Litigation partner Denis Brock, who headed Clifford Chance’s Asian disputes practice for nine years, has swapped King & Wood Mallesons for US firm O’Melveny & Myers.
Brock, who joined King & Wood Mallesons four years ago, will become the fifth partner in O’Melveny & Myers’ Hong Kong office when he joins on 1 October and the first full time disputes partner, with arbitration specialist Friven Yeoh currently splitting his time between Hong Kong and Singapore.
Brock, who spent 24 years with Clifford Chance but left shortly after losing out to Jeremy Sandelson in the race to become global head of litigation in 2009, handles both litigation and arbitration, specialising in shareholder disputes, professional negligence claims, banking litigation and fraud investigations. He is admitted to practise law in England and Wales, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and New York and joins the firm’s business trial and litigation practice in a boost to the firm’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) capability in Asia at a time when US authorities are looking to step up bribery investigations.
Bradley Butwin, chair of O’Melveny & Myers, said: ‘He is well known in the Hong Kong and London legal communities as a true litigator, committed to serving clients in a wide range of their most pressing legal matters. His addition is further evidence of O’Melveny’s commitment to growing strategically in the region.’
King & Wood Mallesons said in a statement: ‘We confirm Denis Brock is retiring from King & Wood Mallesons Hong Kong. Our strategy is to maintain and build the talent and capability in dispute resolution to support our leading brand in the Asia Pacific region. We do not believe that his departure from the firm affects that strategy.’
tom.moore@legalease.co.uk
