Moves
UK & Ireland
Travers’ tax head moves to King & Spalding
The former head of tax at Travers Smith, Russell Warren, has joined King & Spalding’s corporate practice in London
Debevoise snaps up Eversheds insurance duo
Debevoise & Plimpton has hired two corporate partners from Eversheds Sutherland to expand its insurance bench. Hugo Laing and Rosamund Wood make the move to the US firm in London.
Americas
Former A&O Shearman sanctions partner joins Sidley
Maura Rezendes, who also served as enforcement chief at the Office of Foreign Assets Control, has joined Sidley Austin in Washington, DC.
Wilson Sonsini Hires Longtime Cooley Partner in San Francisco Corporate Practice
Jonie Ing Kondracki joined Wilson Sonsini after more than 12 years with Cooley.
Paul Hastings Expands Energy M&A Team in Houston With Baker Botts Partner
Erin Hopkins is the 21st partner the Paul Hastings has added to its Texas offices in the last two years as it focuses on growth in Texas.
Latham & Watkins Hires Gibson Dunn Partner in San Francisco
Todd Trattner joins the firm after more than 11 years with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
Gibson Dunn’s Lateral Addition the Latest in Big Law Real Estate Moves
Gibson Dunn adds Jennifer Yashar from Fried Frank to further expand its Real Estate practice in New York.
EMEA
Second Goodwin Funds Partner Departs in Germany, This Time for A&O Shearman
A&O Shearman has hired funds partner Sebastian Bruchwitz from Goodwin Proctor in a move that signals a shift in demand for asset management, meanwhile private investment funds partner Codrina Constantinescu joins the Luxembourg office of Eversheds Sutherland.
APAC
Orrick expands SE Asia energy focus with hire in Tokyo from in-house
U.S. law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe has hired international energy projects and project finance transactions specialist Akira Takahashi as a partner in Tokyo from RWE Renewables, where he served as senior legal counsel.
O’Melveny Singapore hires corporate finance partner from Kirkland HK
U.S. law firm O’Melveny & Myers has added debt finance expert John Curran as a partner in Singapore from the Hong Kong office of Kirkland & Ellis.
Team Moves
Cleary adds Paul Hastings partner in London for European real estate launch
Stephen Nicolas joins Cleary Gottleib Steen & Hamilton with his team to establish the practice, becoming the fifth partner to exit Paul Hastings’ London real estate team in the past few months.
Debevoise Boosts New York PE Offering with Goodwin Partner Duo
Debevoise & Plimpton has significantly built out its private equity offering with the addition of Krishna Skandakumar and Natalia Kubik from Goodwin Proctor in New York. Skandakumar will also act as Co-Chair of the Private Funds Transactions Group.
Latham builds US restructuring bench with Ropes & Gray partner trio
Ryan Dahl, chair of Ropes & Gray’s business restructuring practice, joins Latham & Watkins in Chicago and New York alongside Partner’s Benjamin Rhode and Natasha Hwangpo.
Promotions & Appointments
UK Supreme Court appoints new deputy president
The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom has appointed the Right Hon Lord Sales as its next deputy president.
Gym chain Planet Fitness hires GoTo Foods GC as next legal head
Global gym chain Planet Fitness has hired Sarah Powell as general counsel, replacing Justin Vartanian who left the company earlier this year. She joins from GoTo Foods, where she was also GC.
NuScale Power makes second CLO appointment in less than four months
US nuclear energy innovator NuScale Power Corporation has hired James Canafax as its chief legal officer, just over three months after appointing Shahram Ghasemian to the role.
McDermott Ushers in Record Promotion Class After Merger
McDermott Will & Schulte on Friday announced its first new partner class since its 2025 merger was completed, promoting 74 attorneys to the partner ranks and 13 to counsel, a 32% increase in prior promotion rounds. Those made up in London include James Dobias (Litigation) and Pilar Arzuaga (Regulatory).
Office Openings & Closing
PDLegal launches Sydney office in Australian market expansion
Singapore-based law firm PDLegal has opened its first Australian office in Sydney, expanding its regional footprint as part of a push to offer integrated legal services across Asia-Pacific markets. Aaran Johnson, a commercial litigation specialist with 18 years of experience at Sydney firm Marsdens Law Group, has been appointed managing partner of the Australian operation, while Pam Johnson will serve as chief operating officer.
A&O Shearman Establishes Real Estate Practice in Australia
A&O Shearman has made a strategic play in Australia’s property market, hiring Dannelle Howley from Squire Patton Boggs to launch a dedicated real estate practice in Sydney.
Mergers & Alliances
Cadwalader Merger Talks Pick Up Pace
“We regularly evaluate our strategy to further capitalize on our market-leading strengths for our clients,” the firm said in a statement Thursday.
Financials
Goodwin turnover rises 12 per cent to hit $2.7bn
Goodwin Procter has reported a 12 per cent rise in its turnover, generating $2.7bn since September 2024. Profit per equity partner also grew 20 per cent, according to the firm, and revenue per lawyer rose 14 per cent.
Technology & Innovation
Juro becomes first legal tech to integrate ChatGPT
Contract automation platform Juro has launched a feature that lets lawyers query and analyse contracts through ChatGPT. The update positions the company as the first legal tech provider to link its platform with OpenAI’s infrastructure.
Market Commentary
Lawyers braced for tax bombshell ahead of expected NIC shake-up
A new tax on limited liability partnerships (LLPs) is expected to be announced in the upcoming Autumn Budget. According to a report on Tuesday evening from The Times, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is understood to be putting in place a new charge that would replicate employers’ national insurance in LLPs.
Johnson & Johnson calls on Jones Day’s newest disputes hires in talc group action
Jones Day duo Samantha Silver and Nathalie Smyth, who joined the firm this year, have been instructed by Johnson & Johnson to defend claims that the multinational sold baby powder containing carcinogenic fibres knowingly for decades.
London litigation market defies volatility as partner moves surge
London’s litigation market is proving resilient in the face of economic uncertainty, with disputes partner hires outpacing last year’s total by August 2025, according to research by legal recruiter Macrae.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Law Firms move Forward on Ethnic Diversity, Though Transparency Becomes Cloudier
A growing reluctance among law firms to disclose information made this year’s data analysis significantly more challenging.