Fun piece in the UK Telegraph newspaper about the three way tie up between Olswang, CMS Cameron McKenna and Nabarro and how dress codes have gone all Silicon Valley.
The paper reports…
The UK’s largest legal merger has had an unusual impact on staff wardrobes – lawyers used to ill-fitted suits and bad ties can now wear whatever they want.
Open-neck shirts and smart shoes emerged as an unusual problem during the tie-up talks between the financial services focused company CMS Cameron McKenna, the technology and media specialists Olswang and property experts Nabarro as they worked out plans for the sixth largest law firm in the UK, a deal they completed last week.
“Olswang is a creative law firm in the tech space, with casual attire and open-neck shirts – CMS is very traditional,” said the UK chairman of the enlarged business Penelope Warne.
Now CMS, the largest and most traditional of the three, has decided to loosen up its dress code, meaning lawyers can now turn up to work in trainers and a T-shirt to blend in with their new colleagues at the new concern, which will employ 7,500 staff.
“Even the most traditional of partners, who have been wearing a suit for years, feel like this is a breath of fresh air,” said Ms Warne, who hails from the CMS side. “Law has a reputation for being old fashioned, we want people to feel comfortable.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2017/05/06/lawyers-get-dressing-uks-largest-legal-firm/
