Real estate leader taps Franklin for eight partners with more to come in France
‘It’s great to get to the moment where our first big move has happened.’
Lisa Mayhew, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner
Since the 2018 tie-up between Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) and Bryan Cave, the merged entity of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) has experienced a period of relative calm. But while the last 18 months have been defined by neither convulsion nor dramatic moves, the firm’s recent play in Paris could mark a new phase in BCLP’s post-merger ambitions.
Twenty-one lawyers, including seven partners, joined the firm’s Paris arm in early January, with two partners recruited into the real estate, tax and finance teams respectively, while one partner was added in public law.
The hires took a long time to broker, with discussions well underway with some targets last summer. Despite France being one of the three key hubs for real estate work in Europe – the other two being Germany and the UK – Paris was a perennial blind spot for legacy BLP, which was always a barrier to it making a claim to being one of Europe’s premier property firms. Meanwhile, legacy Bryan Cave’s presence in the French capital was described as ‘one man and his dog’ by one current BCLP real estate partner.
‘It’s been a piecemeal expansion, we have wanted something more significant for a while, and the merger gave us a greater presence in Europe and the ability to do that,’ BCLP managing partner for Paris Rémy Blain told Legal Business. ‘We want to align what Paris can do with what the firm can do elsewhere.’
In a bid to ramp up its presence in France, the firm looked to local independent Franklin for talent. Real estate duo Henry Ranchon and Laurent Schittenhelm were joined by tax partners Christine Daric and Olivier Mesmin. In finance, the firm added David Blondel and Olivier Borenstejn while Jean-Pierre Delvigne joined the firm’s public law practice.
The firm is eager to lure more lawyers from Franklin. Since the arrival of the first cohort, M&A partner Christian Sauer has also decamped from Franklin, having started at BCLP on 20 January and bringing with him three associates. The coming months will see further arrivals, with M&A, finance and corporate lawyers the likely targets to ensure the firm has a fully equipped outpost to focus on the real estate sector. Blain also stresses the firm wants to plug gaps in IP, competition and arbitration, while internal predictions regarding revenue growth at the office in light of the hires remain ‘conservative’.
For Franklin the exodus is reflective of a wider trend: mid-tier French independents are struggling to retain their talent in Paris, particularly younger lawyers. Many feel Franklin’s struggles began when co-founder Alexandre Marque departed to become general counsel at telecoms company Altice in 2015.
No surprise then that Franklin has made the process as difficult for BCLP as it can. ‘It was a large team, discussions take time,’ Blain added. ‘It’s hard to get a bunch of lawyers to move.’ Another BCLP partner was less measured in his exasperation, stating: ‘Everything in Paris is difficult.’
The hope now within BCLP is that this spate of laterals in Paris will act as a platform for the next phase of the firm’s development. Since the 2018 merger, the firm has remained steady in light of departures, with none of the exits coming from its heavy hitters. And while transatlantic mergers are infamous for creating culture clashes, some within the firm feel the change has not been jolting enough, with long-term plays like Paris always the purported ambition.
‘The first year and a bit [after the merger] was about integration and stability,’ BCLP co-chair Lisa Mayhew told Legal Business. ‘These opportunities don’t happen overnight. It’s great to get to the moment where our first big move has happened.’