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Clifford Chance snaps up Skadden M&A heavyweight Embley

Clifford Chance has hired one of the most well-known M&A partners in the City, Bruce Embley, who previously served as co-head of Freshfields’ global M&A client group before leaving for Skadden in 2020.

Embley (pictured) recognised as a Legal 500 leading partner for premium M&A deals, is leaving Skadden after just over four years to return to the magic circle, after spending the first 15 years of his career at Freshfields. 

His expertise aligns with clients’ needs and he will be working with us collectively to grow the practice,’ CC’s global head of private equity Jonny Myers told Legal Business. ‘We are growing rapidly, and he is very supportive of that journey.’ 

The hire comes as Clifford Chance replenishes its ranks after the departure of Christopher Sullivan to Paul Weiss’s M&A practice amid the elite US firm’s aggressive drive to build a top-tier corporate practice just over a year ago. Sullivan’s departure came as a shock to most, as CC’s PE practice had been relatively impervious to market forces, with the last big-name departures dating back several years. 

Embley brings with him more than 25 years of experience advising on PE and M&A transactions across sectors such as financial services, energy, and telecommunications. He will join CC to support its existing client base, which includes regular clients such as EQT, Blackstone, and Permira. 

He’s not coming in to transport a client,’ continued Myers. ‘He is coming because he fits the team. There will be some overlap, and there will be people that he knows, but we’re interested in the individual, not their client relationships.’ 

Just last week, Clifford Chance hired fund finance partners Aimee Sharman and Matt Lilley from Mayer Brown in London, and looking ahead, Spencer Baylin, head of CC’s London PE team, which currently includes 12 partners, said that the firm remains open to further hiring. 

‘We obviously receive CVs throughout the year,’ Baylin told LB. ‘It’s always very difficult for us because we have such high standards in terms of quality, culture, integrity, and fit. We’re not growing for growth’s sake; it’s got to be the right person.’ 

Embley’s hire is part of a continued push for growth in CC’s private capital team globally. In October, the firm hired private equity partner David Schultz and restructuring partner Matthew Hinker from O’Melveny & Myers in New York. 

On pushing ahead with the firm’s US strategy, Myers added: ‘We cover clients globally. No one person owns a client, they contribute to the relationships as a whole. Clients are transacting on an ever more international basis, the market is becoming ever more complex, and that requires real expertise and deep sophistication.’ 

Elsewhere, the firm hired private equity partner Jamie McLaren in Singapore last February from HSF, following the hires of Arnaud Fromion and Frédéric Guilloux to its global financial markets team, who both joined from Goodwin in December 2023. 

A Skadden spokesperson said: ‘We thank Bruce for his contributions to our firm over the past five years and appreciate his efforts, as he embarks on his next chapter.’

elisha.juttla@legalease.co.uk