In this discussion, you can hear Session Chair, Zulon Begum, CM Murray LLP, and speakers Claire Watkins, Buzzacott LLP, David Shufflebotham, PEPUp.consulting, Robert Millard, Cambridge Strategy Group, Sarah Chilton, CM Murray LLP and Corinne Staves, Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, discuss a range of metrics and strategic issues that professional services firms should carefully consider when evaluating partner reward. Our PPA experts discuss the following: 1. What areas are firms currently weak at measuring in respect of evaluating partner reward? 2. What areas should firms focus on measuring and how can they do that from a practical perspective? What types of data should firms be looking for in respect of various metrics? 3. How can firms ensure that metrics and data are aligned with their overall strategy, particularly given that many firms will need to reassess their business plan over the next few months/years, given the current climate? 4. What are the key issues associated with sole reliance upon financial metrics to measure partners’ performance? 5. How can firms ensure that metrics they apply reflect their diversity and inclusion focuses and values? Might some metrics be inherently discriminatory? 6. How should firms evaluate partners against metrics and what are the main strategic issues when undertaking such evaluations? What are the potential pitfalls? For more information on the topics covered in this recording, please contact Partners Zulon Begum or Sarah Chilton, both of whom specialise in Partnership law.

UK employment law information and advice

Partner Reward – Metrics, Measurements and the Link with Profit-Sharing

We are delighted to release the first podcast in our two-part series on Managing and Responding to Partner Exits. In this podcast, Wendy Chung and Wonu Sanda highlight the important steps that Firms need to take to manage the common issues that Firms face when proposing or dealing with a partner exit. All Firms will need to deal with partner exits at one stage or another, be it as a result of the current pandemic, uncovered partner misconduct, strategic mergers, a partner moving to the competition or a standard retirement. Knowing what steps to take (and not to take) to manage the inevitable is vital. In the first of this two-part podcast we address the key issues and risks encountered by Firms when seeking to exit Partners, including: 1. What events commonly lead to partner exits and what impact has the current economic situation had on Firms considering partner exits? 2. What range of options are available to a Firm seeking to exit a partner? What are the advantages and limitations of these options? 3. Do Firms need to follow a process to exit a partner? What are the stages typically involved? 4. What are the key legal, operational and practical issues that routinely need to be addressed to secure an orderly partner exit? 5. What potential claims risks need to be managed during a partner exit? Stay tuned for Part Two on Managing and Responding to Partner Exits. If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this podcast recording further, or for guidance relating to a current or proposed partner exit, please contact enior Associate Wendy Chung or Associate and Solicitor-Advocate Wonu Sanda.

Managing and Responding to Partner Exits - Part One: the Firm’s Perspective

We are delighted to bring you the recording of this expert discussion on Mergers in the Time of Coronavirus and Beyond. The Chair and the Managing Partner of the recently merged law firm Moore Barlow LLP joined our panel of legal and management experts to share their commercial, legal and practical advice for professional services firms seeking a merger, including: 1. Preparatory steps to ensure a successful merger 2. The importance of culture and focussing on the joint vision for the merged firm 3. How to secure partner buy-in and engage staff 4. Measures to deal with and protect firms against dissenting partners 5. Overcoming and avoiding potential deal breakers Chair: Zulon Begum (CM Murray LLP) Speakers: Sarah Chilton (CM Murray LLP), Robert Millard (Cambridge Strategy Group Limited), Helen Goatley and Edward Whittington (Moore Barlow LLP) and Pia Sanchez (CM Murray LLP)

Mergers In The Time Of Coronavirus & Beyond - Expert Discussion

We are delighted to bring you this recording of a discussion between members of our Employment Law team on Managing Employee Risks and Supporting Colleagues’ Families in the Age of Covid. Many businesses will be thinking about how they may best protect and support the diverse health and wellbeing needs of their staff, including BAME workers, during the coronavirus pandemic. This will inevitably necessitate a tailored consideration of the various legal risks, individual risk profiles of staff, and financial and practical constraints within each employer. Against this background, in this short podcast we address some of the pressing considerations with which employers should be engaging, including: 1. How should employers properly assess the risks posed by Covid to their workforces, taking into account the individual risk factors of each employee, including the heightened risk for black and ethnic minority workers? 2. What risks do employers face in respect of claims brought by employees who contract Covid? 3. What can employers offer bereaved families where employees have died after contracting Covid, financially and otherwise? Speakers: Sarah Chilton – Partner (Employment Law specialist) Wonu Sanda – Associate and Solicitor Advocate (Employment Law specialist) George Pizzey – Trainee Solicitor If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this podcast recording further, or for guidance on your specific rights, responsibilities and potential liabilities, please contact our Partner Sarah Chilton or our Associate Wonu Sanda, both of whom specialise in employment law issues for multi-national employers, senior executives, firms and partners.

Managing Employee Risks and Supporting Colleagues’ Families in the Age of Covid

In this podcast Merrill April (Partner, CM Murray LLP) and Louise O’Connor (Associate, CM Murray LLP) are joined by Matt Nixon (Partner, Stork & May) for a discussion of the key areas which need to be considered by senior executives when their company is proposing or implementing a restructure: • Potential positive as well as negative impacts of company restructures. Is there any difference in those impacts as a result of the restructure being driven by or taking place during a pandemic?   • What can senior management do to ensure that staff communications continue to be productive and as efficient as possible for the business and employees when traditional modes of communication are curtailed during lockdown?   • What preparatory steps can senior executives take when they suspect a restructure may be on the horizon?   • What should senior executives bear in mind with the approach of the end of the furlough period? What can they do to get things in order ahead of any possible announcement regarding a company restructure?

What are the Key Issues for Senior Executives to Consider During a Proposed Company Restructure?

CM Murray LLP, in association with Littleton Chambers and Fisher Phillips LLP, invite you to listen to a 50-minute podcast recording on “Trade Secret Protection in the “New Normal”: Is your Information Secure from WFH and RTW Mishaps and Misappropriation?” In this podcast recording, Merrill April (Partner, CM Murray LLP, London, UK),  Chris Stief, (Regional Managing Partner in Philadelphia & Pittsburgh, Fisher Phillips LLP, USA), Mike Avila (Partner, Fisher Phillips LLP, Philadelphia & Washington D.C. Metro, USA) and Jonathan Cohen QC (Littleton Chambers, London, UK), discuss the key issues from both a US and UK perspective relating to the enforcement of restrictive covenants and how such covenants are impacted by global working from home and furlough. In particular, the panel address:   1. How the new global work from home reality is a complicating factor in trade secrets agreements; 2. Key practical steps and considerations for employers on how to manage and protect their confidential information and trade secrets; 3. Best practices to monitor trade secrets; 4. The impact of furlough in both the US and UK on the duration of the restrictive covenants; and 5. How to prosecute a misappropriation case in this new environment.

Trade Secret Protection in the “New Normal”: Is your Information Secure from WFH and RTW Mishaps?

We are delighted to share with you this podcast of highlights from the session Global Mobility Issues for Senior Executives and their Families from the IFSEA 2020 Conference. In this short podcast, moderator Allen Powley (GlaxoSmithKline plc, UK) and panellists Sophie Barrett-Brown (Laura Devine Immigration, UK), Juliet Carp (Keystone Law, UK), Atul Gupta (Trilegal, India) and Chris Horton (Deloitte LLP, UK) discuss a range of issues relating to executive global mobility, including: 1. the challenges that cultural differences bring and the importance of cultural familiarity; 2. the important of having a centralised adviser who takes ownership for the senior executive of all the different strands of an assignment including tax and immigration; and 3. the many different parts to a successful assignment (including making sure the family is happy!) Become a member of the International Forum of Senior Executive Advisers (IFSEA) by visiting: www.cm-murray.com/ifsea.

Global Mobility Issues for Senior Executives and their Families

In this Live Expert Discussion, a panel of market-leading partnership and employment lawyers, a law firm management consultant and a private equity recruitment specialist discuss everything you need to know about the legal and commercial risks, protections and strategies, and commercial realities of partner team moves in the Professional Services and Private Equity sectors. In the recording of this discussion, chaired by Sarah Chilton (CM Murray LLP), you can hear expert panellists Jonathan Cohen QC (Littleton Chambers), Rob Millard (Cambridge Strategy Group), David Fisher (CM Murray LLP), Gail McManus (PER Recruitment) and Wonu Sanda (CM Murray LLP) discuss the key legal issues and wider commercial realities of partner team moves, including: • The key express and implied obligations that normally apply to partners/LLP members and are likely to pose a significant issue when contemplating a team move, including duties of good faith and to give a true and fair account, and post-termination restrictions; • What are the risks of breaching any express or implied obligations in the context of a team move? What remedies would be available to the exiting firm, in the event of breach? Would the situation be exacerbated if partners attempt to bring associates or other junior employees along with them in a team move? • What are the commercial and practical realities of embarking on a team move? What are the types of steps that should be taken by partners and the firms they are looking to join, and at what stage, in order to minimise their legal and financial risks? What considerations should be taken into account when thinking about a potential settlement strategy? Should all parties obtain separate legal representation? • What steps can be taken by firms to protect themselves against team moves, or at least to mitigate against the risk? What are the types of provisions that can and should be inserted into membership/LLP agreements in order to minimise any potential damage suffered by firms in the event of a team move attempt? • Assuming the move is a success, how can acquiring firms successfully integrate the new team into their business? What level of collaboration is needed between the new team and the existing workforce for the team move to be truly effective? If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this recording further, or for guidance in relation to the legal obligations, risks, remedies and other practical issues associated with a potential or threatened team move, please contact Partners Sarah Chilton and David Fisher or Associate Wonu Sanda, all of whom specialise in partnership and employment law issues for firms, partners, multi-national employers and senior executives.

Partner Team Moves in the Professional Services and Private Equity Worlds

We are delighted to bring you this recording of an expert discussion on Measuring Partner Contribution between leading specialists in Partnership & Employment Law, Partnership Compensation, and Law Firm Management. Chaired by Corinne Staves (Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP), with panellists Claire Watkins (Buzzacott LLP), David Shufflebotham (PEP-Up Consulting), Robert Millard (Cambridge Strategy Group), Sarah Chilton (CM Murray LLP), and Zulon Begum (CM Murray LLP). The question of how professional services firms should measure partner contribution is a complex one, and is made no less complex by the unprecedented times in which we live. However, these times also present an opportunity for firms to rethink and refocus the way they measure partner contribution for the better in the future. The key themes you can hear addressed by the panel: 1. The importance of defining and effectively measuring partner contribution. 2. Dealing with the age-old problem of how best to measure cross-referrals within firms. 3. How firms can align partner contribution with the business’s strategy and success? 4. Being aware of common discrimination risks in the way firms typically measure partner contribution and effective steps to avoid those risks as far as possible. 5. Using professional services constitutional frameworks to embed KPIs and encourage the right contributions from partners. 6. Is it one size fits all when it comes to partner contribution or is the situation different for smaller firms? If so, how should they adapt? 7. In what ways might the COVID-19 crisis change how partner contribution is measured? If you would like to discuss any partner contribution or other partnership and employment law issues for firms or partners, please contact our Partnership Group Co-Heads Sarah Chilton and Zulon Begum, or any of the panellists.

How Should Firms Measure Partner Contribution?

On Tuesday, 23rd June, we marked World Whistleblowers Day, a day intended to raise global public awareness about the vital role of whistleblowers who speak out against wrongdoing. As a firm we regularly advise clients, particularly multinational employers, senior executives and professional services firms and their members, in relation to whistleblowing claims and over recent years, we successfully represented the Intervener, Protect (formerly Public Concern at Work), in leading whistleblowing cases in the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. To discuss the current protections available to whistleblowers, we have recorded a podcast addressing this important topic. In this podcast, Merrill April (Partner, CM Murray LLP), Nick Hawkins (Senior Associate, CM Murray LLP), Louise O'Connor (Associate, CM Murray LLP) and Sophie Rothwell (Associate, CM Murray LLP) are joined by Charlotte Davies (Barrister, Littleton Chambers) to discuss key areas of whistleblowing, including the strategic and tactical issues which need to be considered when contemplating a whistleblowing claim: • Navigating the legal landscape of whistleblowing legislation - practical advice on identifying core elements of a whistleblowing claim including the standing of a worker to bring a claim, the necessary requirements of a reasonable belief and what constitutes a public interest.  • Potential redress and remedies - a consideration of recent decisions and the potential damages available to a successful claimant.  • Recent trends in whistleblowing - examining recent judgments and the cultural shift in attitudes towards whistleblowing.  • Public policy considerations in whistleblowing cases - the role of the Intervener, and key principles which have been determined. If you would like to discuss any of these issues further, or for guidance on your specific rights, responsibilities and potential liabilities, please contact Partner Merrill April, Senior Associate Nick Hawkins or Associates Louise O'Connor and Sophie Rothwell, all of whom specialise in employment and partnership law issues for multi-national employers, senior executives, firms and partners. Please visit: www.cm-murray.com/people

Blowing the Whistle: Key Issues for Senior Executives and their Advisers

We are delighted to bring you this recording of an expert discussion between members of leading international employment law alliance Innangard, of which CM Murray is a founder member, exploring and offering insight in to key concerns for employers in managing the workplace re-entry of their employees in Ireland, Germany and Spain. The discussion is hosted by CM Murray Partner Beth Hale, with contributions from Regan O'Driscoll (Ireland), Dr. Ulf Goeke (Germany), and Juan José Hita Fernández and Laia Carra (Spain). The key questions addressed by the panel include: 1. What is the current position in Ireland, Germany and Spain in relation to lockdown? 2. What is the key current advice for employers in those countries in relation to re-entry to the workplace and how they manage that? 3. What health and safety obligations do employers have in relation to providing a safe place of work in Ireland, Germany and Spain? 4. What steps should those employers be taking to prepare for re-entry? 5. What rights do employees in Ireland, Germany and Spain have if they believe the workplace is not safe to return to? If you would like to discuss any concerns or questions arising from this podcast, for a review of your policies and procedures, or for specific legal advice on particular circumstances, please contact our partners Sarah Chilton or Beth Hale.

Multinational Employers Managing Workplace Re-entry of Employees: Ireland, Germany and Spain

We are delighted to bring you this recording of an expert discussion between members of leading international employment law alliance Innangard, of which CM Murray is a founder member, exploring and offering insight in to key concerns for employers in managing the workplace re-entry of their employees in the UK, Italy, Switzerland and Argentina. The discussion is hosted by CM Murray Partner Beth Hale, with contributions from Anna Cozzi, Daverio & Florio (Italy), Michèle Stutz, MME Legal (Switzerland), Mercedes Balado Bevilacqua, MBB Abogados (guest speaker, Argentina) and CM Murray Partner Sarah Chilton. The key questions addressed by the panel include: 1. What is the current position in the UK, Italy, Switzerland and Argentina in relation to lockdown? 2. What is the key current advice for employers in those countries in relation to re-entry to the workplace and how they manage that? 3. What health and safety obligations do employers have in relation to providing a safe place of work in the UK, Italy, Switzerland and Argentina? 4. What steps should those employers be taking to prepare for re-entry? 5. What rights do employees in the UK, Italy, Switzerland and Argentina have if they believe the workplace is not safe to return to? If you would like to discuss any concerns or questions arising from this podcast, for a review of your policies and procedures, or for specific legal advice on particular circumstances, please contact our partners Sarah Chilton or Beth Hale.

Multinational Employers Managing Workplace Re-entry of Employees: UK, Italy, Switzerland & Argentina

This short (10-minute) podcast brings you highlights from a panel of leading international legal, regulatory and wealth management experts from Switzerland and the UK, who discuss Personal De-risking for Senior Executives and Founders from a Legal, Regulatory, Wealth Management and Reputational Perspective, including in relation to their directorship roles and risks; planning of their personal and business interests in the event of serious ill-health; personal tax and succession planning; and managing personal investments to avoid reputational harm. It was recorded in February 2020 at the International Conference on Risk, Reward and Reputation Management Issues for Senior Executives and Founders in London, organised by the International Forum of Senior Executive Advisers (IFSEA). In this podcast, panel moderator Corinne Staves (Maurice Turnor Gardner LLP, UK) and panellists Dr. Lucy Gordon (MME Legal, Switzerland), Laurence Winston (Crowell & Moring LLP, UK) and Nick Blogg (LGT Vestra LLP, UK) discuss the high-level issues faced by senior executives and founders in relation to planning, insurances, lasting powers of attorney, wills and managing risk associated with secondary roles, such as charity trusteeships, including: • The importance of analysing, understanding and planning for the personal risks faced by international senior executives and founders in their business lives. • What steps can international senior executives and founders take to avoid these risks, put controls in place or mitigate their impact, including D&O insurance, its coverage and limitations? • What questions are these individuals and their loved ones failing to ask themselves and their advisers to manage risks in their personal lives? • On a cheery final note: We’re all going to die. What should senior executives and founders be doing about it? To find out further information about the International Forum of Senior Executive Advisers, upcoming events and how to become a member, please visit: www.cm-murry.com/ifsea.

Personal De-Risking for Senior Executives and Founders

We are delighted to bring you this recording of an expert discussion between leading Law Firm  Partnership & Employment Law, Regulatory and HR Specialists on Managing Bullying and Harassment Issues in Law Firms: Dealing with the Past, Realigning for the Future. Chair: Clare Murray, Managing Partner, CM Murray Panellists: Rob Hind, HR Consultant and Chair of People in Law Sarah Chilton Partner, CM Murray LLP Beth Hale, Partner & GC, CM Murray LLP Iain Miller, Partner, Kingsley Napley LLP (Ethics, Investigations and Regulatory specialist) The key themes addressed by the expert panel on the legal and practical handling of investigations, the SRA regulatory implications and obligations, and the steps to realign Partner conduct to Law Firm expectations and standards, include: 1. The likely impact of lockdown and social distancing on bullying and harassment in Law Firms.  2. Is the quiet word appropriate in handling Partner conduct issues, and what role does mediation have to play in dealing with harassment and bullying complaints against Partners?  3. How can Law Firms empower HR teams to escalate and address Partner conduct issues?   4. What is the effect of overpromising confidentiality to complainants?  5. What are the key elements of a sexual harassment and bullying investigation, and how should they be conducted to protect and support complainants, witnesses, and Partners alike in those investigation processes?  6. What tools, systems and processes can Law Firms use to realign Partner behaviours for the future?  7. How can Law Firms open up really close-knit teams, including lateral hire teams, to ensure proper senior management oversight?

Managing Bullying and Harassment Issues in Law Firms – Expert Discussion

Often, emergency decisions need to be made in Professional Services firms to ensure the long-term survival of the business. This has become a daily reality for some firms during this global health and financial crisis, where decisions like pruning the partner ranks and reducing or deferring partner drawings, distributions and promotions or even corporate restructuring may need to be taken. But the aftermath of a quick decision without appreciating the potential legal risks could cost just as much money and time as the firm may have been hoping to save by making the decision in the first place. It is therefore even more important in a crisis to understand the potential pitfalls in decision-making in relation to Partnerships and LLPs and mitigate the risks as far as possible from the outset. In this Zoominar, chaired by Zulon Begum, you can hear the leading partnership and LLP silk John Machell QC and expert partnership and LLP adviser to Professional Services firms, Sarah Chilton discuss some of the issues that arise for firms decision-making in a COVID-19 world, including: 1. Whether a firm is subject to any fetters when exercising a contractual discretion to exit a partner on a no-fault basis. Getting this right is vital as failure to do so may make the firm management’s decision void, potentially resulting in the partner continuing to accrue profit share rights. What if there are no relevant powers provided for in the Partnership or LLP Agreement? And is it really necessary to document the reasons for every decision made at the height of a crisis and if so, how?  2. Which risks should a firm consider before taking a decision in response to COVID-19 which may affect some partners more disproportionately than others? And how might a firm insure themselves against sex, age, disability or other discrimination and whistleblowing claims from disgruntled partners affected by their decision-making?  3. What if your Partnership or LLP Agreement requires you to hold physical meetings to pass a resolution?  4. How can firms ensure that they implement a compliant partner appraisal and decision-making process in the middle of a lockdown that has disrupted the normal way many partners were required to work? What information should be obtained, shared and recorded and do firms have less onerous obligations if there is no express contractual process?  5. Which procedural and substantive rights should a firm implement when exiting a partner to insulate it against common challenges?  6. Which issues should firms in distress bear in mind when making material changes and key strategic decisions around mergers, appointing insolvency practitioners or agreeing pre-pack, and what might be the consequences of getting it wrong? If you would like to discuss any of the issues raised in this podcast further, or for guidance on your specific rights, responsibilities and potential liabilities, please contact Partners Zulon Begum and Sarah Chilton.

hubhopper

UK employment law information and advice

hubhopper