PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners

Eversheds has scored arguably the biggest recruitment coup of 2004 so far by hiring Asda's high-profile legal director, Denise Jagger, as a partner in its Leeds office.

She will assist the development of the firm's in-house counsel programme.

City firm Berwin Leighton Paisner is close behind with a trio of lateral hires: Andrew Sherratt, formerly DLA's head of corporate finance, Finer Stephens Innocent's head of real estate, David Battiscombe, and corporate tax partner Gary Richards from the London office of US firm Weil Gotshal & Manges.

City firm Macfarlanes' debt finance group has two new partners: Tom Speechley from Norton Rose, and Bronwen Jones from the London office of US firm Kirkland & Ellis.

Joining a US firm is Angus Rodger, who becomes a partner at Steptoe & Johnson.

He was a senior associate at Clifford Chance, where he established and led the insurance/finance convergence group.

Four promotions to partner in the London office of US firm McDermott Will & Emery: Sylvia Choi (tax), Melanie Slocombe (employment), Mark Weenink (banking) and patent attorney Justin Hill (intellectual property).

US firm Bryan Cave has promoted head of employment Sarah Linton to partner.

Martin Scott is made up to pensions partner at US firm Jones Day.

Elsewhere in the capital, Ann Thomas, who was a partner and head of the family department at Few & Kester in Cambridge, has joined Ross & Craig in the same role.

Immigration specialist Sushma Gobindram has been promoted to partner at Landau Zeffertt Weir on the South Bank.

In Birmingham, partner Ann Benzimra leaves Wragge & Co to lead the commercial dispute resolution team at Hammonds following Digby Rose's decision to retire from the partnership in 2005.

In Staffordshire, matrimonial and family specialist Louise McCann has been promoted to partner at Grindeys' Stone office.

Moving north to Manchester, corporate partner Tim Jackson-Smith leaves Hammonds for Halliwell Landau.

He was a Halliwells partner until taking the role of corporate affairs director at software developer KMS in 2001.

Two partner promotions at Linder Myers in Manchester: commercial litigator Claire Barnes and clinical negligence and personal injury specialist Sion Wynne.

It now has 20 partners.

In Germany, corporate partner Klaus Grossmann has joined Hammonds' Munich office from PricewaterhouseCoopers Veltins.

To Hong Kong, where infrastructure, construction and environmental specialist Sheena Brand has joined City firm Holman Fenwick & Willan from Denton Wilde Sapte.

PRIVATE PRACTICE

Associates/assistants

Four new heads of department for Birmingham's Cromwell Solicitors: solicitor Neil Davies, formerly a partner at Brindley Twist Tafft & James (business recovery and insolvency), associate Russell Parker from Heatons (commercial property), associate Stephen Evans from Pinsents (corporate) and solicitor Kay Bawa from Harris Cooper Walsh (family).

Nearby, assistant solicitor Susheel Gupta joins George Green in Cradley Heath from Bristol-based Osborne Clarke.

To the north-west, where corporate specialist Mark Ferguson has been promoted to associate at Merseyside firm Lees Lloyd Whitley.

In Manchester, clinical negligence specialist Mark Slater has been promoted to associate at Linder Myers, while property solicitor Krista Powell has left DLA for Halliwell Landau.

Two new personal injury assistant solicitors for Manchester's Fentons: Jenny Stephenson from Ison Harrison and Stephen Hill from Horwich Farrelly.

Two solicitors join the corporate crime and risk unit at McCormicks in Leeds: Sara Young from William Hicks & Partners in Bradford, and Peter Byrne from Bridge Sanderson Munro in Doncaster.

Up in Hull, family solicitor Caroline Pullar has left Stamp Jackson & Proctor for Myer Wolff.

At Underwoods in Hemel Hempstead, associate Mark Ross joins from niche London firm HHS to head the personal injury department.

Wills, tax planning and probate solicitor James Blakemore joins from Pritchard Joyce & Hinds in London, and Claire Beaumont qualifies as a property and litigation solicitor.

In Brighton, employment assistant Sharon McIntosh has left Howlett Clarke Crowther Wood for Woolley Bevis & Diplock.

In the south-west, insolvency assistant solicitor Claire Sharp joins Bond Pearce from Exeter firm Michelmores.

Yeovil's Porter Dodson has hired employment and licensing assistant Adrian Poole from Battens.

BENCH

Mr Justice Collins has been appointed judge in charge of the Administrative Court, replacing Mr Justice Kay.

Roderick Wood QC and Florence Baron QC have been appointed High Court judges, both assigned to the family division.

Isabel Manley, chairwoman of the Law Society's employment law committee, has been appointed a salaried part-time chairman of the employment tribunals, along with fellow solicitors Humphrey Forrest and Daphne Thomas.

Solicitors Jean Laidler and Pauline Matthews have become salaried full-time chairmen.

Solicitor Roger Peters becomes full-time regional chairman for the Southampton region.