Moving on

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners

In what has been a quiet week for lateral hires, the move of Wynne Thomas - the head of City firm Berwin Leighton Paisner's private client department - to Dawsons stands out.

He will head the private client work there as its 23rd partner.

Three promotions at leading north London legal aid firm Hodge Jones & Allen: Susan Breen (family), Raj Chada (crime) and Jacqui Hayat (clinical negligence) all become salaried partners.

It now has 18 partners.

Lord Hunt of Wirral has been re-elected to serve for three more years as senior partner of City firm Beachcroft Wansbroughs from 1 May 2003.

He has held the role since 1996.Christopher Talbot - formerly senior counsel for regulation and competition at Coventry-based Transco - is joining Hammond Suddards Edge's utilities team in Birmingham as a partner.

Ralph Coyle, one-time legal director of Yorkshire Tyne-Tees Televison, has left Leeds firm Walker Morris to become a partner in the York office of Rollits, where he will help develop its company and commercial practice.

Litigator Emerson Wallwork has been promoted to partner at Manchester firm Elliotts.

The firm now has 13 partners.

Oxford firm Pellmans is no longer run by a sole principal after matrimonial lawyer Leigh Edwards and conveyancer Joanna Pellman - daughter of principal Adrian Pellman - were promoted.

Iain Thom, who was in solo practice at Fareham-based Thom & Co, has joined Southampton-based Eric Robinson as head of company and commercial.

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Associates/assistants

It is all go in the north-west.

Leigh-based Stephensons has promoted to associate level Leigh-based Jamie Cruickshanks and Louise Griffiths (clinical negligence), and Lisa Hibbert (family), while in Wigan, Victoria Melling (family) takes the step up.

A similar promotion story for seven assistants at Manchester and Leeds firm Cobbetts: Stephen Hardwick (corporate), Heidi Burgess, Nicola Cooper, and Catherine Haslam (all property), Joel Heap and Robert Turner (both litigation and insolvency), and David Walton (employment).

Staying in Manchester, litigation assistant Chloe Parkhouse has left Addleshaw Booth & Co to join Wacks Caller.

Meanwhile in Leeds, Rachelle Mahapatra arrives at Irwin Mitchell as a clinical negligence associate.

She was formerly a partner at Keeble Hawson in Sheffield.

Terry Cooper joins Birmingham firm Putsman.wlc as an assistant and head of tax, trusts and estates from the Birmingham office of Pinsent Curtis Biddle.

Another private client lawyer in the midlands, Neil Raiseborough, has joined Edwards Geldard in its Derby office from Nelsons in Nottingham.

Employment assistant Zelda Garbett has left Leicester-based Bray & Bray to join Peterborough firm Buckle Mellows.

Arriving in Northampton to join DFA is Neil Sneade, a commercial assistant who is leaving Shoosmiths' Milton Keynes office.

Family lawyer Ruth James has left central London firm Farrer & Co to join the Oxford office of Manches.

As well as its new partners, north London firm Hodge Jones & Allen has introduced an associate level for the first time, promoting six assistants: Sean Carroll (wills), Judith Cass (housing), Susie Labinjoh and Melanie Williams (both personal injury), John Sheehan (crime) and Kimberley Williams (clinical negligence).

The London office of Bermuda-based Conyers Dill & Pearman has brought in two corporate associates specialising in global funds: Christopher Johnson-Gilbert joins from City firm Linklaters, where he was a partner, and English-qualified Kieran Loughran joins from Cayman Islands firm Quinn & Hampson.

Corporate associate Piers Alexander has joined the Hong Kong office from Clifford Chance.

Niall Tierney - an intellectual property assistant who is also qualified as a trade mark attorney - is leaving City firm Field Fisher Waterhouse to join Davenport Lyons.

Australian-qualified associate Peter Hawkes is swapping Herbert Smith's environment group for Baker & McKenzie.

Antony Hyams-Parish has arrived at the Crawley office of Rawlison Butler as an employment assistant; he was formerly an associate with Guildford-based Hart Brown.

In the south-west, property lawyer Karen Philips has been promoted to associate at Exeter-based Stones.