K&L Gates has opened its third German office by launching in Munich, with a three-lawyer hire from King & Wood Mallesons (KWM).
Munich becomes the firm’s 46th office and expands K&L Gates’ German footprint, where the firm also practices in Berlin and Frankfurt.
KWM investment management partner Hilger von Livonius will launch the office, bringing with him counsel Philipp Riedl and Michael Harris. The hires follow the arrival of fellow investment management partner Till Fock from KWM in Berlin in 2014.
Von Livonius concentrates his practice in the areas of banking, capital markets, asset management, and regulatory matters with a particular focus on investment funds and structured products.
K&L Gates German head Rüdiger von Hülst said: ‘With the addition of his highly skilled team, we take an important step in the continued expansion of both of our German and broader European investment management practices.’
The eleventh new partner or of counsel addition to K&L Gates’ growing investment management practice worldwide in the past 12 months, von Livonius’ arrival bolsters a key investment area for the US firm. Von Livonius commented: ‘We are pleased to have found a firm which provides us an excellent platform for future growth in the areas of structured products, investment funds, and derivatives. K&L Gates allows us to work as part of a large investment management team with a strong focus on the United States.’
Marking K&L Gates’ eighth office in Europe, the firm plans to add corporate, IT and IP litigation capability in the Bavarian capital. ‘Munich is a remarkable city and one of Germany’s most influential commercial centers, an outstanding location for further growth, and an ideal complement to our K&L Gates offices in Germany,’ added von Hülst.
Since K&L Gates entered the German market in early 2007 with the launch of its Berlin office, followed two years later with the addition of a Frankfurt office, the firm has built a 70-lawyer German practice.
tom.moore@legalease.co.uk