Moving on

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners

Moving away from the promotion frenzy of the past month, there were several lateral hires this week.

A triple commercial property hire for the Leeds office of Beachcroft Wansbroughs: Barney Frith and Virginia Clegg have merged in their own practice, The Frith Partnership, while John Beckett joins from Gateley Wareing in Birmingham to head the Leeds property team.

East Anglian firm Mills & Reeve has recruited two partners eager to escape the London smoke.

Tim Ryan leaves west London firm Julian Holy to join the commercial property group in Norwich, and Andrew Ray joins the Cambridge-based private finance initiative and projects team from City firm Masons.

Another Cambridge firm, Hewitson Becke & Shaw, has hired competition law expert Luisa Leone as a partner.

She was previously senior legal counsel at Visa International.

Stephen Ramsden leaves his own practice, Legal Solutions, to become a personal injury and clinical negligence partner at Plymouth firm Gill Akaster.

In London, Fladgate Fielder has hired corporate finance partner Simon Pithers from Simmons & Simmons.

Peter Lamble, previously at Lamble Walsh, has joined the Hammersmith office of Glenisters to head the civil litigation department.

Lateral hires aside, there were still several internal promotions this week.

Four new partners at Nabarro Nathanson takes it to 102 partners: pensions expert Jennifer Bell and commercial litigator Neal Gibson in the London office, and litigators Gerard Khoshnaw and Martin McKervey in Sheffield.

Reynolds Porter Chamberlain has promoted four insurance lawyers: Kenneth Underhill (insurance and reinsurance), Samantha Lees (construction and physical risks), and Katherine Rees and Stephen Reilly (both professional liability).

Top trade union firm Thompsons has made up five equity partners across its UK offices.

Salaried partners and personal injury lawyers Joanna Stevens and Terry Loughrey move up in Cardiff and Birmingham respectively, as do David Stothard (personal injury), Victoria Phillips and salaried partner Richard Arthur (both employment) in London.

South-east firm asb law has taken its partnership to 45 by promoting Michelle Brown (family) and Margaret Craton (IT), and recruiting commercial property specialist Jonathan Cavell from London firm Campbell Hooper.

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Associates/ assistants

Thames Valley commercial firm Clarks has announced five additions: senior commercial property and environment solicitor Karyn Trowbridge arrives from Blue Circle Industries; senior commercial property solicitor Alistair Walton leaves Cripps Harries Hall in Tunbridge Wells; employment associate Jill Kelly joins from Kent firm Thomson Snell & Passmore; and employment assistants Colette Shaw and Andrea Bateman come from Hawkins Russell Jones in Hertfordshire and Cheltenham-based Wiggin & Co respectively.

Fellow Thames Valley firm Charles Lucas & Marshall has brought in family lawyer Rupinder Rai from Churchers in Portsmouth.

Southport-based Barnetts has also been busy, with six new assistants joining the personal injury team: Philip Swarbrick and Paul Fulcher from Easthams, Fiona Kershaw from Russell Jones & Walker, Sarah Whittaker from John Gibbs, Shelley Murphy from Axa Insurance, and Chris Eccles from Canter Levin & Berg.

North London firm Hodge Jones & Allen has scooped up employment assistant Philip Tsamados from Ole Hansen & Partners.

Associate Aaron Barnes has joined the London office of US firm Hogan & Hartson.

Previously senior corporate counsel at CMS Energy UK, he will specialise in international project development and finance.

Corporate and IP assistant Sharon Benning also joins Hogan & Hartson, moving from fellow US firm LeBoeuf Lamb Greene & MacRae.

In the midlands, Nottingham firm Fraser Brown has recruited property solicitor Nigel Elliott from Edwards Geldard.

OTHERS

Marcus Ezekiel, until recently director of legal and regulatory affairs at the ITV network and ITV Digital, has joined on-line financial services provider Egg as chief legal officer and company secretary.

City firm Allen & Overy has appointed regulatory expert Stuart Woods as a consultant to its international pharma and bioscience group.

Mr Woods was formerly director of regulatory strategy and operations for SmithKline Beecham Biologicals, and will advise Allen & Overy on the international regulatory processes for pharmaceuticals and biotechnology companies.

Luke Filei, a China corporate specialist previously at Simmons & Simmons' Shanghai office, has moved to CMS Cameron McKenna's Beijing office as a consultant.