Fieldfisher
Interesting selling points
- Fieldfisher is a leading advisor to clients in the energy and natural resources, financial, technology, and life sciences sectors.
- Chambers and Partners has awarded the firm Band 1 rankings for its Administrative & Public Law: Mainly Public Sector & Charities, Capital Markets: AIM, Employee Share Schemes & Incentives: Employee Ownership, Franchising, Personal Injury: Mainly Claimant: Industrial Disease, Public Inquiries and Sanctions departments.
- Carries out a broad range of private client work, including work relating to medical negligence, personal injury, immigration and court of protection, as well as work for organisations, indicating there is more variety on offer for trainees than at many other City firms.
- Works with earlier stage businesses as well as large corporates, suggesting lawyers have the opportunity to gain exposure to businesses at various stages in their life cycles.
- No mandatory seats during the training contract.
- The firm’s clients include Peloton, Playground Global, Beowulf Mining and Petrichor Partners.
- Fieldfisher has developed Condor, an alternative legal solutions platform which offers clients a range of flexible, efficient services. It combines the legal expertise of Fieldfisher’s lawyers with the negotiation, data management and technology capabilities of a leading third-party provider. This demonstrates the firm's drive to remain at the cutting-edge of legal solutions.
- The firm established “thenetwork” diversity and inclusion committee, which runs reverse mentoring for various senior leaders.
- The firm's commitment to pro bono and CSR is reflected in its "Just Purpose" pillars. In particular, the firm runs an award-winning pro bono practice, with a focus on representing individuals experiencing inequality, strengthening organisations, and driving sustainability.
We cover these selling points in more detail below, alongside other relevant firm facts and characteristics.
Practice areas / services
Fieldfisher is a full-service law firm, which offers the following services:
- ABL and Trade Finance
- Advertising and Consumer Protection
- Anti-counterfeiting and anti-privacy services
- Antitrust
- Arbitration
- Asset Finance
- Banking Litigation
- Brexit
- Bribery and Corruption
- Business Strategy Consulting
- Cards and Payments
- Charities and Social Enterprise
- Climate Change
- Commercial Crime
- Commercial Fraud
- Commodities
- Communications and Digital Infrastructure
- Competition and Consumer
- Competition Litigation
- Construction
- Consulting
- Consumer Protection
- Contentious Construction
- Contentious Insolvency
- Contentious Tax
- Copyright and Database Rights
- Corporate
- Corporate Disputes
- Corporate PPAs
- Corporate Tax
- Court of Protection
- Criminal Tax Investigations
- Crisis Management
- Cyber and Security
- Data and Privacy
- Dawn Raids
- Debt Finance
- Debt Recovery
- Defamation and Privacy
- Derivatives
- Derivatives Disputes
- Design Rights
- Digital and Social Media
- Digital Transformation
- Dispute Resolution
- Distribution and Agency
- Domain Names
- Emerging Companies and Venture Capital
- Employee Equity Incentives
- Employee Ownership Solutions
- Employment
- Employment Disputes
- Employment, Pensions, Immigration and Compliance (EPIC)
- Energy Disputes
- Energy Regulatory
- Environment
- Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance
- Equity Capital Markets
- EU Regulatory
- FeeSolve
- Fieldfisher Employment Law Network: telework legislation in Europe
- Financial Crime
- Financial Crime Compliance
- Financial Markets and Products
- Financial Regulation
- Financial Services Technology and Payments
- Food and Beverage
- Franchise Disputes
- Franchise Transactions
- Franchising Distribution Agency and IP Licensing
- Fraud, Financial Crime and Investigations
- Health and Safety
- Hedge Funds
- IBORs
- Immigration
- Inclusiveness, diversity and culture
- Independent Investigations
- Infrastructure Planning
- In-House Legal Teams
- Inquests
- Inquiries, Inquests and Investigations
- Insurance and Reinsurance Disputes
- Intangibles Tax
- Intellectual Property
- Internal Investigations
- International Criminal Law
- International Trade
- Investigating discrimination and sexual harassment allegations
- Investigations
- Investment
- Investment Funds
- Investment Funds Tax
- Inward Investment
- IP Licensing
- Joint Ventures
- Media Industry Tax
- Medical Negligence
- Merger Arbitrage
- Mergers and Acquisitions
- Mesothelioma and Asbestos
- Money Laundering
- Non-Contentious Construction
- Patents
- Pensions
- Pensions Disputes
- People Issues
- Personal Injury
- Planning
- Private Client
- Private Equity
- Private Prosecutions
- Product Liability
- Professional Discipline
- Professional Negligence
- Professional Services
- Project Finance
- Property Tax
- Public and Regulatory
- Public Inquiries
- Public Law and Judicial Review
- Public Policy
- Public Procurement
- Public Procurement Litigation
- Public Sector Procurement
- Real Estate
- Real Estate Finance
- Real Estate Litigation
- Regulatory Investigations
- Regulatory Training
- Restructuring and Insolvency
- Restructuring and Non-Contentious Insolvency
- Risk and Compliance
- Sanctions and Export Control
- Satellite and Space Projects
- Searches, Arrests, Interviews under Caution
- Shareholder Disputes
- Sourcing and Projects
- Sport
- Startups and Structurings
- Structured Finance and Securitisation
- Supply Chain and Logistics
- Tax and Structuring
- Tech Disputes
- Tech Transactions
- Technology and Data
- Technology Disputes
- Technology Regulation
- Trademarks and Brands
- Trade Remedies
- Trade Secrets and Confidential Information
- Trials and Appeals
- Value Added Tax
- Venture Debt and Growth Finance
- Whistleblowing
- Workplace Investigations
- eDisclosure
Chambers and Partners, a leading analyst of the legal market, has awarded Fieldfisher its highest ‘Band 1’ rankings for the following departments: Administrative & Public Law: Mainly Public Sector & Charities, Capital Markets: AIM, Employee Share Schemes & Incentives: Employee Ownership, Franchising, Personal Injury: Mainly Claimant: Industrial Disease, Public Inquiries and Sanctions. See here for more information
Key sectors / industries
Fieldfisher has key sectors in the following areas:
Work
Fieldfisher works with a number of notable clients, including:
- Space Norway: The firm advised Space Norway on the Arctic Broadband Satellite Mission (ASBM) which will deliver the world’s first dedicated broadband services to the Arctic region.
- Myeloma UK: Fieldfisher led health charity, Myeloma UK, to a victory as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) reverses a previous decision and grants approval for the DaraCyBorD treatment for AL amyloidosis on the NHS.
- See-Saw Films: The firm acted for See-Saw Films, a British Australian film and television production company on their deal with Michael Ende Productions to create a new film series adaption of ‘The Neverending Story.’
Older examples
- Petrichor Partners: the firm advised Petrichor Partners on a recommended all cash takeover of UK oil and gas producer and explorer Egdon Resources PLC for £26.6 million.
- Playground Global: Fieldfisher advised Playground Global, a Silicon Valley ‘deeptech’ venture capital fund, on a £13 million Series A funding round for Phasecraft, a quantum software company and market leader in quantum intellectual property.
- Beowulf Mining: the firm advised Beowulf Mining on a capital raise worth £9.1 million to help progress the development of the company’s Kallak iron ore project in Northern Sweden.
Offices / global footprint / expansion
Headquarters: London, Fieldfisher London.
Offices: the firm has 23 offices across the globe, including offices in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Beijing, Berlin, Birmingham, Dublin and Paris.
Insights, internships and other opportunities
Fieldfisher offers a First Steps programme specifically for first year students or students in their second year of a four-year degree. It is a two day programme that provides an insight into a career at the firm through workshops and networking opportunities.
The firm also offers a Diversity Access Scheme for applicants from underrepresented backgrounds. It is a two-week programme that gives applicants the opportunity to gain work experience at the firm and develop their professional skills. Previous attendees also heard from the in-house team at Peloton.
Fieldfisher offers a summer vacation scheme for final year students of all degree disciplines and penultimate year Law students. The vacation scheme is two weeks long and includes an induction with vacation scheme participants from other offices. It offers the opportunity to attend workshops, team-building events and social events, and pairs attendees with a supervisor and a trainee buddy.
Training contract
The firm keeps in contact with its trainees from the very beginning. Once a trainee has accepted an offer, they will have opportunities to engage with the firm via events, newsletters and seminars. Trainees are also assigned a buddy from the beginning.
The training contract is made up of four six-month seats. There are no compulsory seats. Seat options include Real Estate, Personal Injury, Finance and Technology to name but a few. Built into each seat rotation are regular meetings with supervisors and the Early Career Development Manager.
Secondments
The firm currently offers international secondments in three offices: Berlin, Silicon Valley and Vienna.
Technology and innovation
The firm focuses on ways it can “improve efficiency” for both its clients and lawyers. Examples of this drive towards efficiency include:
- Contract Express: the firm uses Contract Express, market-leading document automation software, to speed up the production of routine documents. It allows the firm’s lawyers and client’s in-house teams to get to a first draft much more quickly.
- Condor: the firm’s alternative legal solutions platform offers clients a range of flexible, efficient services. It combines the legal expertise of Fieldfisher’s lawyers with the negotiation, data management and technology capabilities of a leading third-party provider.
- E-discovery: the firm’s resolution and regulatory teams use e-discovery platforms like Relativity to assist clients with cost-effective and accurate reviews of data.
Corporate social responsibility
Fieldfisher’s pro bono efforts focus on strengthening organisations. Examples of its pro bono work includes:
- iProbono: this initiative was founded by Shireen Irani, Director of Corporate Responsibility at Fieldfisher. It is one of the leading justice organisations in Asia, and helps to litigate for people in need, advocate for equal justice, and strengthen civil society.
- National Deaf Children’s Society: this is the UK’s leading organisation for deaf children. The firm has worked with NDCS to provide legal advice and representation for deaf children who are being denied their educational rights, through the firm’s ‘Opening Doors to Education’ programme.
- 5Rights: 5Rights is a charity focused on protecting the rights of children in relation to privacy and data online. Fieldfisher has been advising the organisation on various aspects of privacy law and providing advice to the charity in its response to the ICO’s Age Appropriate Code of Conduct.
Diversity and inclusion
Fieldfisher is committed “to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels welcomed” and examples of how it seeks to do this include:
- thenetwork: this is an action group within the firm that focuses on diversity and inclusion. It leads reverse mentoring for leaders within the firm, and hosts interactive Q&A sessions and seminars.
- The Postpartum Plan: the firm partnered with the Postpartum Plan, which is an online membership plan for mothers. It offers support during the first year postpartum from trained experts, covering everything from medicine to nutrition. The package is also offered to all Fieldfisher employees going on family leave, new parents 35 weeks into their pregnancy, and to any employee during the first three months after the birth of a child.
- Career Focus Partnership with Queen Mary University: the firm partners with the university to offer support to first year students from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds. This includes skills sessions, year-long mentoring and the opportunity to gain valuable work experience through a short internship.