Posted in Press

DLA Piper is a Top 50 employer for social mobility

By Naomi Maryles on

DLA Piper has been named as a Top 50 employer in the UK’s first-ever Social Mobility Employer Index.

The Index is a joint initiative between the Social Mobility Foundation and the Social Mobility Commission, in partnership with the City of London Corporation. It ranks the UK’s employers for the first time on the actions they are taking to ensure they are open to accessing and progressing talent from all backgrounds and it showcases progress towards improving social mobility in the workplace.

The aim of the Index is to encourage firms to share their initiatives and progress in becoming more inclusive employers and to reveal which sectors and companies are taking the issue of social mobility most seriously.

DLA Piper has been ranked 46 in the Index for the commendable work it has taken to tackle this and to enable those from lower socio-economic backgrounds to succeed. Measures taken by the firm include our involvement with the PRIME and Pathways to Law programmes, and our own global Break Into Law programme.

Sandra Wallace, UK Managing Partner, said: “We are pleased to have made progress in this area, and look forward to building further on this achievement in years to come. In the 21st century workplace we should be attracting the broadest range of talent to the legal profession, regardless of background, and addressing the barriers to careers within the legal sector for under-represented groups.”

David Johnston, chief executive of the Social Mobility Foundation, said: “All the Top 50 firms in the Social Mobility Employer Index should be applauded for the progress they are making towards ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to get in and get on – regardless of their background. They should be congratulated both for having prioritised social mobility and for being prepared to have their processes and practices independently scrutinised.”

Last week DLA Piper launched its Global Scholarships programme, which provides financial support and a series of global placements to law students from the world’s least developed countries.

Posted in Articles

How the Internet of Things changes banks and financial services

By Naomi Maryles on

The Internet of Things (IoT) is going to change the models of business of the financial services sector, unveiling new legal issues.

The new models of business of the IoT are going to be disruptive, placing companies in front of legal problems that they had never experienced before. And the same rule is valid with reference to the financial service sector.

To learn more about the so-called “Bank of Things” and its accompanying legal issues, please read the latest blog post by Giulio Coraggio in DLA Piper’s Technology’s Legal Edge blog.

Posted in Event

Save the Date: November 8th, 2017; Israel-India Summit in Israel

By Naomi Maryles on

 

Narendra Modi, the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Israel, just completed a historic 3-day visit to Israel which included, among other things, a chance to see first-hand some of Israel’s newest technologies.  Together with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Modi toured a desalinization plant north of Hadera and rode together with Netanyahu in a newly developed vehicle that can transform sea water into drinking water.  The two countries also entered into 7 major agreements dealing with water, agriculture, and space technology.  In addition, they have created a $40 million research and development fund for joint innovation.  Clearly, relations between the two countries is on the rise, and growing quickly.

Please join us on November 8th in Israel for an Israel-India Summit which will feature Indian companies and investors alongside Israeli entrepreneurs looking to explore and expand the business opportunities between the two countries.  Details to follow shortly.  Please contact Naomi Maryles with any questions or if you are interested in getting involved.

 

 

Posted in Reports

Global M&A Intelligence Report

By Naomi Maryles on

DLA Piper recently launched its second Global M&A Intelligence Report.  This year’s report analyzes over 1,000 deals and looks at the differences between jurisdictions and types of buyers, analyzes the changes over the last year and provides comprehensive information on key deal terms. 

Some of the findings supported what most of us probably suspected was the case – other findings are more surprising. 

•             What are the major differences in deal terms across jurisdictions?

•             Do auction processes really drive better legal terms or is it just price?

•             Are PE buyers really so different to trade buyers?

•             Locked box v Completion accounts – what really is market?

•             Is the MAC clause still valid?

•             What are the “normal” warranty thresholds and de minimis?

•             Does the data room get disclosed?

•             How is rep & warranty insurance changing the M&A landscape?

 Our report answers these questions and provides the statistics to support them.

 Not only does the report cover the types of deals and process, it provides an insight into earn outs, financial limits around warranties including cap and basket and at least ten other key aspects of an M&A transaction, and as such really does offer an informed insight to the question of ‘what is market.’ 

To request a copy of the report, please email Jacob.Katz@dlapiper.com.

 

Posted in Press

#3 in Private Equity: DLA Piper Climbs Global League Table

By Naomi Maryles on

 

We are pleased to announce that Pitchbook has ranked DLA Piper #3 globally for overall private equity deal volume in 2016. We are also ranked #1 across Europe, #3 in the US and #3 in global buyout transactions. These rankings, representing consistent growth in volume of reported deals over the past 5 years, reflect our involvement in more than 175 transactions worldwide and confirm the strength of our global team.

To read more, and to see a small sampling of our 2016 private equity representations, please click here.

Posted in Reports

Cybersecurity Executive Order escalates cybersecurity to greater priority – top points about critical infrastructure

By Naomi Maryles on

President Donald Trump recently signed an Executive Order on cybersecurity, “Strengthening the Cybersecurity Federal Networks and Critical Infrastructure.”  The Executive Order escalates CI cybersecurity to a greater priority in federal policy, tasking cabinet-level departments and sector specific agencies with identifying and utilizing capabilities to support the cybersecurity risk management efforts of CI at greatest risk. It also addresses particular sectorial cybersecurity risks and capabilities concerning the communications and information technology sectors, the defense industrial base and the electricity subsector. Additionally, the EO contains an ambitious plan for updating and upgrading federal networks, which will ultimately be subject to Congressional oversight and appropriations.

To learn more and for key takeaways, click here.

Posted in Articles

Getting up to speed on blockchain, Bitcoin, Ethereum, cryptocurrencies and ICOs

By Naomi Maryles on

Much has been written recently on blockchain, Bitcoin, Ethereum, cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICO). Unfortunately, for non-computer scientists, trying to understand these concepts and their potential implications can be a bit overwhelming. To help all of those non-technologists trying to get their heads around blockchain, Bitcoin, Ethereum, cryptocurrencies and ICOs, our colleague Trent Dykes pulled together the following list of resources that he has found useful.  It seems likely that these technologies will prove to be disruptive to how startup and emerging growth companies do business, build new technology, fund startups and even think about employment – much like the initial proliferation of the Internet.

To read more, click here.

 

Posted in Reports

Boardroom Brexit

By Naomi Maryles on

The amount of information and analysis published since the UK’s referendum decision to leave the EU is bewildering. Reading it all would take as long as the Brexit negotiations themselves.

Boardroom Brexit has been designed to help senior executives cut through to the issues that really matter for your business.

In the first issue of Boardroom Brexit, we look at the negotiating mandates of the EU and UK and distill them into the crucial things that you need to know and do. Future issues will follow the course of the negotiations with the same emphasis on concise, practical, commercial guidance.  To access Boardroom Brexit, please click here.

 

Posted in Reports

DLA Piper’s 2017 Compliance & Risk Report: Compliance Grows Up

By Naomi Maryles on

Improvements to compliance programs, likely combined with recent political changes, are helping to reduce compliance executives’ concerns about personal liability. At the same time, the compliance function is becoming more independent and prominent in large organizations worldwide – though there remains room for improvement.

These are among the top findings in DLA Piper’s 2017 Global Compliance & Risk Report. Taken as a whole, this year’s survey data reveals encouraging trends – the growing independence of compliance programs and the greater support they’re receiving in the form of increased resources and program improvements. But it also depicts a concerning gap in the relationship between compliance and directors.

In an effort to assist compliance officers in closing that gap, we have assembled a set of basic principles and best practices for board communication, training and counsel.  To learn more, please click here.

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