Wake Up Call: US Big Law Trio Leads London Corporate ‘Takeover’

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• Kirkland & Ellis and Latham & Watkins are the top-earning law firms for UK corporate work, outpacing local rivals. Simpson Thacher is also near the top of the heap, showing that the “takeover of the City by rampaging US law firms” continues. (The Times)
• Compensation for top in-house lawyers has ticked down by 4% since 2021, according to a new survey. General counsel and chief legal officers reported nearly $557,000 in average total actual cash compensation, with bonuses taking the biggest hit. (Major, Lindsey & Africa)
• The general counsel for the UK Post Office has taken a leave of absence. Ben Foat stepped away from the job amid an ongoing probe into the Horizon IT scandal. (Law Society Gazette)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Liz Osborne joined Paul Weiss to head its European restructuring group. She joins from Akin Gump.
• Hisaya Kimura joined Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan as a disputes partner in Tokyo. He joins from Nagashima Oho & Tsunematsu.
• Tom Trujillo joined McGuireWoods as chief innovation and artificial intelligence officer.
• Amy Johnson joined Fried Frank as a partner in its private equity funds group and asset management practice. She joins from Goodwin.
• Sean Franzblau joined the Chicago office of Venable as a partner in the investigations and white collar defense practice group. He joins from the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.
• Constantine Marantidis was promoted to managing partner of Lewis Roca‘s offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
• Jenny DePonte joined Brown Fox as a partner. She joins from Jackson Lewis.
• Juan Estremera, Kenneth Grossberg, Maxwell Potter, and Daniel Saathoff have joined Gunster.