Best in France Case Study Project

1. Best in France Case Study Project HERBERT SMITH Emmanuelle BRISSAUD Julie LUNEAU Fidji SIMO

2. Methodology • Research of information about the French legal market • Research of information about Herbert Smith • Interview of an independant legal consultant about the French legal market • Patrick BIGNON, Managing Partner of Law Management Consulting, consulting boutique for law firms • Interviews of Herbert Smith managers in France: • Neil Brimson, partner, ex Managing Partner • Jean-Didier Billard, CEO • à rajouter

3. Presentation of the Paris office of Herbert Smith • Core business • A law firm specialized in big businesses since 1962. • 4 main fields of activities: Banking and Finance, Litigation and Arbitration, Projects, Competition/Antitrust,  a full service law firm • Specialization in Litigation and Arbitration and in Finance. • The French office has developped a big business in French speaking African countries.

4. Presentation of the Paris office of Herbert Smith • Clients • International firms that have activities in France • French firms that have activities abroad • African governments • Examples: Air Liquide, Coca Cola, Goldman Sachs, KPMG, Toyota, Procter&Gamble, Merrill Lynch

5. Presentation of the Paris office of Herbert Smith • Key figures

6. Presentation of Herbert Smith: Herbert Smith around the world • Locations • Head office in London • Worldwide office for Herbert Smith and its best friends in Brussels • 9 offices in Europe, China, Japan and Russia • Best friends network • Formal alliance in the main European market with Gleiss Lutz and Stibbe • Sharing of the market between the three law firms • Transfer of competencies and strong presence • Visibility of Herbert Smith not alterered

7. The three key issues of the setting up of Herbert Smith in France • The market • The ressources • The values

8. The market • Historical reasons: • The International Court of Arbitration is based in Paris and Herbert Smith had a strong practice of Arbitration • The crucial presence to foster the development of this practice • A setting up strongly linked with the personality of the Paris office founder: Doctor Mann, an arbitration expert

9. The market • Proximity with clients • Clients having branches in France and occasionnaly confronted to French law rules • French clients having problems in their head office -confronted to French law- or with their international branches – confronted to English law in that case- • An activity that requires a human relations with the client: a need for interactivity

10. The market • Cross borders deals • As the core business is transaction this involves different places and different law rules. • Increasingly companies are global and have many activities all around the world • For the alliance to be strong an due to the absence of the other members of the alliance, need for Herbert Smith expansion in Paris

11. The market • Competitors • All majors competitors have an office in Paris • The market is increasingly competitive : Maintaining market shares is crucial

12. Ressources • Training • Difficulties of a good recrutment policy • Law firms need lawyers with analysis and expression skills and specialised lawyers • Law faculty is not choosen by the best profiles and don’t propose a specialised and an international-oriented training • However, progress is made • English is mastered by many students • This enables transfer of lawyers in other offices

13. Ressources • French lack of flexibility • French labour market specificities • Hard to find workers doing extra time • Hard to find assistant for punctual files • Administrative constraints • 35 hours a week • Cost of employement and hiring

14. Ressources • Specificities of being a lawyer in France • Independant statute  don’t have to abide by Labour law contrary to other countries • Enable them to avoid French labour market rules

15. Values • Individualism: lawyers are traditionally really independant but in France this feeling is stronger • Visible through the language: « Come to my law firm », « Personally, I think that… » • Due to historical reasons: law firms were traditionally societies where the only thing in common was the ressources, vs the model of partnerships

16. Values • The French culture regarding work is totally incompatible with the requirements of a law firm • The functioning of a law firm requires to be available for the client at every moment • The impredictable work requires to do extra hours very frequently • But it is really difficult to find people, especially among secretaries or other assistants, that are willing to work hard

17. Values • A totally different image of the lawyer in France and in Anglo-saxon countries • In France, the lawyer is perceived as a theorician, a pure legal expert • On the contrary, Anglo-saxon lawyers are perceived in France as wheeler-dealers, commercials, more interested in money than in theory • It is linked with the different nature of the law system: common law vs civil law • There is a kind of sin of pride, due to the specificities of the French training: without the possibility to specialize, French lawyers believe that they know everything about the law rules • It’s the reason that explain the slow development of the profession in France: in France, the relation to money is strictly linked with notions of morality

18. Prospects for the future • The expansion of the French office is mandatory in the alliance • But on such a competitive market, ther is a need to find new sources of profit • That’s the reason why the African expertise of Herbert Smith can be an important asset • Because Africa is gaining importance in this market due to the trade of raw materials • Because Africa doesn’t have an unified law, which requires the involvement of lawyers

19. Recommandations • Glocalization • Being full service using the alliance and fostering cross fertilization of practices • At the same time, developing local specificities in each office • Attract the best profiles • Internationalizing the recruitment • Fostering tranferts across offices • Try to develop a worldwide culture of the firm • To reduce lawyers’ individualism • To unify the practices in the different offices (behavorial control)

20. Acknowledgements • Mickael Segalla • Jack Anderson • Neil Brimson • Jean-Didier Billard • Dominique Brault • Patrick Bignon

21. Sources • Legal Week • The Lawyer • Law.com • Chambers Global 2005 • Legal 500 • Décideurs Juridiques