CMS is an international
law firm that offers
legal
Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. ...
and
tax advisory services. It provides companies and organisations with advice on a full range of legal issues. CMS consists of 18 independent law firms with about 80 offices worldwide.
History
In 1999, six
European law firms with 1,400 lawyers and roughly
DM 500 million in joint revenues came together to form CMS. Under the CMS brand, which initially drew criticism, a "partnership of partnerships" emerged. The member law firms retained their established names. A central service unit was created to provide administrative and IT services for the members.
Initially, CMS included law firms from Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and the United Kingdom among others. Over the course of the 2000s, additional law firms joined from France, Italy, Monaco, Switzerland and Spain, along with other countries. In 2008, the law firm opened its first joint office in Russia. With the
merger of CMS Cameron McKenna with
Nabarro and
Olswang
Olswang was an international law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom and with additional offices in Reading, Brussels, Madrid, Paris, Singapore and, since 2011, Munich. It worked closely with a network of firms across eighty countries. ...
in 2016, the law firm expanded once again. This resulted in CMS generating a total revenue of roughly one billion
EUR
The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens ...
for the first time. Today, there are also CMS offices in Latin America and Africa.
Russia
Carter-Ruck
Carter-Ruck is a British law firm founded by Peter Carter-Ruck. The firm specialises in libel, privacy, international law and commercial disputes. The leading legal directories (Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners) rank Carter-Ruck in the to ...
was involved in legal action against ''Financial Times'' journalist
Catherine Belton
Catherine Elizabeth Belton is a journalist and writer. From 2007 to 2013, she was the Moscow correspondent for the ''Financial Times''. In '' Putin's People: How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took On the West'', published in 2020, Belton exp ...
and her publisher HarperCollins over her book ''
Putin’s People''.
In April 2022, CMS law firm was named alongside
Harbour Litigation Funding by
Kevin Hollinrake MP, in a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer
Rishi Sunak MP, as two professional services firms acting for the benefit of Russian state entities during the invasion of Ukraine. The letter highlighted that both Harbour and CMS are working on behalf of the Russian state-owned
DIA to bypass sanction regimes and obtain funds and assets from abroad in order to fund the war in Ukraine.
CMS was named by U.S. congressman Steve Cohen as doing "unscrupulous" work for Russia that undermined democratic values and strengthened the Vladimir Putin regime in Russia. CMS rejected allegations of impropriety and said the firm had not accepted new instructions from individuals associated with the Putin regime.
Structure
CMS coordinates the activities of its members through CMS Legal Services EEIG, a
european economic interest grouping.
In its early phase, it handled administrative tasks, gradually taking on additional duties, e.g. in marketing. CMS Legal Services does not act on behalf of clients. As a not for profit entity, it is financed by means of revenue contributions from the participating law firms, which remain legally independent.
The CMS
Council functions as the highest decision-making body of CMS. It convenes at least twice a year, taking decisions on budgets and the acceptance of new members. Moreover, there is an
Executive Committee
A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...
, which handles strategic issues such as the appointment and governance of the executive team. Each participating law firm appoints representatives to the Committee.
The daily running of CMS is in the hands of a three-person executive team. It consists of Pierre-Sébastien Thill (
Chairman), Duncan Weston (Executive Partner) and Isabel Scholes (
Executive Director
Executive director is commonly the title of the chief executive officer of a non-profit organization, government agency or international organization.
The title is widely used in North American and European not-for-profit organizations, though ...
).
Locations
Currently, CMS has 18 member firms with main headquarters in twelve European, four South American and two African countries. In addition to legal services provided in their home countries, the member law firms are active in other countries via branches, subsidiaries and associated law firms, along with offices and representative offices in other countries.
; Members
* CMS Albiñana & Suárez de Lezo,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
* CMS Adonnino Ascoli & Cavasola Scamoni,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
* CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
* CMS Carey & Allende,
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
* CMS Daly Inamdar,
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
...
* CMS DeBacker,
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
* CMS Derks Star Busmann,
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
* CMS Francis Lefebvre,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
* CMS Grau,
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
* CMS Hasche Sigle,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
* CMS Kluge,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
* CMS Pasquier Ciulla Marquet & Pastor,
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
* CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
* CMS RM Partners,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
* CMS Rodríguez-Azuero,
Colombia
* CMS Rui Pena & Arnaut,
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
* CMS von Erlach Partners,
Switzerland
* CMS Woodhouse Lorente Ludlow,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
Services
CMS pursues a full-service strategy
and offers companies of various sizes worldwide
business-focused advice in law and tax matters. The key specialist areas include
corporate law,
capital markets law
Securities regulation in the United States is the field of U.S. law that covers transactions and other dealings with securities. The term is usually understood to include both federal and state-level regulation by governmental regulatory agencies, ...
,
tax law
Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...
,
energy law
Energy laws govern the use and taxation of energy, both renewable and non-renewable. These laws are the primary authorities (such as caselaw, statutes, rules, regulations and edicts) related to energy. In contrast, energy policy refers to th ...
,
procurement law,
competition law and
labour law.
See also
*
List of 100 largest law firms globally
*
List of largest European law firms
References
External links
*
Firms of the Year 2019
{{Law firms of the United Kingdom
Law firms established in 1999
Law firms of Germany
Intellectual property law firms
Patent law firms