In January, there were a total of 41 partner hires in London at the top 50 UK and US firms, which is significantly higher than January 2021, where there were only 29 hires. This January, 44.27% of the hires were women, and 38% of the hires were senior associate/counsel to partner hires. 9 of the 11 promotional hires came from Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance, or Linklaters (Legal Monitor).
January also saw some big moves happening in the Bar, with Miranda Butler and James Hanham joining Landmark Chambers, Ratan Singh and Alexandra Bodnar moving to Keating Chambers, Naomi Dean and Lucey Coulson going to No5 Barristers’ Chambers, and Lucy Burrows and Lara Quir moving to 3 Verulam Buildings and Twenty Essex Respectively.
This week:
Moves:
Stephenson Harwood hires three partners for key practices
Simon Bollans returns to the technology practice from Osborne Clarke; Philip Prowse joins the marine and international trade practice from HFW; and, Rustum Shah joins to lead the Islamic finance practice in Dubai from Hogan Lovells.
Former SFO director joins US litigation firm
David Green QC, former director of the Serious Fraud Office, is joining Cohen & Gresser as a partner in the white-collar defence and regulation group.
Anthony Colegrave joins White & Case as a partner in London
Anthony Colegrave joins White & Case’s global capital markets practice and Africa practice from Allen & Overy, where he was a Counsel.
Corporate partner joins Simmons & Simmons in Frankfurt
Klaus Banke, corporate M&A partner, has joined Simmons & Simmons’ Frankfurt office.
Lars Raedschelders has joined Fieldfisher’s Brussels corporate practice from Moore Law.
Carlo Meert Joins White & Case as a Partner in Brussels
Carlo Meert joins White & Case’s global M&A practice from Cleary Gottlieb, where he was a counsel.
Allen & Overy continues growth of U.S. Restructuring practice with partner Robin Spigel
Robin Spiegel, banking and restructuring partner, has joined Allen & Overy’s New York office from Baker Botts.
Jacquelyn Kasulis Joins Kirkland & Ellis as Partner
Jacquelyn Kasulis, former acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, has joined Kirkland & Ellis’ government, regulatory, and internal investigations group.
Mayer Brown partner exits for Morgan Lewis
In the first lateral hire of the year for Morgan Lewis, Merryn Craske, securitisation and structured finance partner, joins from Mayer Brown.
Promotions and Appointments:
HFW names global aviation head as next senior partner
Giles Kavanaugh, global head of aviation, has been named as Richard Crump’s successor.
DWF Latest To Announce Bumper Promotions Round
DWF has promoted 17 lawyers to partners, and 17 existing partners have been promoted within the partnership structure. Of the 34 total, 27 were within the UK, and 12 within the city of London.
Clifford Chance becomes final magic circle firm to publish spring retention
Clifford Chance’s trainee retention is at 69.6%, with 32 of the 46 trainees accepting the newly qualified roles.
Former BT lawyer joins Cancer Research’s legal team
Liz Walker has been appointed as Cancer Research UK’s interim general counsel and company secretary nearly 2 years after leaving BT.
Bird & Bird Triples London Management Team
Nick Perry will step down in May, and replacing him will be Phil Sherrell, the current head of international media, entertainment, and sport sector, Matt Bonass, head of corporate in London, and Zoe Feller, a tax partner.
EY’s former global climate change and sustainability lead joins Mishcon in new advisory role
Juan Costa Climent, a lawyer and former Spanish government minister, has joined Mishcon de Reya to lead a policy role in its sustainability business, Mishcon Purpose.
Mergers and Alliances:
Listed UK firm Knights acquires York independent Langleys for £11.5m
Knights has acquired Newcastle-based Langleys Solicitors for £11.5m to promote its strategy to grow nationwide through targeted acquisitions that are a strong cultural fit with the firm.
Office Openings and Closings:
Natasha Harrison unveils London litigation firm after mass defection from Boies Schiller
Natasha Harrison, formerly the deputy chair of Boies Schiller, has launched her boutique litigation firm Pallas Partners this week, pledging to create the “blueprint for a modern law firm”.
Financials:
Proskauer Sees Double-Digit Revenue, Profit Gains as Core Industry Sectors Thrive
Proskauer’s PEP rose 21% in 2021, and the revenue rose 18% to cross the billion dollar mark for the second time in the firms history.
Reed Smith Rivals Larger Firms With Pro Bono Hours Boost
Reed Smith’s London office has clocked 27,3000 hours of pro bono work in 2021, up 24% from last year, putting them ahead of the likes of Herbert Smith Freehills, Linklaters, and Baker McKenzie.
Technology and Innovation:
Legaltech firm BigHand acquires Iridium Technology to boost analytics offering
London headquartered BigHand has acquired US business intelligence and financial analytics provider Iridium Technology to create a single platform for financial and operational data.
Diversity and Inclusion:
It took me 17 years to get a training contract; here are 17 things I learned along the way…
Rawa Hussein discusses the obstacles she faced achieving her training contract.
A Mexican American is the first Latina president of Harvard Law Review
Priscila Coronado, a Californian-born daughter of Mexican immigrants, has been elected as the new president as one of the more prestigious US law journals. She is the first Latina president in the Harvard Review’s 135-year history.
Herbert Smith Freehills Partner Tops UK M&A Lawyer Rankings
Caroline Rae of Herbert Smith Freehills is the only woman on the list, and she has topped the rankings for M&A Lawyers for Deals in the UK during 2021.