Temporary truce for Publicis and partner

Publicis and its US partner True North have called a temporary cease-fire in their bitter fight over the future of their six-year global alliance.

The two groups have signed a “standstill agreement” which effectively freezes all the legal and civil actions the two sides have exchanged since January when Publicis unilaterally rescinded the alliance. The case has been in the London court of arbitration since then.

The cease-fire comes just two weeks after Publicis signed an agreement to act as international network for the New Saatchi Agency on the £60m British Airways pitch. True North offices in the US handle Northwest Airlines and the Publicis move is believed to have aggravated the situation.

“Even in the most difficult divorce cases there can sometimes be a reprieve but that is not to say that this will lead to a settlement,” says one source. “It is not the end of the war, not a peace treaty – just a cease-fire to try and find a peace settlement.”