There was a strong international slant to last week’s round of lateral partner appointments, with firms making key hires in the US, UAE, Australia, and Hong Kong.
In the US, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) has hired a six-partner team of IP lawyers, led by Song Jung, alongside corporate partner Jeffrey Haidet from Dentons. Jung joins as global chair of patents, having previously founded the global intellectual property and technology group at Dentons. Standout matters for Jung include advising on the G Chem v SKI trade secrets case, which was settled for $1.8bn. Haidet was Dentons’ US chair, and advises national and multinational companies on financial structuring, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, transactions, strategic alliances, and industry consolidation.
Speaking to Legal Business about the move, Jung said: ‘We came to BCLP because it very much wants to grow globally, and IP is one of the key practice areas for growth. We can provide that global practice that BCLP wants. The most important thing is what is in the best interests of our clients. In my opinion, the BCLP model is perfectly aligned with what I would like to do with my team.’
Haidet added: ‘We really liked what we saw in terms of the platform for growth at BCLP. It is clearly a firm on the up, as you can tell from its moves in Germany, Paris, and Seattle. Our move is significantly expanding its DC practice. As we got into discussions, we realised BCLP has a really good Korea-focused practice, so all of those things started to sync.’
Kirkland & Ellis’ Washington DC office has gained tax partner Sam Kamyans from Allen & Overy. Kamyans advises on partnership tax structuring, focusing on energy transition projects and renewable energy infrastructure. He has a background in oil and gas and worked previously at the Internal Revenue Service and a Fortune 100 energy company.
Elsewhere, Jamie Ryder has joined Reed Smith’s entertainment and media practice in the UAE as a partner. He moves from DLA Piper where he was head of the firm’s intellectual property and technology practice in the Middle East.
Ryder commented: ‘I met a number of Reed Smith lawyers and was highly impressed by the bank of talent, their range of clients, and the growth over the last five years. If you take the media and entertainment space, you can see the growth of overseas productions coming to the region. The UAE has a long history of Hollywood studios coming to film elements here, and I don’t see any signs of that stopping. The UAE is continuing to invest in the infrastructures to support that, Saudi is also heavily investing in that space.’
He also highlighted the rapid expansion of content creation, gaming and e-sports in the region, with countries looking to host events in these sectors and encourage developers to base their operations in the Middle East.
Ashurst has appointed Legal 500 Leading Individual Neil Pathak as its head of M&A (Australia) from Gilbert + Tobin. His practice has a particular focus on listed company takeovers, private equity deals, cross-border acquisitions and corporate governance advice. Pathak is a member of the Australian Takeovers Panel. He will be joined by Legal 500 next generation corporate and M&A partner Susannah Macknay, who also joins from Gilbert + Tobin. Macknay worked previously at Slaughter and May, where she was a partner for six years.
Meanwhile in Hong Kong, Charles Russell Speechlys has hired Vanessa Duff as a partner in its family team, bolstering its private capital focus in Hong Kong. Duff advises high-net-worth individuals on all aspects of family law.
In the UK, meanwhile, Boies Schiller Flexner has announced the hire of international art law partner Pierre Valentin, who brings a practice group of five lawyers to the firm. The team will work between London and Milan. A Legal 500 Hall of Famer, Valentin advises art collectors, art galleries, artists, non-profit organisations, museums, auction houses, art investment funds and insurance companies. His practice focuses on contentious and non-contentious matters of ownership, fraud, valuation of art, foreign nation recoveries, authenticity and provenance, intellectual property and new technology.
Finally, Clyde & Co has appointed Louise Jackson as a partner in its medical negligence practice. Jackson’s clients include the Medical Protection Society, NHS Resolution, insurers, and private clients.
