It knows us and has worked for us for some time. That reputation predominantly comes from the fact that Camerons works for the sector body, the Association of British Pharmaceutical Industry. Kitcatt says the relationship started slowly because no matter how good the firm's reputation, the people on the ground have to get on. We used them several times and we have built on that. The first time we used them was for some litigation and we knew it had done the same sort of work for another company.
Many factors come into consideration when appointing a firm.
Cost is an important one, but the most important is the necessary experience. Camerons did not have to go through a beauty parade. Indeed, some much-hyped methods of choosing firms do not come into play in this sector. Although both were benchmarked against other firms, the entire process was an informal one, according to an insider. One senior in-house lawyer says he has only used it once in the last year for this purpose and not for any other.