Moving on

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners

Hammond Suddards Edge scored the biggest recruitment of the week with Patrick Somers, general counsel at Lattice Group, which is in the process of merging with National Grid.

He is set to join as a corporate finance and utilities partner later in the year.

The London office of US firm Jones Day Reavis & Pogue has recruited corporate finance partner Janene Waudby from Theodore Goddard.

Hotel and leisure partner Andrew Little, formerly at now-defunct Andersen Legal firm Garretts, has found a new home at Berwin Leighton Paisner.

Property specialist Elizabeth Paris has joined Rooks Rider from William Sturges & Co, where she was a consultant.

Shipping finance lawyer Suzie Haydon has docked at Lawrence Jones, having set off from Lloyd & Co.

On the promotion front in London, clinical negligence expert Sarah Graham has been made up as Leigh Day & Co's 17th partner.

Anthony Gold has promoted Debra Mo as a housing and community care partner.

Bircham Dyson Bell has promoted private client lawyer Helen Ratcliffe.

It now has 38 partners.

Pritchard Englefield now has 25 partners after promoting employment specialist Melanie Stancliffe.

Outside London, M4 corridor firm Morgan Cole has elevated four assistants, taking its partnership to 82: Wendy Leydon and Neil McLaughlin (employment), Gareth Morgan (construction and engineering) and Antoine West (insurance).

Reading-based Boyes Turner has promoted technology and commerce solicitor Mark Blunden as its 18th partner.

Huntingdon firm Kirkpatricks has its fifth partner after promoting criminal lawyer Catriona Macleod.

New partners Jenny Phillips (wills and probate) and John Osborne (family) mean Ashford-based Kingsfords has 11 partners.

And there are now 12 partners at West Sussex firm Rawlinson Butler after it made up residential development specialist Jane Bowden.

Brighton-based Wynne Baxter has promoted clinical negligence solicitor Melanie Minter, and administration and practice development group head Christopher Coopey.

Private client lawyer Isabel Deverill takes the step up at Andover firm Parker Bullen.

National insurance firm Weightman Vizards has promoted David Tuck (workplace litigation) in the Birmingham office, in Manchester Stuart Jones (employment), and in Liverpool Stuart Whittle (professional indemnity), Sheila Whitton (commercial property) and Rob Williams (transport).

It now has 72 partners.

Mace & Jones has drafted in partner Norman Jones from DLA to head its Liverpool-based commercial property team.

Manchester-based Halliwell Landau has made up 11: Sophie Brooks (corporate), John Burns (intellectual property), Ed Cotton and Guy Guinan (employment), Mark Dickson, Louise Shaw and Paul McGrath (insurance litigation), Steve Morris (litigation), Frank Shephard and James Sheridan (corporate), John Vickery (insolvency).

It now has 66 partners.

Leeds firm Lupton Fawcett has 28 partners after promoting Andrew Charuk (personal injury) and Stephen Pickard (personal legal services).

Yorkshire firm Rollits has promoted property lawyer Jo Randall as its 28th partner.

Scarborough-based North Yorkshire Law has its sixth partner after making up wills and probate solicitor Tracy Martin.

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Associates / assistants

South London firm Fisher Meredith has boosted its employment team with David Malamatenios from Mackrell Garrett Turner and Jane Swann, current chairwoman of the London Young Solicitors Group, from City giant Herbert Smith.

In addition to its new partner, Bircham Dyson Bell has promoted private client lawyer Merie Sabey to associate.

Milton Keynes-based Kimbells has recruited senior solicitor Hilary Norris from Taylor Walton to head its employment group.

Family lawyer Catherine Whalberg has been promoted to associate at Coventry-based Alsters.

As well as snapping up a new partner, north-west firm Mace & Jones has been busy promoting new associates: Peter Byrne and Paul Green (employment), Charles Tomlinson (commercial litigation) and Tina Dunn (family).

Halliwell Landau has matched its 11-partner promotion by giving the same number of solicitors a step up the ladder to associate status: John Holmes and Juliette Bradbury (planning), Catherine Charlson (employment), Chris Fletcher, Laurence Brown, Rachel Francis, Chris Gough and Siobhan Sutton, (insurance litigation), Julien Luke (brewery and litigation), and Rob Nicholson and Sarah Sabin (litigation).

Graham Hogarth has joined Sheffield firm Howells from Norrie Waite & Slater to take on the newly created role of head of housing.

Leeds firm McCormicks has promoted commercial and contract litigation specialist John Mackle to senior associate.

OTHERS

Two firms have recruited chief executives.

Kent firm Clarkson Wright & Jakes has hired Frank Saxby, who moves from IT company Midas, to be its first occupant of the post.

Godfrey Mather leaves his role as chief executive of Essex firm TMK to take on the same job at St Alban's firm Turner & Debenhams.

He will be replaced by accountant Anne Porter, who moves from the London office of US firm Weil Gotshal & Manges.

London firm Moon Beever has taken on international insolvency solicitor Michael Prior as a consultant - he switches from Nabarro Nathanson.