Top Interserve shareholder threatens to sue outsourcer over ‘terrible’ rescue deal February 27, 2019 Interserve's hopes of appeasing rebel shareholder Coltrane Asset Management with an amended rescue deal have been dashed, with the hedge fund instead threatening to start legal proceedings against the firm. As it announced its full-year results, the outsourcing giant this morning updated its rescue refinancing deal, giving shareholders five per cent of its total value, up [...]
Barclays and Bank of Ireland sued over film finance tax evasion scheme February 26, 2019 Barclays and Bank of Ireland are being sued as part of a £180m lawsuit brought by investors in a film finance scheme the pair were involved in. Investors in the Eclipse film financing scheme lost out after tax authorities ruled the vehicle, which purported to invest in Disney films, was actually a tax avoidance scheme. [...]
Wisdom of crowds: startup brings crowd funding to litigation finance February 11, 2019 When Cormac Leech, chief executive of new crowd funding litigation platform Axiafunder, is questioned about the potential 20-30 per cent returns offered to investors on its website, he doubles down. “If anything I’d say its conservatively 20-30 per cent, we would aspire to do better than that actually,” he says. Any investment offering such stellar [...]
Petrofac faces potential £400m lawsuit following ex-employee’s bribery conviction February 11, 2019 Oil field services company Petrofac is facing a potential £400m lawsuit from angry investors after its shares crashed when one of its former executives pleaded guilty to bribery and corruption charges. The former global head of sales at Petrofac, David Lufkin, pleaded guilty last Thursday to offering corrupt payments in an attempt to secure contracts [...]
Law firm DWF aims to raise £75m in pre-Brexit March float February 8, 2019 Law firm DWF said it is targeting a March listing on the London Stock Exchange, with plans to raise £75m. That would make its listing the largest undertaken by a law firm so far, outstripping Knights which raised £50m in June. The firm said it expects to announce the final offer price following its marketing [...]
Government promises £8m for court system in review of legal aid reforms February 7, 2019 The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) today announced an £8m investment in the court system as part of a review of the comprehensive changes to the legal aid system made in 2013. The MOJ said it would invest £5m in technology to improve the functioning of the system and a further £3m to support those representing [...]
Law firm DWF announces intention to float in UK’s largest legal listing January 31, 2019 Law firm DWF yesterday announced its intention to float on the main market of the London Stock Exchange in what would make it by far the largest law firm to go public worldwide. The firm would become just the sixth publicly traded UK law firm, the first to list on the main market and the [...]
Danske Bank faces shareholder action over money laundering scandal January 22, 2019 Danske Bank is facing shareholder action from investors seeking compensation over a €200bn (£175.6bn) money laundering scandal. IMF Litigation Funding Services, Njord Law and Quinn Emanuel allege that Denmark’s largest bank failed to disclose the scale of the crisis to investors, causing them to lose vast amounts of money. Read more: Danish minister says Danske Bank may [...]
City Moves for 16 January – who’s switching jobs at Orchard Street, Crowell & Moring and Stephens Rickard? January 16, 2019 Who’s switching jobs today? Orchard Street Orchard Street Investment Management, the specialist commercial property investment manager, announces the expansion of its leadership team with the promotion of Tom Chadwick to partner. Tom joined Orchard Street in 2014 as investment transactions manager following a successful six-year track record at Aviva Investors, where he started his career [...]
Let Jeff Bezos be a lesson: Have a plan for if your marriage ends January 14, 2019 Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie have announced that their marriage is ending, likely leading to the largest divorce settlement in history. Though the couple has asserted that their separation will be amicable, the divorce proceedings could still be complex, highlighting the risks to entrepreneurs when marriages end. The law in Washington State, [...]