PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partnership

In Manchester, Donns' managing partner Hilary Meredith is leaving to set up Hilary Meredith Solicitors, in Wilmslow, Cheshire, specialising in major brain and spinal cord injury work.

Halliwell Landau's Manchester office gains a new head of pensions in partner Elizabeth Haggis, who was formerly department head at Cobbetts.

In Worcestershire, three partner promotions at specialist defendant personal injury firm Everatt & Co in Evesham: Anthony Bushell, Jennifer Bates and Mike Rogers.

Berrymans Lace Mawer has promoted six to its partnership, bringing the firm's total to 83.

In its Birmingham office, Henry Bermingham and Julian Smart are promoted in personal injury and professional indemnity respectively.

Meanwhile, in the London office, the firm has made up Vicki Swanton (medical negligence), Orla Scanlan (police), and Laura Trezise and Michelle Penn (occupational disease).

Staying in London, Lesley Webber OBE has joined Reed Smith's London office as a partner in the real estate group from Beachcroft Wansbroughs, where she was head of property litigation and planning.

Michael Cassidy has joined Hammonds' property team from Olswang; the firm now has 172 partners.

John Woodhall is moving to Sidley Austin Brown & Wood, where he will be a partner in the international finances group.

He arrives from Clifford Chance, where he was head of international securitisation.

US firm Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe has a new London office leader in private finance partner Adrian Harris.

He takes over from Michael Bacon, a partner in the firm's energy and project finance group, who is returning to the US.

Family partner Judith Ball moves to Robbins Olivey in Woking, taking the total number of partners to eight.

She joins from Callaghans in Guildford.

Moving east, Oxford's Blake Lapthorn Linnell has gained a new head of its private client depart-ment: Michael Knott joins from Russell Jones & Walker in Northampton, where he was a partner in the private client department.

Abroad, Simmons & Simmons has strength-ened its German presence with the recruitment of Ingrid Kalisch as a finance partner.

She joins from Luther Menold in Frankfurt, where she headed the banking and finance group.

Corporate partner Sylvie Dariosecq has joined Eversheds' Paris office from the Paris office of Herbert Smith.

And back in London, banking partner Nick Terras moves from Withers to join SJ Berwin.

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Associates/assistants

Peter Hopkins has been promoted to associate at Henley-on-Thames firm Mercers.

He specialises in private client work.

Stephen Baylis has become head of the finance law team at York firm Langleys, moving from the Leeds office of Hammonds where he was a partner.

In Liverpool, Cuff Roberts has created three associates and four senior solicitors.

The new associates are Richard Bate, who specialises in wills, trusts and probate, Ron Farrell in the construction unit, and Alistair Johnson, a property lawyer.

Reaching senior lawyer status are Paul Hilton in debt recovery, Ann Currie (litigation), Dominic McGinn (dispute resolution) and David Crank (commercial litigation and health and safety).

Manchester-based James Chapman & Co has recruited three assistants to its employers' and public liability team: Robert Hetherington joins from Weightman Vizards in Manchester, Andrew Howells arrives from Keoghs in Bolton, and Craig Oliver moves from the Liverpool office of Berrymans Lace Mawer.

Staying in Manchester, Donns' assistant Adrienne de Vos becomes head of catastrophic injury, replacing Hilary Meredith (see Partnership section).

Cardiff firm Leo Abse & Cohen has recruited assistant John Roberts to its insurance team.

He joins from Cradley Heath-based George Green, where he recently qualified.

Aidan Loy joins Uxbridge firm IBB as an assistant in the employment depart-ment from Manchester-based management consultants Collinson Grant, where he was a human resources consultant.

In London, assistant Ed Cowen has moved from the professional indemnity department of Weightman Vizards to the commercial litigation department at Clyde & Co.

Ashton Graham in East Anglia has taken on two assistants: Amanda Timcke joins the business law unit from Prettys in Ipswich, while family lawyer Tina Kingsbury arrives from Plummer Tilsey Logan in Clacton-on-Sea.

In Tunbridge Wells, senior solicitor Sara Hammond and assistant Charlotte Sloan have joined Gregory Rowcliffe Milners from Clarke Kiernan in nearby Tonbridge.

Two private client assistants join Coffin Mew & Clover's Fareham office: Morag Landers arrives from Lamport Bassitt in Southampton and Jonathan Sleep moves from Cunningtons in Essex.

Katie Roberts joins Metcalfe Copeman & Pettefar's crime team as assistant from Ward Geffen.

BARRISTERS AND BENCH

Over the summer, former Law Society Council member John Appleby was appointed as a circuit judge on the Northern Circuit.

More recently, former solicitor John Harrow has also been appointed as a circuit judge and assigned to the western circuit.

Karen Venables has been appointed district judge on the midland circuit.

She was previously a deputy district judge on the south-eastern circuit and is a partner at Darlington & Parkinson in Ealing.

Ian Avent has become district judge on the south-eastern circuit.

He had been a deputy on the same circuit since January 1998 and is a partner at Penman Johnson in Watford.

Human rights, public and commercial law barrister James Eadie has moved from Serle Court to Blackstone Chambers.