PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners


Sejal Mehta: appointed by Leo Abse & Cohen It has been a busy August for moves. Starting in the City, Marshall Ross & Prevezer has hired former KPMG director Keith Dempster as a partner in its corporate finance practice. Barry Gold, founder of football agency business Premier Management Holdings, also joins the team as a consultant.

Olswang has recruited private equity partner Duncan McDonald from national firm Pinsents.


In Reading, Janice Wall moves to the corporate and commercial team at Pitmans from Dechert in the City.


Moore & Blatch hires a new partner to head its commercial property department in Southampton: Peter Richardson joins from national firm Beachcroft Wansbroughs.


Richard Bebb leaves London firm Cartwright Cunningham Haselgrove & Co to head the family department at Bristol’s Burroughs Day.


Keith Dempster: partner at Marshall Ross In the midlands, corporate specialist Charles Bond joins Cobbetts’ Birmingham office as a partner from City firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

To Wolverhampton, where Alasdair Hobbs joins Manby & Steward to head the employment practice from Leo Abse & Cohen in Cardiff.


Still in the Black Country, family and childcare specialist Suzanne Waterfield is promoted to partner at Brierley Hill firm Waldrons. Natalie Gennard in the commercial department becomes an associate.


In Wales, Leo Abse & Cohen takes on Sejal Mehta as an associate partner in the insurance team in Cardiff from Bevan Ashford in Bristol.


Associates / assistants


Peter Richardson: heads Moore & Blatch team Former More Fisher Brown assistant solicitor Christopher Jenkins has joined City-based shipping and international trade firm Waterson Hicks as a senior assistant after a career break to travel.

In the south-east, Victoria Brackett moves to Thomas Eggar’s dispute resolution team in Worthing from City firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, while construction specialist Patricia Nathan-Amissah joins the firm’s Reigate office after a sabbatical.


In Oxford, Blake Lapthorn Linnell hires four new assistant solicitors: Jane Thomas, previously with Burges Salmon in Bristol (heading the wills and tax planning unit); James Antoniou from Bates NVH in the south-east (wills and tax planning); Debbie Sadler from Allan Janes in High Wycombe (employment); and Michelle Harte from US firm Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr (corporate finance).


Wiltshire firm Wood Awdry & Ford takes on three: associate Simon Pressdee from Davis Wood in Bristol, where he was a partner (litigation); assistant solicitor Natasha Kosevic from Law Hurst & Taylor in Southend (litigation); and Andrea Pierce, who was previously at Bevirs in Swindon (private client).


Moving west, assistant solicitor Bonita Walters joins the legal disputes practice at Burroughs Day in Bristol from TLT.


Waldrons: Suzanne Waterfield and Natalie Gennard In Swansea, employment specialist Rosabel Fernandez leaves the Engineering Employers Federation in the East Midlands for the commercial division of John Collins & Partners.

In the East Midlands, assistant solicitor Alison Playle joins the wills and probate team at Rothera Dowson in West Bridgford from Young & Pearce in Nottingham.


Cheshire firm Daniels hires newly qualified family solicitor Lindsey Palmer for its Congleton office. She trained at Thimbleby Fisher in Lincolnshire.


Litigator Andrew Bartley moves to Jolliffe & Co in Chester on qualification, from Gwilym Hughes & Partners in Wrexham.


Assistant solicitor Lucy Vernon has joined the corporate team at Brabners Chaffe Street in Manchester from Eversheds.


New assistants at Blake Lapthorn Linnell (l-r): Debbie Sadler, Jane Thomas and Michelle Harte Two new associates for George Davies in Manchester: Mark Jones moves from Boote Edgar Esterkin (litigation) and Justin Marks from Pinsents (employment).

Paul Kelly and Alison Perry both qualify into the employment team at Blacks in Leeds.


In north Yorkshire, company/commercial associate Angela Boland joins Harrogate firm Berwins from Addleshaw Goddard.



In-house moves

Partner Clare Potter leaves City firm Simmons & Simmons to become chief legal officer at the Competition Commission.


Microsoft hires Chris Parker as senior director, law and corporate affairs from Apple Europe, where he was senior counsel.


Elaine Hutton joins media company Freemantle as head of legal for its worldwide licensing division from DeAgostini, where she was general counsel.


Rahima Henry leaves Rothschild Securities, where she was head of legal and compliance, to join Kleinwort Benson Private Bank as head of legal, assistant director.


Penny Whitwell is promoted to head of legal at insurer Markel International, a UK subsidiary of US-based Markel Corporation.


Solicitor Lily Olisa is appointed company secretary at Zurich Financial Services Group.


Print and document solutions company Danka Business Systems takes on former Clifford Chance commercial assistant Toby Hornett as counsel (UK and Europe). Trainee Jessica Homer also joins the in-house team.


Kevin Corbett, former senior associate at Masons in Hong Kong, joins engineering consultancy FaberMaunsell as group legal director and head of risk management.


John Fawcett-Ellis has been promoted to general counsel at shipping association Intertanko in Singapore.


To submit an entry to the Moving On section, send an e-mail to: moving-on@lawsociety.org.uk. Include the following details: name, practice area, name and location of new and previous firm or company (indicating whether you have moved directly from the previous firm) and current and previous job title (for example, partner or assistant). Any photos must be in colour and of a minimum resolution of 300dpi, sent in jpeg format. Alternatively, you may send a high-quality print to the News Editor, Law Society’s Gazette, 7th Floor, Fox Court, 14 Gray’s Inn Road, London, WC1X 8HN.