The ousting of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer as Philip Green’s adviser in the Marks & Spencer (M&S) takeover battle has put conflicts of interest at the top of the agenda for law firms.
The firm was barred from acting for retail entrepreneur Philip Green in his hostile takeover bid for M&S on the grounds that it was adviser to the company on its contract with leading designer George Davies which, Slaughters argued, meant that Freshfields was both acting in a conflict situation and was privy to confidential information that might prove useful to its new client.
