TOGETHER WITH

Table of Contents

• EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

• FEATURED REPORT 📰

• TOGETHER WITH BARBRI SQE* 🤝

• IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

If you didn’t know, I answer the most common questions I get on my YouTube channel.

So far, I’ve gone over:

• Performing in law firm interviews

• How to pass the Watson Glaser test

• The best answer to: “Why commercial law?”

…and loads more.

This week, I covered how to pass situational judgement tests.

If you’ve got any questions which you’d like me to answer, let me know by replying to this email — then, I’ll make a video on that.

- Idin 

FEATURED REPORT 📰

🌎 Asia's new legal hub (it's not China)

What’s going on here

Western law firms are leaving China because it’s an expensive place to run an office, there are a lot of strict regulations and deal activity has fallen.

Instead, they’re turning to markets like India and Singapore, which offer more stable regulatory environments.

Why are law firms leaving China?

Over the last few years, some big-name Western law firms have been closing their offices in China. It’s been mainly US law firms that have left — Skadden, Perkins Coie, Reed Smith, Sidley Austin and (most recently) WilmerHale have all decided to shut offices in the country. Last year Dentons also separated from its Chinese partner, Dacheng.

So, what’s driving this trend? It comes down to a mix of factors making China a tougher place to do business. 

• 👀 Regulations have tightened (Chinese authorities are imposing stricter rules on foreign firms — especially US firms)

• 💰️ Staying compliant with new rules, like Chinese anti-espionage rules, led to Latham & Watkins having to restrict their Asian lawyers' access to international file management systems — this makes working there harder

• 📉 There aren’t as many IPOs and major deals taking place in the region as there once were, making firms reconsider whether it’s worth the hassle to stay

All this makes it tricky — and sometimes risky — for Western firms to keep up a presence in the country.

While global law firms might be able to advise clients in China from abroad, the costs of remaining in the country (both financial and political) seem to have reached a breaking point.

Where else are law firms going instead?

With China becoming more difficult, law firms are turning their attention to other Asian markets. The main destinations? India and Singapore. 

🇮🇳 India in particular has grabbed a lot of interest (especially from UK firms). CMS is currently looking to partner with the major Indian firm IndusLaw. This would make it the second international law firm to establish a presence in the country. The first was Dentons, which recently teamed up with Link Legal in India.

🇸🇬 Singapore is also on law firms’ radar. Eversheds Sutherland recently closed its office in Beijing and is now planning on re-entering Singapore (it left Singapore in 2020). But now it’s drawn by its stable regulations and strong financial scene. A bunch of US firms (like Goodwin, Gibson Dunn, Ropes & Gray and McDermott Will & Emery) also opened offices in Singapore.

Both India and Singapore offer promising alternatives for expansion in Asia without the same level of red tape that China has.

Why is India more popular now?

India recently decided to open its doors a bit wider to foreign law firms. 

The Bar Council of India announced that it would start letting international firms practice certain types of law, like advising on foreign legal matters. While there’s still some fine print to work out, this change is huge. 

India’s traditionally been a closed market for foreign law firms, so this move signals a major shift. It’s also part of India’s broader goal to attract more foreign expertise and investment by creating a more open market.

Law firms have to keep a close eye on these political shifts, as they can make or break the kind of work they’re able to do in different countries.

How do law firms enter new markets?

It’s hard to enter into a completely new legal market. So, most Western firms end up joining forces with existing local firms. This is what Dentons did (and what CMS plans to do) in India.

These partnerships help foreign firms to easily:

• 📚 tap into local expertise, 

• ⚖️ comply with local regulations, and 

• 🤝 gain access to an established network of clients. 

Why should law firms care?

This shift shows how geopolitical factors can shape a law firm’s global strategy.

As China grows stricter with the West, law firms are focusing on other parts of Asia.

The real winners of this tougher stance from China are other Asian markets (especially if, like India, they act now to open their borders to foreign lawyers).

TOGETHER WITH BARBRI SQE* 🤝

🗣️ Aspiring lawyer from Manchester or Birmingham?

Tickets are now live for BARBRI's Future Lawyers Convention. 

This event gives you:

• Practical advice on different career paths for lawyers

• Sessions led by experts (covering SQE, skills workshops and more)

• Networking with law firms, recruiters, and your peers from across the UK

…oh, and did we mention it’s free?

Click the link below to register (these spaces will go, so claim yours now). 

• 📅 Manchester: 27 November – get your ticket here

• 📅 Birmingham: 4 December – get your ticket here

P.S. Do you want to sit the SQE next year? BARBRI’s closing enrolment for their part-time Flexible SQE1 course. If you’re interested, register here.

* This is sponsored content

IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• 🏢 Clifford Chance is investing $20 million in new luxury offices in Houston, aiming to grow its US presence. Houston is a hot spot for energy and infrastructure work. Clifford Chance set up shop there last year, and the office now has 45 lawyers, including 15 partners. This Houston base is the firm’s third in the US (the first two are in New York and Washington).

• 📱 Vodafone and Three’s £15 billion merger could soon get the green light from the CMA — as long as they promise big on network upgrades and customer protections. If approved, the deal would bring 27 million UK mobile customers under one roof. To make it happen, Vodafone and Three need to commit to boosting networks for the next eight years, keep existing tariffs and data plans steady for three years, and offer fair deals to other providers. The CMA’s final decision is due in December.

• 📹 Russia slapped Google with a massive $20.5 decillion (yes, decillion) fine after YouTube allegedly blocked Russian state propaganda. This number (which is “20” followed by 33 zeros) shows Russia’s frustration over YouTube refusing to reinstate state media accounts it views as propaganda. To put it in perspective, the fine equals all the money on Earth — multiplied by over 23 million! Plus, it grows by $1 million each day it’s unpaid.

• 💳 Barclays has completed its £600 million purchase of Tesco Bank’s retail banking business. The deal, first announced in February, comes with a new ten-year partnership which allows Tesco to offer Barclays financial products under its brand. Tesco, meanwhile, plans a £700 million shareholder buyback as part of the deal. Freshfields advised Tesco on the sale, while Hogan Lovells were the advisers for Barclays.

AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• 🎱 Game: Learn to juggle using your keyboard

• 🐦️ Beaklash: Apparently, crows can hold grudges for up to 17 years (they remember humans who’ve wronged them)

• 🐸 Micro: This tiny flea toad that was discovered in Brazil is less than 7mm long (it’s the world’s second-smallest vertebrate) 👇️ 

  

Credit: r/internetisbeautiful

STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

• 📹️ Free application help: If you're applying to commercial law firms, check out my YouTube channel for actionable tips and an insight into the lifestyle of a commercial lawyer in London.