Ashurst’s high profile global head of corporate Stephen Lloyd appears set to join Allen & Overy (A&O) after resigning from the newly-merged firm in November.
While Lloyd’s move is still subject to a vote by the Magic Circle firm’s partnership, one corporate partner at A&O told Legal Business: ‘It’s not final, but it’s very likely. We are pretty excited about him joining. He is a really good operational lawyer and a good cultural fit.’
If the vote goes through, Lloyd will join the 2,700-lawyer firm’s corporate practice subject to any covenants he is held to by his former firm.
The corporate rainmaker’s hire will be a major boost to A&O’s corporate team, with which his private equity client base has a strong synergy and overlap including leading investment group Apax Partners. ‘There is a lot of potential to develop,’ added the partner.
Lloyd became a partner at Ashurst a decade ago and was named London corporate managing partner in 2009. He was appointed as global head of the corporate practice in July 2010 and has experience of advising companies, equity finance providers and investment banks on cross-border M&A and corporate finance transactions, with a strong focus on the private equity, healthcare and real estate sectors.
He resigned from Ashurst early in November, within weeks of its chairman election vote that saw incumbent Charlie Geffen lose to litigator Ben Tidswell and of its financial integration with Ashurst Australia in September.
A&O declined to comment.
jaishree.kalia@legalease.co.uk