Professional briefing - The Journal Online

Twists and turns
Be imaginative; and be prepared for
unexpected turns of events. As the
energy market changed while his
company was undergoing
restructuring, Armour found some
parties to agreements reached seeking
to renegotiate them when they
thought they were going to be
disadvantaged, while others of course
were equally keen to see them carried
through. He even faced a general
meeting when shareholders who had
lodged a motion then argued against
it being passed. At one point, to
counter a group who were buying up
shares in order to “derail” a meeting,
he went to court in New York in order
to have the company delisted – a
tactic that has since been outlawed.
Keep a focus on getting through. If
you have a deal in your hand, take it.
“There might be a better one round
the corner, but the chances of landing
the fish are remote.” Whichever route
you take will have drawbacks and
pitfalls. The board will be looking to
you to keep the right balancing act
and to keep them out of jail.
They may also rely on you to read
and advise on documents even if
they are the ones who have to sign
them. Summarise everything for
them, and keep them informed
about what you are doing.
And yes, there is light at the end of
the tunnel, even if it is a very different
company that emerges. You may end
up as the sole survivor; but the
company “needs a history, a
connection with the past, and to avoid
making the same mistakes again”.
You may think life will be
extremely dull once it’s all over; but
strangely, new challenges are just as
likely to come your way! Now British
Energy faces a whole new world of
climate change, insecurity of energy
supply, and (UK) Government policy
once again for investing in nuclear
power. Compare that to 2002, when
it was seen as a company just
caretaking its way to the end of its life.
“If you do well,” Armour
concluded, “you get a huge amount
of satisfaction that you have probably
played a pivotal role in keeping the
ship afloat, saving jobs and
shareholder value, and improving
prospects for the future.”
Though no longer in post as general
counsel, Armour is still working as a
consultant to EDF, the company that
ultimately bought British Energy.
However he is pondering his next
move and looking to see what
opportunities will arise. Surely life
will be just a little quieter?
www.lawscotjobs.co.uk
L-r: Speaker Gary MacDonald, Jamie Millar, Janet Hood, vice chair Colin Anderson, speaker Rhona Harper, at the Hub
Sector “rising to
challenge”: Millar
The in-house sector, just like its
counterparts in private practice, is
rising to the challenges of “the worst
economic climate in living memory”,
Jamie Millar, the Law Society of
Scotland’s Vice President, told the
meeting. That applied equally to
those working for banks that had
gone from being the powerhouses
of the UK economy to relying on
state assistance, local authorities
experiencing major spending cuts,
and to the wider corporate sector.
“Many in-house teams”, he
added, “have helped private practice
by taking secondments from firms
who have seen M&A work and
property work reduce drastically.”
While every job lost in the
profession “is felt with regret
throughout our collegiate
profession”, there had not been the
widespread job losses and
insolvencies which some merchants
of gloom had predicted.
Looking to the future, the
coming legislation to permit
alternative business structures
would be a seismic change of even
greater effect than those that took
place in the 1980s – the abolition of
scale fees “and other ills which were
predicted to bring about the end of
the legal profession as we knew it”.
Instead, what had been a
“comfortable, introverted
profession” was transformed into
“the dynamic profession which runs
large, successful and profitable
businesses with increasing
specialism and expertise”.
Equally, with the present bill,
“we should ask not what harm it
can do for the profession, but
what opportunities it can offer”.
The Society intended to be a
regulator and as such would work
to ensure that solicitors were not
competitively disadvantaged but
could compete on a level playing
field with other providers.
Millar’s address was followed by the
Group’s AGM, in which Chairman
Janet Hood reported on her work as
Group Convener for the
Representation Committees under the
Society’s new structure, particularly
addressing the plight of the
graduates, trainees and young lawyers
currently facing an uncertain future.
Through networking events with
chambers of commerce and other
business leaders they hoped to
demonstrate the value of always
having a lawyer on the team. In-house
lawyers could help by enabling links
for all openings in their organisations
to be made available to the Society.
She also commented on the
continuing unawareness among
law students of the existence of
the in-house sector and the ease
with which solicitors can move
between it and private practice.
“One of our main goals for future
law fairs is to increase awareness
of the ILG and its links with the
Society… We are also looking into
meeting with the university law
schools and working at increasing
our in-house profile among
students as future career options.”
The 1980s
reforms
transformed a
“comfortable,
introverted
profession”
into “the
dynamic
profession
which runs
large,
successful and
profitable
businesses
with increasing
specialism and
expertise”
fyi
The Society is networking
with business to try
and demonstrate the
value of always
having a lawyer
on the team
December 09 theJournal / 53