Olswang

Olswang that ends well?

“I wanted clients I could relate to, like the BBC and Microsoft – not your run-of-the-mill investment banks.” This was how one of our interviewees explained why he chose Olswang. He won’t have been disappointed, but on arrival he may have been surprised to find that alongside trendy media clients like eBay, Guardian Media, ITV, Time Warner and Hustler Hollywood (UK) you’ll see plenty of those ‘run of the mill’ finance names – Anglo Irish Bank, Investec Bank, Monument Asset Management, Star Investment Trust and Prestbury Investment Holdings to name but a few. This is because the ’Swang is far more than a media boutique; it’s a place to get a rounded, not a specialist, training. In London’s corporate finance market, the Chambers UK rankings put it alongside firms like Baker & McKenzie, Denton Wilde Sapte, LG and Pinsent Masons. So, though it is still heavy with media clients, if you’re thinking of applying here then you need to realise just how much emphasis is placed on corporate business. In 2007, the firm ran a huge marketing campaign to play up this part of its activities: “There was even a big advert which took up a whole escalator in London Bridge tube station.”

Are we done talking about corporate yet? Well, no. Several of our interviewees confessed that, despite all the marketing, they had still been surprised at the firm’s practice profile. “We’re not quite as media as people think,” said one. Another added: “I thought there would be more media seats than there actually are. The firm is quite clear about it, but people choose not to see it.” We repeat, don’t be one of those people: select the firm for what it is, not what it is perceived to be. It’s compulsory to do a seat in corporate – whether that be private equity, mainstream M&A or tax – although we did hear a whisper that “some people get out of it if they show zero interest.” Remember, you didn’t hear that from us! Media seats are unsurprisingly the most popular and competition for them is fierce.

Current managing partner Mark Devereux (“one of the nicest guys in the world”) founded the firm in 1981, along with Simon Olswang. Since then, the firm has broadened its horizons, opening outposts in Brussels (a competition seat is available here for trainees) and Berlin to add to its UK offices in London and Reading. The Berlin office has gone from strength to strength since its launch in 2007. Having added a posse of Linklaters lawyers, it most recently scooped a team of 11 from Freshfields in Germany. Olswang also had American connections courtesy of a ‘best friend’ relationship with Florida-headquartered Greenberg Traurig until recently, when the US firm set up its own office in London. Olswang asserted that the separation was of little consequence: the link only provided 2% of its annual revenue and the two firms still work together on some matters.

In other news, 11 staff were made redundant in early 2009 as a result of the recession. The firm also decided to stagger its annual intake of 24 trainees, allowing 12 to join in August 2009 and deferring the remaining 12 until March 2010. Most trainees work in London, but each year a small number are recruited to Olswang’s second office in Reading, which handles employment, real estate and corporate matters.

The big bang

We’ll get to the sexy stuff later, we promise, but let’s talk more about corporate. As you might expect, media clients permeate this department anyway, and in fact the firm is counting on its established relationships with media, technology and telecoms clients to see it through the recession. For instance, it advised RDF Media Group, an independent television production company, on a management buyout; it acted in the £53.2m acquisition of Virgin Radio by Times of India Group; and Australian client Photon Group came to the firm for its largest UK deal, the acquisition of Naked Communications (which rather disappointingly turns out to be a multi-jurisdictional communications planning agency). Sports enthusiasts may take interest in the acquisition of the Outside Broadcasts division of BBC Resources, which aids coverage of events including Wimbledon, the Olympics and the football World Cup.

Despite all this, the department has seen less work coming in lately, and most of the firm’s redundancies came from here and real estate, a trend noted by the trainees themselves. “People are a bit nervous here as the market is the worst it’s been in ten years.” Still, trainees who were previously resistant to the idea of a corporate seat found themselves won over by this hard-working team: “You might think that corporate can be a bit dry after having done the LPC, but when you deal with real companies and real people it becomes much more enjoyable.” Trainees noticed the distinct lack of client interaction in this seat compared to others but did mention a number of important skills they had picked up.

The finance seat is an admin-heavy experience and trainees spoke of being involved in documenting debt transactions and drafting board minutes. Some sources complained about a lack of support staff to help with less glamorous tasks, saying: “Bundling takes about 30 to 40% of the time, and we really shouldn’t have to sort out bills when on a major transaction.” Trainees said they felt comfortable in putting such issues to seniors and were confident that management would listen to their concerns. We were also told that Olswang does not have a late night culture and, though long hours are sometimes necessary, “you get praise for what you do well, so doing late nights is easier in that atmosphere.” Free taxis are laid on for those who do have to stay late. At this point we should comment on matters that pre-date the current trainees. Way back when, during the dotcom boom, Olswang lawyers had to work their stylish socks off to keep up with the demand for their services.

In property – an important department to the firm – trainees can run their own files, mainly landlord and tenant and conveyancing matters. The group drew praise for the amount of trust it placed in trainees, and it certainly has a good roster of clients, including Timberland (the shoe people not the man himself) and Legal & General. Liked for its relaxed atmosphere, an adept property litigation team acted for UBS Global Asset Management against Tesco in a lease renewal matter regarding a large city centre store. Another explosive dispute arose out of the major blast and ensuing inferno at the Buncefield oil depot. The firm’s client, RO Developments, sought damages from Buncefield’s owners and operators when the sale of its property fell through after it was damaged in the explosion.

Thriller

And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for… drumroll, curtain up, ta-dah! Yes, it’s Olswang’s muchvaunted – and much-praised – commercial group. Much as we played up the corporate department, it’s easy to see why students start to drool when they read about this area, which includes seats in IP, competition/regulatory and media, communications and telecoms (MCT). John Malkovich, Cate Blanchett, Ricky Gervais and Jeremy Clarkson are some of the famous names that have used the ’Swang in the past. And there are plenty of film, TV and theatre projects in which the lawyers have been involved. The list of hits (and misses, to be fair) is impressive – Olswang advised Celador Films on Slumdog Millionaire, Left Bank Pictures on The Damned United, Pathé Pictures on The Duchess, Littlestar Services on the stage version of Mamma Mia!, Cameron Mackintosh on I’d Do Anything and Momentum Pictures on Lesbian Vampire Killers. RandomHouse, Yell Group and Guardian News and Media are some of the clients from the publishing sector. “I’m allowed to do it all as a trainee, whether it be film, sport, music or whatever,” said one contact excitedly. Additionally, a few trainees manage to get secondments to media clients.

In the world of broadcasting, the firm is getting to grips with new developments in television online. You may have read about Project Kangaroo – BBC Worldwide’s joint venture with Channel 4 and ITV to create one huge video-on-demand service incorporating BBC iPlayer and the commercial channels’ own services. Olswang advised BBC Worldwide on this project, which was later scrapped after the Competition Commission stepped in. Shame.

Trainees don’t entirely miss out the showbiz lifestyle. “I nearly got to meet David Baddiel, but I had Keira Knightley and some directors as well,” said one, unwittingly winning our Student Guide award for Cheeky Brag of the Year. We heard also that having Channel 4 as a client has its advantages: “At an industry event we learnt how to moonwalk!” Of course, rubbing shoulders with slebs is definitely the exception, not the rule. Tasks like working on cast, crew and directors’ agreements, composing acknowledgment letters and helping to run film finance deals are more common. On smaller TV deals, trainees might even do some of the negotiating. Trainees have “a feeling” that this team is tilting more in favour of tech work, particularly outsourcing. They got twice as many outsourcing instructions in 2008 than in 2007, and won a number of new clients, including Orange and NASDAQ OMX. Royal Mail and the organisers of the 2012 Olympic Games have also used the team for outsourcing projects.

The IP seat drew rave reviews. Trade mark and copyright work is the mainstay of this team, which advises many high-street fashion retailers including River Island and Hugo Boss. Check out the firm’s blog at fashionistaatlaw.blogspot.com.

O goodness

In Olswang’s grad recruitment brochure (hardback – posh) there’s a lot of talk about its unstuffy nature and lack of hierarchy, complete with little anecdotes from trainees about how they can wear no ties and ‘uncorporate shoes’. Our own conversations with trainees support these ideas: interviewees described the atmosphere as “liberal, relaxed and less straight-laced than other firms.” We prodded a bit more and were told that not only do trainees “get on really well with the secretarial staff,” but also that there’s “no need to behave around partners.” Perhaps this is the reason why Olswang regularly features in the Sunday Times’ list of ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’. Interestingly, secretaries are also listed along with the partners and other fee earners on the firm’s website, which is a nice touch. As for the trainees themselves, they are “not shy or retiring,” yet despite having a successful rapper among their number, don’t make any claims to be “cool.” They do, however, have an understanding of just how competitive it is to gain a training place at the ’Swang, so be under no illusion as to the ease of impressing the recruiters.

Olswang doesn’t have its head in the clouds so those expecting “a lot of blue-sky legal thinking” might be disappointed. Instead why not look at its commendable feeton- the-ground corporate social responsibility programme? “We’ve got heaps of initiatives to make this firm a little more altruistic and sustainable,” trainees told us. For instance, “5% of our time has to be spent on pro bono work.” Surprisingly few UK firms have set such a clear pro bono policy. Olswang does its bit for the environment too, with one green initiative being “O-cycle, where you can advertise items you may want to get rid of on the firm’s website.” So far such items have included a DVD player, a TV, gig tickets and plant seeds.

Sited on High Holborn, not too far from BPP Law School or the delights of Covent Garden, the exterior of Olswang’s office looks as trendy as folk assume it ought to be. The firm’s busy social calendar typically includes theatre trips, regular trainee lunches, themed drinks on the roof on the last Friday of the month and, in a dangerous flirtation with copyright infringement, a mock talent show called “The O Factor.” Some MCT team members entered the competition as Village People and the tax team produced an Abba tribute. The winner of the show was an Amy Winehouse impersonator.

And finally...

If you’re interested in media law but want to couple it with a more mainstream corporate experience, Olswang is ideal. In 2009, 17 out of 24 people stayed with the firm on qualification.

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Correction: In the print edition of this feature, we said that 'if necessary', Olswang would consider asking 2010/11 starters to defer. The firm has asked us to make it clear that that will not be the case, and future recruitment will continue as normal.