Ashurst has this morning (8 April) announced its 20-strong partner promotion round, which will take effect from 1 May 2015, with 45% of the new partners female while Macfarlanes reduced round of five comprises 40% women.
Ashurst made four appointments in corporate and disputes, two in each of banking, real estate, regulatory, and securities and derivatives and one in each of competition, employment, infrastructure, and restructuring and special situations.
Geographically the round saw the UK recieve the most new partners with 12 made up, Australia followed with six and there was one each in France and Singapore.
Last year, the firm announced its first partner promotions since its 2013 merger with Blake Dawson, with 15 lawyers joining the partnership ranks. Today’s announcement marks another year of the rising number of those promoted in the firm’s annual round, with 2014’s 15-strong round up from a pre-merger figure of 12.
Macfarlanes, meanwhile, reduced its round from the nine lawyers made up in 2014 to five new partners this year – though the 2014 figure had been its highest round since 2005. This year’s new partners are spread across four practice areas including litigation, banking and finance, investment management and commercial real estate.
The firm further confirmed the appointment of investment management senior counsel Alisa Chhoa as head of the firm’s China practice with effect from 1 May. Macfarlanes’ senior partner Charles Martin said: ‘It is an easy decision for a firm to make new partners when conspicuous talent meets a strong business and strategic case as we have here. Our commitment to giving very able lawyers opportunities and to giving our clients the very best is evident in this strong generation of partners.’
sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk
Ashurst’s new partners in full:
Meredith Bennett – Disputes, Brisbane
Michaël Cousin – Competition, Paris
Tom Cummins – Disputes, London
Olga Galazoula – Restructuring and Special Situations, London
Jon Gale – Disputes, London
Jake Green – Regulatory, London
Anton Harris – Corporate, Sydney
Jane Harvey – Employment, Melbourne
Nicola Higgs – Regulatory, London
Hiroyuki Iwamura – Corporate, London
Jessica Jenner – Banking, London
Olivia Lau – Infrastructure, Sydney
Dyfan Owen – Disputes, London
Dominic Ross – Corporate, London
Pauline Tan – Real Estate, Sydney
Lucy Thomas – Real Estate, London
Jasmine Tiw – Securities and Derivatives, London
Ben Warne – Corporate, Brisbane
Nicholas Wong – Banking, London
Edwin Yow – Securities and Derivatives, Singapore
Macfarlanes’ new partners in full:
Jonathan Arr, litigation
Richard Fletcher, finance
Lora Froud, funds
Kirstie Hutchinson, finance
Dan Marriott, real estate