has committed to a 25-year lease for the 826,000 square meter property and will move into the building in summer 2019. The deal is the largest UK real estate deal this year and the second largest ever after the $ 1.6 billion sale of the London Walkie Talkie for $ 1.6 billion. a. DWF's London lawyers are seated.
  • DWF advised the Kensington and Chelsea Council on the investigation into the fire disaster in Grenfell Tower in June 2017, which resulted in the death of 80 people.
  • DWF advised the South Yorkshire Police on a lawsuit brought by Sir Cliff Richard against the British Broadcasting Corporation and SYP passed a positive judgment for violation of his privacy rights.
  • The company advised Poundland owner Pepkor on its $ 233 million financing with US investment firm Davidson Kempner Capital Management.
  • DWF Finance practice group advised commodities trader Trafigura on the loss of $ 150 million in cargo after a fire at an oil terminal in Johor, Malaysia.
  • DWF advised Discovery Park, one of Europe's leading science and technology parks, on the construction of a renewable energy facility with a biomass of US $ 207 million. Pfizer UK employs around 650 people in Discovery Park .

Personalities and alumni

  • In 2018, DWF appointed business transformation specialist Anup Kollanethu as CEO of DWF Managed Services, who left Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer after having long headed the Magic Circle firm in the same position.
  • DWF has hired former DLA Piper CIO Daniel Pollick. Pollick was CIO at DLA - the UK's largest law firm by revenue - from December 1997 to February 2018 and is one of the best-known names in the industry.
  • International arbitration partner Sabrina Aïnouz has been appointed to the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), one of the world's leading international arbitration institutions.
  • In September 2017, DWF announced Sir Nigel Knowles as its new chairman. Sir Nigel Knowles was in 2009 in the most prestigious neujährlichen Honor for his contribution to the legal profession to the Knights defeated and is currently chairman of Sheffield LEP, High Sheriff of Greater London and a trustee of the Prince's Trust. He was previously the global co-chairman of the international law firm DLA Piper .

Locations

The firm's recent history has been shaped by a constant process of internationalization. Over the past decade, she has built a presence in major cities around the world. The company is headquartered in the Spinningfields neighborhood of Manchester and has 27 offices in 15 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North America.

Great Britain

International

Web links

Commons : 20 Fenchurch Street, London  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Innovative Lawyers - Financial Times . Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  2. ↑ International M&A Review: Experian Business Research: H1 2017 (PDF) Retrieved on August 26, 2018.
  3. ^ The Legal 500> DWF> London, ENGLAND> What the firm says . Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  4. ↑ Because they're worth it: DWF's valuation and the Knowles effect .
  5. ↑ https://www.legalweek.com/2018/09/13/dwf-revenue-surges-18-ahead-of-anticipated-ipo/
  6. ↑ DWF and Ricksons confirm merger . The Lawyer. January 3, 2007. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
  7. ^ Davies Lavery team defects for DWF City launch . Legal Week. June 20, 2008. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
  8. ↑ http://www.globallegalpost.com/big-stories/firms-enter-into-exclusive-association-for-us-expansion-93491450/