Offshore magic circle

Maples and Calder is the largest offshore law firm by number of lawyers.

Offshore magic circle is the set of the largest multi-jurisdictional law firms who specialise in tax havens (especially the Caribbean triad of Bermuda–Cayman–BVI, and the Channel Islands duo of Jersey–Guernsey), and increasingly in modern corporate tax havens (especially Dublin, Singapore and Luxembourg).^[1]

Definition

Head offices of Harney Westwood & Riegels.

The term is a derivation of the widely recognised London "magic circle" of top law firms, and is widely used in the offshore legal industry.^[2][3][4][5] The term has also become used to describe the offshore legal industry in a more pejorative sense (e.g. when the general media reports on paradise papers–type offshore financial scandals),^[6][7][8][9] and is therefore more sparingly used, or found, in major legal publications (e.g. Legal Business).

There is no consensus definition over which firms belong in the offshore magic circle. A 2008 article in the publication Legal Business (Issue 181, Offshore Review, February 2008) suggested a list, which has been repeated by others,^[10] and is simply the top 10 offshore law firms, but excluding Gibraltar–specialist Hassans.^{[11][lower-alpha 1]}

A 2017 study published in Nature into offshore financial centres (see Conduit and Sink OFCs), showed the depth of legal connections between classic "offshore" tax havens (called Sink OFCs), and emerging modern "onshore" corporate tax havens (called Conduit OFCs). The study showed how dense the legal relationships have become between modern economies and "offshore" tax havens via Conduit OFCs, and the rise in offshore magic circle firms setting up offices in modern corporate–focused tax havens, like Dublin.^[12][13][14]

Criticism

Walkers' head office in the Cayman Islands

In the wider legal community, it has been suggested that the 'magic circle' label for offshore firms is self-promoting. Not only does the group suggested by Legal Business seem large (with nine firms, as opposed to the five firms in the original London magic circle), but it also appears to contain a fairly high percentage of all the specialist offshore law firms, including almost all the significant Channel Islands firms.^[11]

The major offshore firms do not use the 'magic circle' terminology. Edward Fennell, a legal columnist for The Times, has expressed dim views of law firms designating themselves as part of an offshore magic circle.^[15] However, the concept of an offshore magic circle is actively promoted by legal recruitment consultants who hope to persuade London lawyers to spend a few years working in an offshore jurisdiction.^[10]

Endorsement

The Chambers legal directory in its 2008 edition, recognised the move towards multi-jurisdictional specialist offshore firms, and included a new ranking for global offshore specialist firms, rather than by jurisdiction.^[16] Arguably this was the first defined "offshore magic circle", although the directory did not use the term.

That Chambers list included the same names as the list produced by "Legal Business" in its 2008 Offshore Review article. In addition, Chambers stated that single-jurisdiction offshore specialist firms (e.g. Hassans), no matter how good, would not be considered in this new Global – Offshore category.^[17]

The Lawyer magazine produces a list of the top twenty offshore law firms by number of partners, published each February.^[18]

Multi-jurisdiction firms

The following table sets out the offshore jurisdictions in which the principal multi-jurisdictional offshore firms have offices (correct as at June 2016). The table does not list "sales" offices, such as London, Zurich, Dubai or Hong Kong. Dublin is included in this table due to the move of Maples, and of Walkers, into the "onshore" corporate tax haven sector, where they now compete with the main Irish law firms who specialise in taxation (e.g. Matheson (law firm), A&L Goodbody and Dillon Eustace).

* Carey Olsen was formed by the merger of two roughly equivalent sized firms from Jersey and Guernsey. Mourant Ozannes was formed by a merger of firms from Jersey, Guernsey and the Cayman Islands.

See also

• Panama Papers
• Paradise Papers
• Tax haven
• Tax shelter
• Corporate tax haven
• Conduit and Sink OFCs
• Matheson
• Ireland as a tax haven

Notes

References

External links

• Chambers Law Firms OFFSHORE – GLOBAL–WIDE
• Ifcforum.org

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