Texas launch – Arnold & Porter opens Houston presence with four-partner Hogan Lovells litigation team

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Washington-headquartered Global 100 law firm Arnold & Porter has become the latest to launch in Houston with the hire of a four-strong litigation team from Hogan Lovells.

Thad Dameris, the former managing partner of Hogan Lovells’ Houston office, has left the transatlantic firm alongside litigation partners Trevor Jefferies, Christopher Odell and David Weiner, leaving a remaining partnership of six. Continue reading “Texas launch – Arnold & Porter opens Houston presence with four-partner Hogan Lovells litigation team”

More lateral hires as Katten Muchin and K&L Gates boost international corporate practices

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US firms Katten Muchin Rosenman and K&L Gates have strengthened their international corporate practices this month through lateral hires from rival Global 100 firms.

Hogan Lovells’ private equity partner Philip Watkins has quit the firm to join US firm’s Katten Muchin’s London office.

He joined Katten Muchin Rosenman at the beginning of the year, along with two associates who will join the Chicago-headquartered firm’s London base next month. Watkins joined legacy firm Hogan & Hartson’s City corporate practice in November 2008.

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Revolving doors: Bird & Bird, Bond Dickinson and Simmons all make lateral moves

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The appetite shown by global elite firms to hire laterally at the start of the year has spread wider in the City, as Bird & Bird, Bond Dickinson, Simmons & Simmons and US firm Sedgwick have all been in action recently.

Bird & Bird secured the hire of partner Sven-Michael Werner from rival firm Taylor Wessing to its China corporate practice. Werner, who speaks Mandarin, has over 12 years’ experience practising Chinese law and will be based at the firm’s Shanghai office. He has a focus on M&A and foreign direct investment, particularly advising European clients investing into China. Continue reading “Revolving doors: Bird & Bird, Bond Dickinson and Simmons all make lateral moves”

New year hiring spree continues as Weil Gotshal and Norton Rose recruit from rivals

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Top-20 Global 100 firms Norton Rose Fulbright and Weil, Gotshal & Manges have made significant and experienced additions to their London offices today (15 January), from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Hogan Lovells respectively.

Weil Gotshal has taken on Hogan Lovells partner Chris McLaughlin to join its banking and finance practice in London.

McLaughlin has extensive experience acting for banks and borrowers on the financing of cross-border private equity buyouts as well as European real estate acquisitions and restructurings.

Continue reading “New year hiring spree continues as Weil Gotshal and Norton Rose recruit from rivals”

Dentons hires high profile energy partner Charles July and Eversheds’ banking partner Michael Wainwright

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Increased optimism within the business sector at the start of 2014 is being reflected in a flurry of lateral hires as high profile energy partner Charles July joins Dentons as a partner in the energy, infrastructure and project finance City practice.

July joins from Watson, Farley & Williams, where he was head of the firm’s projects, commodities and export finance group in London. He joined the firm as a partner in May 2010, before which he was at Magic Circle firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for 28 years, latterly heading the energy and infrastructure group for the Middle East and North Africa region. He also led the firm’s Abu Dhabi launch in 2008, and was former head of the firm’s Asia project finance practice as well as Singapore office head between 1992 and 1998. Continue reading “Dentons hires high profile energy partner Charles July and Eversheds’ banking partner Michael Wainwright”

Hogan Lovells and Olswang strengthen TMT practices with hire of team heads in Hong Kong and Germany

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As Hong Kong becomes gateway to the world’s biggest trader in goods after China overtook the US for the first time in 2013, the region continues to see high profile lateral moves, most recently from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer to Hogan Lovells, which has hired the Magic Circle firm’s regional head of intellectual property (IP), IT and technology media and telecoms (TMT), Mark Parsons.

In his new role, Parsons will focus on complex commercial transactions and regulatory matters in the TMT sector and is expected to join his new 2,527-lawyer firm at the end of January 2014.

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Herbert Smith Freehills announces hire of Maitland Chambers Tom Leech QC as Murray Rosen QC retires

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Herbert Smith Freehills has today (9 January) announced the hire of Tom Leech QC, who has left Maitland Chambers to join the top 10 LB100 firm as a partner in its advocacy group in London.

Having joined the Bar in 1988 and taken silk in 2010, Leech has spent his entire career at Maitland Chambers. He is experienced in commercial litigation, professional negligence, company and property litigation, as well as offshore jurisdictions, while his portfolio includes high profile cases in the High Court, Court of Appeal and the House of Lords.

Continue reading “Herbert Smith Freehills announces hire of Maitland Chambers Tom Leech QC as Murray Rosen QC retires”

Strategic recruitment: A&O hires employment team in Paris

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Allen & Overy (A&O) has underlined the importance of its global employment practice with a significant hire in France, recruiting highly regarded partner Claire Toumieux to head its employment and benefits department in Paris.

Toumieux joins from 18-partner, top-tier local employment firm Flichy Grangé Avocats where she was a partner, along with a team of three associates – Susan Ekrami, Alexandre Couvreur and Alexandre Orts. A recommended partner in The Legal 500 EMEA, Toumieux has experience of representing both listed and unlisted corporate groups and investment funds through mergers and acquisitions, collective bargaining agreements and reorganisations.

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Latham sets pace for 2014 as expansive City arm hires Weil private equity partner

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For many watchers of the upper reaches of City law, Latham & Watkins has in recent years established a profile as one of the most upwardly mobile players in London, a reputation the US-based giant has moved to underline early in 2014 with the recruitment of Weil, Gotshal & Manges funds partner Nick Benson.

The move is the fifth partner hire for Latham’s City arm within the last 12 months and a further high-profile addition to the 600-partner firm’s UK buyout practice after the recruitment last April of Clifford Chance’s (CC) private equity head David Walker, which was followed up in October with the appointment of fellow CC partner Tom Evans. Continue reading “Latham sets pace for 2014 as expansive City arm hires Weil private equity partner”

Mid-market feeding frenzy: Addleshaw, Bristows, Field Fisher and Irwin Mitchell unveil lateral hires

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The New Year lateral hiring spree has gathered momentum, with Addleshaw Goddard, Irwin Mitchell, Bristows and Field Fisher Waterhouse all announcing new acquisitions today (7 January).

Leeds-based Bill Gilliam will join Addleshaw’s commercial litigation team as a partner after 20 years at Eversheds, where he was head of healthcare and life sciences. His experience includes a secondment as acting head of legal in the commercial directorate of the Department of Health, and cases include procurement disputes for Covent Garden Market Authority and Roche Diagnostics, as well as assisting with the Mid-Staffordshire Inquiry. Continue reading “Mid-market feeding frenzy: Addleshaw, Bristows, Field Fisher and Irwin Mitchell unveil lateral hires”