Welcome to this week’s update, where we bring you the latest moves, promotions, and strategic appointments shaping the legal industry.
Partner Moves
Individual
UK & Ireland
Mayer Brown loses LevFin Partner to HSF Kramer in London
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer has hired Mayer Brown’s former Head of Leveraged Finance Stuart Brinkworth.
Paul Hastings gains Private Equity Partner from Cooley
Paul Hastings has hired a Private Equity Partner from Cooley in London. Ferish Patel joins as the ninth Partner to arrive in the city office in the past six months.
Sidley gains another senior hire from Latham
Sidley has made its second senior hire from Latham in London this year, recruiting James Inness, the firm’s Co‑Head of Capital Markets. He reunites with former colleague David Stewart, who joined Sidley in April 2025.
RPC loses Commercial Head to Taylor Wessing
RPC Partner Jeremy Drew has joined Taylor Wessing in London, marking the firm’s first hire since Partners voted through its US merger with Winston & Strawn.
Proskauer extends London hiring spree with Fund Finance Partner
Proskauer has hired Fund Finance Partner Mei Mei Wong from DLA Piper, the latest addition for the US firm as it continues to grow its London partnership.
Katie Molloy Joins Irwin Mitchell As A Partner In Birmingham
The Birmingham office of Irwin Mitchell has announced the appointment of Restructuring and Insolvency Partner, Katie Molloy. Katie joins from Gowling WLG, where she was Principal Associate.
Pinsent Masons expands International Arbitration practice
Pinsent Masons has added WilmerHale Arbitration Counsel Cem Kalelioğlu as a Partner in its International Arbitration practice.
Seladore taps Milbank for new Disputes Partner
Peter Edworthy joins the Litigation boutique in London as Partner, having spent 13 years at Milbank as an associate in the firm’s Litigation and Arbitration team.
Europe
Weil hire in Germany marks 19th Partner return
Benjamin Rapp joins Weil Gotshal & Manges from Gibson Dunn in Frankfurt, where he spent just under two years, to lead the firm’s German Tax practice.
BAHR hires Banking & Finance Partners from Poul Schmith Copenhagen
Banking & Finance Partner Frederik Bo Karup and Kristoffer Lund Poulsen have joined BAHR’s Copenhagen office from Poul Schmith.
McDermott bolsters Parisian Debt Finance offering with Kirkland hire
Kalish Mullen is set to join McDermott’s French transactions practice to focus on Debt Finance for Private Equity Sponsors and their portfolio companies. Mullen joins from Kirkland & Ellis.
Darrois Nabs Hogan Lovells Paris Restructuring Head
Hogan Lovells’ Paris Restructuring Partner Astrid Zourli is leaving the firm to join French powerhouse Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier as Head of its Restructuring practice.
Middle East
Ragy Soliman & Partners Welcomes Rehan El-Bashary as Partner and Head of Venture Capital Startups
Rehan El Bashary, who previously worked at Venture by Shahid, has joined Ragy Soliman & Partners in the Cairo office in Egypt.
Team
Hogan Lovells Takes Five-Lawyer Public Law Team from BonelliErede in Milan
Merger-bound Hogan Lovells has hired top-ranked Public Law Partner Luca Perfetti and his four-lawyer team to join its Global Regulatory and Intellectual Property practice in Milan.
Promotions & Appointments
Rachel Reid Elevated to Global Co-Head of AI at Eversheds
Rachel Reid has been appointed Global Co-Head of AI, joining Nasser Ali Khasawneh in leading the firm’s global AI initiatives.
Joe Cohen joins Harvey as Legal Innovation Partner
Harvey has hired Joe Cohen from Charles Russell Speechlys as a Legal Innovation Partner. His role will be to partner with law firm leaders to rethink how AI is shaping legal service delivery, business models and firm operations.
Natalie Smith appointed to Financial Markets Law Committee
Natalie Lewis, Head of Fintech, Market Infrastructure & Payments at Travers Smith, receives invite-only personal appointment to the Financial Markets Law Committee.
Al Tamimi appoints new Chief People Officer
Al Tamimi and Company has appointed a new Chief People Officer. Graham de Guise has joined from Osborne Clarke, where he served in the same role on both the firm’s international and UK executive boards.
Batic Law Firm Promotes Ziyad Alraqas to Partner
Ziyad Alraqas (Corporate Litigation & Dispute Resolution) will join the Riyadh office.
Firm and Market Activity
Office Openings & Closings
Michelmores launches Cambridge office with three-Partner team from Broadfield
Michelmores is set to launch in Cambridge with a three-partner team from Broadfield, leaving the latter firm with a much-diminished offering in the city. It will be Michelmores’ fifth office, after Bristol, Cheltenham, Exeter and London. Real estate partner Simon Burson, who originally set up Cambridge office of Broadfield (formerly BDB Pitmans), corporate partner Duncan Walker and residential property partner Tim Middleton are the partners leading the move.
Minster heads to London following double-digit revenue hike
Minster Law is returning to the London market for the first time in a decade with the launch of an office in Eastcheap in the first half of 2026.
Fieldfisher moves offices in Birmingham
The Birmingham team has now moved into Chamberlain Square. The new office reflects their long-term commitment to the region and offers a modern, collaborative space for their people, clients and contacts.
Irwin Mitchell shows commitment to Gatwick diamond region with move to new office space
Irwin Mitchell is moving to new office space in Gatwick showcasing its commitment not just to the Gatwick Diamond, but the region more generally. Its space on the second floor of The Portland Building in Crawley will house more than 80 colleagues as well as visitors from other offices.
Linklaters has officially opened its new offices
Linklaters has unveiled its new global headquarters at 20 Ropemaker Street in London. The 360,000 sq ft landmark development in the City has been designed to support the firm’s culture of teamwork and high-performance.
Mergers & Alliances
Opensity Solution launches following three-way merger backed by Renovus Capital Partners
Managed services business Opensity Solutions has now officially launched, having been created through the combination of K2 Services and its acquisitions of Epiq GBTS and Forrest Solutions in November last year. The newly created business provides end-to-end tech-enabled managed services to legal and other professional services firms globally. The combination brings together more than 4,500 professionals and 500 clients with employees based in the US, Canada, India and the Philippines.
Doctrine grows European presence with acquisition of Spanish AI platform Maite
Legal research and AI firm Doctrine has agreed to acquire Spanish legal information provider Maite. The deal marks Paris-based Doctrine’s fifth acquisition, or strategic investment, over the past three years, powered by a 2023 majority growth investment from Summit Partners and Peugeot Invest.
Financial Results
NRF posts record financials with PEP up a quarter to $2m
Norton Rose Fulbright has posted a robust set of financial results for 2025, with firmwide revenue hitting a new record of $2.8bn after achieving 16 per cent year-on-year growth. More significantly, NRF’s global profit per equity partner (PEP) also hit a new high, rising to $2m for the first time after a 27 per cent increase. NRF’s managing partner for Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific (EMEAPAC) Peter Scott said the results reflected “a fundamental shift” in his firm’s market positioning.
Market Commentary
Freshfields adds non-equity tier as market shift continues
Freshfields has introduced a non-equity partner tier, according to Law.com, bringing it closer to a model now prevalent across Big Law – particularly for elite US firms and UK rivals looking to compete.
Freshfields Deploys 6-Month Notice Period Amid Senior European Partner Exits
Often used by European firms as a tool to disincentivise partner departures, the move to use the full extent of the firm’s contractual notice period marks a shift in normal practice and follows the exits of several high-profile partners from across the firm’s Europe offices.
Innovation & Culture
Technology & Innovation
Stella Legal partners with AI contracting platform Ironclad
Consultancy firm Stella Legal has announced a partnership agreement with AI contracting platform Ironclad to help its customers improve their contract lifecycle management (CLM). The collaboration is designed to address the gap between technology investment and business outcome.
AI time management platform Laurel eyes future IPO
AI-powered time management platform Laurel has its sights set on a future IPO, confirmed the company’s CEO Ryan Alshak. When asked when that might take place, he said: “With the growth we are seeing, we’re working backwards from a 48-month timeline.” The start-up, which launched as Time by Ping in 2016 in San Francisco, uses AI to more accurately calculate and analyse how professionals, including lawyers, allocate their time at work, integrating with all the software they use.