Hogan-Lovells Deal Sparks US-UK Merger Interest

Hogan & Hartson LLP's plans to join with the U.K.'s Lovells LLP has renewed interest in trans-Atlantic mergers on both sides of the pond, but law firms thinking of taking the plunge should expect challenges to meshing cultures and financial systems, consultants said.

Bid-Rigging Case Against Ex-Marsh Execs Dropped

A New York state Supreme Court judge has dismissed criminal indictments against two former Marsh Inc. executives and a former Zurich American Insurance Co. executive accused of participating in a massive bid-rigging and price-fixing scheme.

Deloitte, Grant Thornton To Settle Parmalat Suit

Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and Grant Thornton International have agreed to cough up $15 million to settle with a class of Parmalat SpA stockholders in a suit stemming from the Italian dairy giant's collapse.

Wells Fargo Agrees To Buy Back $1.3B In ARS

Wells Fargo & Co. has reached agreements to buy back about $1.3 billion in auction rate securities and pay a $1.9 million penalty to the state regulators that investigated allegations the bank misled customers about the riskiness of the investment.

Food Safety Bill Clears Senate Committee

The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions voted unanimously on Wednesday to report a bill giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration broad new powers to regulate food safety issues throughout domestic and import supply chains.

3rd Circ. Stays Philly Newspapers Auction

Bank lenders that lost their ability to use more than $318 million in credit to bid on bankrupt newspaper company Philadelphia Newspapers LLC have won a stay of the company's auction while a federal appeals court considers their case.

Hyundai Heavy Wins $750M, Right To Buy IPIC Stake

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. has won at least $750 million in an arbitration award against the International Petroleum Investment Corp., an oil investment fund of Abu Dhabi's government that allegedly breached a shareholder agreement with HHI.

Quinn Emanuel Atty Among 2 Female Picks For FTC

President Barack Obama has nominated a pair of female attorneys to assume the vacant commissioner positions at the Federal Trade Commission, with one hailing from Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges LLP and the other from the North Carolina Attorney General's Office.