AI ambition, private equity influence and the fight to prove value

A firm's values are meant to guide decision-making and lay the foundation for its culture but sometimes they can end up trying to do too many jobs at once. In this episode, Linzi speaks to marketing director and consultant Hayley Brooksbank who argues for an evolution: moving from values as statements to behaviours as standards. Thank you for listening.

In this episode of Counsel Culture, Linzi and Ben explore the forces reshaping the legal market.They discuss private equity’s growing influence on firms, the gap between AI ambition and real-world adoption, and new research revealing a stark disconnect between general counsel and the C-suite on legal’s value.They also reflect on geopolitical uncertainty, insights from the US market, and Byfield’s work supporting former Vodafone franchisees.Thank you for listening.

Just ahead of International Women's Day, Linzi speaks with Dana Denis-Smith OBE — solicitor, entrepreneur and a leading campaigner for gender equality in the legal profession. Dana is the founder and CEO of Obelisk Support, a legal services business designed to retain experienced lawyers through flexible and remote work, and the founder of the First 100 Years and Next 100 Years projects.  They discuss the progress women have made in law and the structural challenges that still remain. Thank you for listening.

 This week, Linzi is joined by Patrick McCann, Chief Executive of the City of London Law Society, to explore what principled leadership looks like in City of London law right now, and how the profession can lead with both profit and purpose. They discuss City Century (solicitor apprenticeships), Patrick’s award-winning LGBTQ+ leadership programme #TheLLP!, and the culture shifts shaping modern firms, from confidence and care to collaboration over competition. Read more about: City of London Law SocietyCity CenturyDiverCity in Law Thank you for listening.

This week, Linzi and Ben unpack claims that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's arrest was triggered by a report based on media coverage compiled by Republic, as the campaign group pushes for a private prosecution of the former royal and questions swirl over the evidential and political backdrop. They also examine Taylor Wessing’s hunt for external investors to back its start-up funding vehicle Outpace, and what it signals about law firms’ growing appetite for alternative capital and tech-enabled growth strategies.The pair then turn to why mega law firm mergers fall apart – and how much firms actually get paid when transformative tie-ups collapse – before heading to New York, where the law firm space race is intensifying and Linklaters is expanding its office footprint by more than 50%. Finally, they discuss a closely watched court case on whether bankers can be fired for demanding sleep, and a £1m claim brought by homeowners against a developer over a badly fitted lavatory, exploring what both disputes reveal about workplace culture, liability and the limits of employer responsibility.Thank you for listening.

This week, Linzi is joined by Alex Novarese, former Legal Business Editor and Head of Content and Digital Marketing at HSF Kramer.The pair discuss the latest RollOnFriday Best Law Firms to Work At 2026 survey, which shows improving morale across the profession despite ongoing frustrations around pay, before turning to Taylor Wessing’s financials, where a £10.3m top-earner figure highlights widening partner pay gaps ahead of the firm’s approved transatlantic merger with Winston & Strawn. They also examine how the Magic Circle firms have performed in recent years, as traditional UK elites face sustained pressure from global competitors and shifting client demands.Thank you for listening.

Linzi and Ben explore the growing role of private equity investment within the legal sector and what it could mean for the future shape and ownership of law firms. They also examine the unraveling of a decade-long alliance between four leading European firms, Gide Loyrette Nouel, Chiomenti, Gleiss Lutz and Cuatrecasas, spanning 27 offices and around 2,000 lawyers across the continent.The pair also discuss how the UK’s merger clearance process is being sped up with government backing and what it means for deal scrutiny, after the CMA blocked no mergers last year. Finally, they look at how some general counsel are being drawn into succession planning conversations, including the question of whether GCs should play a role in hiring their own successors, before turning to Osborne Clarke’s data-driven approach to sustainability and decarbonisation planning.Thank you for listening.

Linzi is joined by Georgina Bennett-Warner, Head of Marketing at Wedlake Bell, to unpack what it really takes to deliver a successful law firm rebrand - from recognising the early signs that your brand is no longer fit for purpose to managing the internal change that comes with it.They explore how Georgina and team built an inclusive branding committee spanning all levels of the firm, the tools and tactics that helped bring people along during the launch, and how Wedlake Bell balanced its heritage with a more modern identity. The conversation also looks at what “bedding in” the brand means in practice, how success is measured beyond the visuals, and what Georgina would do differently next time.Thank you for listening.

This week, Linzi was joined by Michael Estill and Sam Nicholls from Kindleworth to explore why more partners are leaving big law to launch boutique firms — and what it really takes to make a successful spin-out work. Drawing on Kindleworth’s experience supporting dozens of new firm launches, they unpack the motivations behind going independent and the realities partners need to confront before taking the leap.The conversation also looks at how to assess whether a spin-out is genuinely viable versus moving firms and how Kindleworth’s operational model differs from traditional big law support. The episode closes with a forward-looking discussion on platform firms and specialisation, and practical advice for lawyers who are “thinking about it” but haven’t yet made the move.Thank you for listening.

In this week’s episode, Linzi and Ben explore the rise of private equity investment in the legal industry and what it signals for the future of law firm ownership. They also break down A&O Shearman’s first post-merger accounts and discuss just how challenging it is to manage PR around major legal mergers.The pair also discuss Clifford Chance’s move to cut around 10% of its London business services roles, before turning to the 2025 Budget and the government’s decision to scrap planned national insurance increases for LLP Partners.Thank you for listening.