During a busy week with the announcement of the A&O Shearman merger, news came that Shearman & Sterling has lost five partners to Ashurst in both the UK and Asia – around the same time the planned tie-up was made public.
London-based Shearman partners Sanja Udovicic and Julia Derrick have moved over to Ashurst to expand the firm’s global energy team along with three others based in South Korea and Singapore.
Udovicic specialises in project finance and has spent more than 25 years at Shearman. Speaking about her move to Legal Business, Udovicic said: ‘I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join a dynamic and growing team of projects experts that are at the forefront of the energy transition sector. Every conversation I had with the team at Ashurst convinced me that it would be a really good fit for my practice and I’m excited to have joined.’
Derrick has a background in energy M&A and project development and rejoins Ashurst after just a nine-month stint at Shearman. Commenting on the market trends, Derrick said: ‘I expect activity in the global energy sector over the next coming months to continue to be driven by energy security concerns and the transition to a low carbon economy.’
Seoul-based Anna Chung, and Singapore-based Jean-Louis Neves Mandelli and Scott Baggett will also join Ashurst as the firm said it plans to increase its service to clients across multiple jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, also in the project finance sector, Allen & Overy has experienced a loss in Italy. Former head of project finance Nunzio Bicchieri has departed for Norton Rose Fulbright where he will take up the role as projects partner in the firm’s Milan office.
Back in London, Quinn Emanuel has announced this week that Pinsent Masons partner David Lancaster will join in August. The hire will allow the firm to launch its first London-based intellectual property litigation practice. Lancaster has advised across a broad range of IP-related issues, from trade marks to patents, and has represented clients in disputes before the English courts and in the EU patent office.
Elsewhere in the City, Addleshaw Goddard has hired Taymour Keen as structured finance partner. He joined from Weil where he spent seven years.
Speaking to Legal Business about his move, Keen said: ‘My decision to join was inspired in part by growth realised in the team at [Addleshaw Goddard] both in its capacity and capabilities in the finance service sector.’
Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) has snapped up Squire Patton Boggs international dispute resolution partner Alexis Martinez for its London office. He is dual-qualified in the UK and France and has deep experience resolving complex multi-jurisdictional disputes.
‘WFW was irresistible due to its outstanding expertise in energy, transportation and infrastructure – all of which makes the firm a potential global player on the international arbitration stage,’ Martinez told Legal Business.
Burges Salmon has bolstered its construction and engineering team with a hire from BCLP. Katy Wall joins as director, after more than a decade at her former firm, and previously working at Pinsent Masons.
She said the ‘role places real value on both the quality of client work and in client, team and personal investment time’.
Elsewhere in Europe, Simmons & Simmons has expanded its insurance practice area in Madrid with the hire of Olivia Delagrange. She joins from Kennedys where she spent over 11 years and is triple qualified in Spain, England & Wales and Belgium.
In the US, Kirkland & Ellis has lost M&A partner Rahul Vashi to Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. Vashi will serve as a partner and co-chair of the firm’s oil and gas practice group in Houston.
Speaking to Legal Business about his move, Vashi said: ‘I have respected the members of [Gibson’s] team for years and am excited to further strengthen the oil and gas team in the US to complement the firm’s presence in Asia and its successful openings in the Middle East.’
Commenting on M&A in the oil and gas space over the coming year, he continued: ‘I expect M&A in the oil and gas space to continue to be strong. While inflation concerns have led to a slowdown in M&A generally, oil and gas producers have demonstrated the ability to manage expenditures, drill wells responsibly, and generate returns.’
Davis Polk has hired corporate partners David Penna and Thomas Malone from Latham & Watkins in New York. The firm said Penna will help it establish a new infrastructure practice, while Malone joins Davis Polk’s practice group.
Also in New York, Paul Hastings has recruited finance partners Marc Lashbrook, Josh Zelig and David Barash from Cahill Gordon & Reindel. The trio have acted for clients including JP Morgan, Bank of America and Barclays.
Paul Weiss has also snapped up Wachtell partner Andrea Wahlquist Brown in New York. She takes her executive compensation practice with her to Paul Weiss and has received recognition in the Legal 500’s Hall of Fame.
Finally, Linklaters has hired corporate and M&A partner Yoshiyuki Asaoka from leading Japanese firm Nishimura & Asahi, who joins the firm’s Tokyo office.