Approaching the holiday season, Asia, Europe and the US emerged as hubs for partner moves with Herbert Smith Freehills losing a prominent partner in Japan to Morrison & Foerster – which also acquired a German partner from in-house. In New York, Dentons made a rare lateral from Baker & McKenzie while Norton Rose Fulbright also hired from in-house.
Morrison & Foerster made two lateral hires last week bringing on M&A and securities partner James Robinson in Tokyo and real estate partner Christoph Flügel in Germany. Berlin-based Flügel joins from heading the legal department of German company Union Investment Group, which has €224bn of assets under management. He will focus on providing strategic real estate advice for both transaction and regulatory matters.
In Japan, Robinson was recruited by the firm from Herbert Smith Freehills where he led its Tokyo corporate and M&A practice areas. Both English-law qualified and registered to practice law in Japan, he mainly advises Japanese companies on cross-border M&A and securities transactions as well as inward-bound investments. Eric Piesner, Morrison & Foerster managing partner for Asia, said: ‘James represents a natural link for further expanding transactional opportunities between Asia and Europe.’
In the US, Dentons brought Lloyd Winans into its corporate practice as a partner in its New York office from Baker & McKenzie. Winans’ focus is on Latin America and the Caribbean, and founded the ABA Business Law Section’s Latin American Law Subcommittee. He advises on financing with a particular focus on regulation of foreign and domestic banking entities in the US but also with experience in trade and alternative finance.
Jorge Alers, Dentons’ Latin American and the Caribbean chief executive, said: ‘We are extremely excited by Lloyd’s deep background in Latin America and the Caribbean, and adding him to our roster is part of the firm’s strategy to deepen our financial service offerings in the region.’
Also in the US, Norton Rose Fulbright extended its energy practice with the hire of Stephanie Hildebrandt, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary at Enterprise Products Partners. She will join in February 2015, bringing with her 25 years of experience accrued at Texaco, El Paso Corporation, in private practice and with the last 10 at Enterprise.
Hildebrandt has experience with master limited partnerships (MLPs), as well as corporate and partnership governance, special committee guidance, and midstream and upstream commercial contracts. Daryl Lansdale, US head of business law at Norton Rose Fulbright, said: ‘During her tenure as a general counsel, Stephanie has become well-versed in MLPs, especially in the issuer and special committee arenas. She will provide our clients with exceptional insight into the midstream and upstream energy sectors.’
michael.west@legalease.co.uk
