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
Brabners appoints two Partners in Leeds office
Law firm Brabners has bolstered its Leeds office with the appointment of two new Partners. Jennifer Leah has joined from Eversheds Sutherland, where she spent more than a decade advising landlords, tenants, developers, investors and corporate occupiers on contentious Real Estate. Helen Bates previously spent seven years leading the Restructuring and Insolvency team in the Leeds office of Freeths, and over a decade at Clarion prior to that. She brings more than 24 years’ experience in corporate and personal insolvency and restructuring.
Womble Bond Dickinson appoints Paula Myers to Private Capital team in Leeds
Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) has appointed Paula Myers as a Partner in its Private Capital team, bolstering its Leeds office and wider national offering. Paula joins from Irwin Mitchell, where she previously worked as National Head of Will, Trust and Estate Disputes.
Keystone Law appoints new Partner to Private Prosecutions and Corporate Crime practice
Keystone Law has appointed Polly Sprenger as a Partner in its Corporate Crime and Investigations practice. Her experience spans fraud, bribery and corruption, money laundering, asset tracing and regulatory enforcement matters. Polly previously worked as a Global Investigations Partner at Addleshaw Goddard. Polly is based in London.
DLA Piper makes bold hires to bolster Global Private Markets team
DLA Piper has appointed three new Partners in their global Finance practice across New York and London. Partners Kfir Abutbul (New York) and Jacob Durkin (London) join their global Capital Solutions team along with Of Counsel Brady Lambeth, while Partner Kristine Manoukian (New York) joins the firm’s global Restructuring team.
Two new Partners for Thorntons in Glasgow
Thorntons is boosting its senior specialist credentials with the appointment of Fiona Piper and Stephen Connolly as Partners in its Glasgow office. Fiona brings more than 30 years of advising businesses on corporate and commercial work, previously working as a Partner at Davidson Chalmers Stewart. Stephen joins the employment team, with his previous work spanning disciplinary and grievance procedures, unfair dismissal, discrimination claims, TUPE and business immigration. Stephen moves from Blackadders, where he worked as a Partner.
Jones Day Expands Global Financial Markets Practice with Trio in London and Dallas
Jones Day has announced that Harjeet Lall and Charlotte Lewis-Williams have joined the Firm as Partners in London, and Hope Schall has joined as Of Counsel in Dallas. Harjeet joins from Pinsent Masons, where she was as a Partner. Charlotte joins from DLA Piper, where she worked as a Partner.
Europe
Former Lalive lawyer Giulio Palermo has left French-Swiss disputes boutique Archipel to practise as an arbitrator at his own firm, GPA Law, in Geneva.
Middle East
Clyde & Co expands Middle East Aviation practice with Dubai Partner hire
Clyde & Co has expanded its Middle East aviation practice with the appointment of Partner Nick Humphrey in Dubai, as the industry continues to navigate change amid sustained growth in the region. Humphrey advises clients across the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia, and Asia Pacific on commercial, regulatory, and contentious aviation matters. Nick joins from Norton White Lawyers, where he worked as a Partner.
In house
Travers Partner poised for Amazon move in latest senior exit
A Disputes Partner at Travers Smith has left the firm ahead of a move to Amazon’s in-house legal team. Polly Richard’s practice spans civil fraud, corporate and commercial disputes, and contentious insolvency. Richard departs after 16 years at the firm, having been promoted to Partner six years ago.
Promotions & Appointments
Laurus has announced the promotion of Ingrid Starcic and Kirsty Kelleher to Partner, further strengthening the leadership of the firm’s Family team.
Pinsent Masons elects Scottish lawyer John Maciver as Senior Partner
Pinsent Masons has elected John Maciver as Senior Partner. John is a Finance Partner and is Head of Financial Services, which under his leadership has grown by over 20 per cent in the last two financial years. He joined the firm as a trainee in 1995 after graduating in law from the University of Edinburgh and spent his junior career with the firm in Scotland before relocating to London. John is based in Edinburgh.
Notable Moves in the US
Gibson Dunn swoops for six-strong Wachtell team
The Co-Chair of Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz’s Litigation practice is leaving the New York powerhouse for Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, moving firms along with five other Partners. William Savitt, a Co-Chair of Wachtell’s executive committee and Co-Chair of the Litigation practice, will be joined at Gibson Dunn by Wachtell Partners Sarah Eddy, Randall Jackson, Ryan McLeod, Anitha Reddy, and Bradley (Brad) Wilson. All act on litigation matters, including trial, corporate governance and M&A disputes.
Freshfields doubles down on New York M&A with latest ex-Cravath hire
Freshfields has continued its investment in New York by hiring veteran M&A Partner Keith Hallam from White & Case, reuniting him with former Cravath colleagues. Before joining White & Case in 2024, he spent almost two decades at Cravath. Hallam advises public and private companies, private equity sponsors and financial investors on mergers and acquisitions, strategic investments, carve-outs, joint ventures and corporate governance matters.
Firm and Market Activity
Office Openings & Closings
Buckles strengthens London presence with office move and new appointments
Buckles, the nationally recognised law firm, is marking a significant step in its growth strategy by relocating to a new London office and appointing five new recruits to this larger office. The firm’s new London home at 34-36 Gray’s Inn Road, will open its doors in August. The move reflects Buckles’ continued expansion in the capital and its ambition to build a stronger presence within London’s legal community and among its international client base.
Financial Results
Macfarlanes’ PEP holds steady as revenue nears £390m
Macfarlanes grew revenue just under 5% in the year to 31 March 2026, to £389.5m, in a year the top UK independent characterised as “transitional”. Operating profit inched up from £206.5m to £212m, while profit per equity partner (PEP) held steady at £3.1m.
Mills & Reeve staff to reap rewards of £3.2m bonus pot
Mills & Reeve has broken through the £200m revenue mark for the first time after posting double-digit revenue growth in its latest financial results, The Lawyer can reveal.
Turnover increased 13.9 per cent to a record £206.9m for the 2025/26 financial year, despite what managing partner Claire Clarke described as a “challenging” time for all law firms.
Weightmans staff net £2,500 bonus after surge in profits
Weightmans has reported a 12 per cent and 17 per cent rise in revenue and profit respectively in 2025/26. In its first full year under the leadership of managing partner Sarah Walton, Weightmans generated £162m in its top line over 2025/26, while profits distributed to equity partners racked up to £17m.
Profit growth outstrips revenue increase at Foot Anstey
Foot Anstey saw profit increase by nearly twice as much as revenue in 2025/26.
The national law firm posted a 12 per cent profit uplift, to £18.05m, while turnover was up 6.6 per cent from £76.9m to £82m, with the corporate and commercial, finance, employment, dispute resolution, charities and real estate teams among the stronger performers.
Brodies posts record revenue and higher profits
Brodies LLP has recorded its sixteenth consecutive year of growth, reporting revenue of £138.8 million for the financial year ending 30 April 2026, up 11 per cent from £125.3m the previous year.
Charles Russell Speechlys posts 10 per revenue bump
Charles Russell Speechlys recorded double-digit revenue growth in 2025/26, although partner profits remained largely flat as the firm invested internationally, including in the US. Firmwide revenue increased 10 per cent to £266.5m, up from £242.3m the previous year, driven by an 8 per cent rise in UK revenue and a 17 per cent increase across the firm’s international offices.
Osborne Clarke sees UK revenues rise to £271m as Spain and Germany drive growth overseas
International law firm Osborne Clarke has reported strong growth in its latest year-end results, driven by success in the UK, Spain and Germany. The firm’s UK business saw revenues grow 6 per cent in the 2025/26 financial year to £271m, while international revenues surged 8 per cent to £509m (€594m).
Market Commentary
Training Contracts: US Firms Are Waking Up to The Rising Importance of Homegrown Talent in the UK
Simpson Thacher and Paul Weiss are the latest firms to offer London traineeships, which are becoming non-negotiable investments for global elite firms in London.
Webber Wentzel and Linklaters to conclude alliance in November
The two firms share a deep history and understanding of the African market, having worked closely together for over 60 years. As their respective strategies have evolved, they have jointly agreed that they can best serve their clients by returning to the more informal structure that characterised their relationship before the alliance.
Milbank set to dish out special bonuses up to $25,000
Milbank is to dish out “special bonuses” of up to $25,000 to all its associates and special counsel globally. The special bonuses are understood to range between $6,000 for the firm’s most recently-joined associates, while special counsel in the class of 2018 are set to receive sums of $25,000. The bonuses are expected to be paid before August 31.
Eversheds Sutherland boosts NQ lawyer pay: £120k London, £80k regions
London salaries will enjoy a 9% boost to £120,000 from £110,000 and regional rates will rise around 10% from £72,500 to £80,000. This increase comes a year after the international firm raised NQ pay in the capital to £110,000.
Ashurst Perkins Coie Sets Up as Alternative Business Structure
The newly-merged firm has become the largest in the U.K. to obtain regulatory approvals that allow external investment, non-lawyer owners, and the provision of other professional services.
Innovation & Culture
Technology & Innovation
Legora Acquires AI-Powered Litigation Startup Wexler
Stockholm-based legal AI startup Legora announced Wednesday the acquisition of London-based artificial intelligence-powered litigation startup Wexler. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
AI-native firm Crosby looks to secure insurance for its legal agents
AI-native law firm Crosby is looking to secure professional liability insurance for its legal AI agents, claiming to be one of the first firms to attempt such a move. Crosby’s co-founder and chief executive Ryan Daniels said the firm was working with regulators and insurance providers to get cover for its agents.
Harvey’s new big idea: pivot to open-source AI models to keep costs down
It’s quite the step. As concerns over the cost of AI mount, Harvey is training open-source large language models (LLMs) so that law firms can eventually fine tune them using their firm’s data to establish their own fully-fledged custom AI models. It’s very much the latest in tech visions.
Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan invest in Harvey
Harvey has unveiled Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan as its latest investors. The funding – through Goldman Sachs Alternatives and JP Morgan’s Growth Equity Partners – is for an undisclosed sum and follows a major boost in March when a $200m funding round co-led by Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC and venture capital firm Sequoia valued the business at $11bn.
UAE launches world’s first fully integrated AI-powered judicial platform
The United Arab Emirates has launched what it says is the world’s first fully integrated AI-powered judicial platform, designed to improve the efficiency of court proceedings while leaving final decisions in the hands of judges.