Ben Edwards

Earth

Freelance journalist and editorial director @pensarmedia. Mostly write about financial markets, banking, investment and legal services. Ex-Dow Jones/WSJ.

Articles

LexisNexis and AI platform Harvey strike legaltech partnership deal

1 week ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

US legal data and research provider LexisNexis and AI platform Harvey have announced a strategic alliance to integrate their technology to support legal workflows. The alliance brings together two giants in the legaltech space, combining LexisNexis’s generative AI technology and legal content and Harveys legal-specific AI platform.
Why accountancy and bookkeeping firms are turning to AI

2 weeks ago | raconteur.net | Ben Edwards

Accountancy and bookkeeping firms are in a bind. Clients are demanding more strategic guidance and advice at a time when the accounting profession is facing a growing talent squeeze as fewer graduates pursue a career in the industry.
Bindmans launches Social Justice Fund aimed at improving access to justice

2 weeks ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

Top 250 UK firm Bindmans is seeking to improve access to justice by donating 10% of client fees to a new fund set up to help vulnerable individuals receive free legal advice. The 10% Social Justice Fund (SJF) – which Bindmans says is the first of its kind in the legal sector – will not only help provide legal services to those most in need, but also support clients with their environmental, social and governance (ESG) scores.
Raising the bar: 2025 innovation in the legal sector

2 weeks ago | raconteur.net | Ben Edwards

The legal profession has not historically had a reputation for being at the cutting edge of technological change. However, over the past few years, firms have been ramping up their innovation efforts by hiring innovation heads and investing more in legal tech. With the development of generative AI technology, the focus on innovation is becoming imperative for firms to remain competitive. While progress is being made, some firms are still struggling to keep up.
Online retailer Ocado rehires Britvic GC as next legal head

2 weeks ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

Online UK grocery business Ocado Group has lined up Mollie Stoker to take over as group general counsel, replacing Neill Abrams who is set to retire after a quarter of a century in the role. Stoker will rejoin from Britvic in September, where she has spent the past two years as GC and company secretary. She was previously deputy GC at Ocado until her departure. In her new role she will have responsibility for all legal matters.
Starbucks on hunt for new legal chief as CLO set to depart ‘in the coming months’

3 weeks ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

Global coffee shop chain Starbucks is searching for a new legal head after it announced it was parting ways with current chief legal officer Brad Lerman. The company announced the news in a regulatory filing on 4 June, saying Lerman “would no longer serve as the company’s EVP, chief legal officer, as of a date to be determined”. The coffee chain added that Lerman is expected to continue serving as CLO until a successor has been hired.
Pérez-Llorca furthers LatAm ambitions with landmark Colombia merger

1 month ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

Spanish firm Pérez-Llorca is set to enter Colombia after agreeing to merge with Gómez-Pinzón in a landmark deal that marks the first merger between a leading Colombian and an Ibero-American firm. Gómez-Pinzón will bring across a 120-lawyer team based in its Bogotá and Medellín offices, with all Gómez-Pinzón partners due to become partners at Pérez-Llorca.
UK GCs say they will keep more work in-house as cost pressures bite - study

1 month ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

More than half of in-house lawyers in the UK say they will send less work to outside counsel over the next five years, according to a Thomson Reuters survey. The 2025 State of the UK Legal Market report found that 54% of UK in-house lawyers say a higher a proportion of work will be done in-house, with 35% of law firms expecting to see the same.
US nuclear power innovator Terrestrial Energy hires GC ahead of public listing

1 month ago | globallegalpost.com | Ben Edwards

US nuclear reactor business Terrestrial Energy has hired Brian Romanzo as general counsel ahead of its transition to become a publicly-listed company. Romanzo joins from franchise development business REP’M Group, where he was also GC. At Terrestrial Energy he will be responsible for all legal matters, bringing with him extensive in-house experience handling corporate, regulatory and transactional matters.
Why it’s time to change the pension narrative

1 month ago | raconteur.net | Ben Edwards

Pensions have often been viewed as a burden for companies in the UK, particularly defined benefit (DB) schemes. For many years, these schemes were gripped by funding shortfalls in the wake of the financial crisis, due to low interest rates and declining asset returns. But times have changed. The UK’s final-salary DB schemes are in much better health, with The Pensions Regulator estimating that 54% are fully funded on an insurance-buyout basis.