PRIVATE PRACTICE

Partners


Herbert Smith has become the first of the City giants to announce its 2006 promotions. The ten selected are: Simon Clarke (litigation and arbitration), Tom Chau, Alan Montgomery, Will Pearce and Cecile Wake (all corporate), Adrian Cheng (finance), Matthew Bonye, Tracy London and Nick Turner (all real estate), and Andrew Taggart (employment, trusts and pensions). The firm will have 217 partners as a result.


Allen & Overy has strengthened its intellectual property team by recruiting Nicola Dagg from Lovells.


The London office of US firm McDermott Will & Emery has hired hedge funds specialist Nick Terras from SJ Berwin.


Halliwells has hired four for its London office: Marko Kraljevic (international trade) from US firm Kilpatrick Stockton, Jolyon Patten (reinsurance) from Elborne Mitchell, Elizabeth Small (tax) from Taylor Wessing, and Kim McMurray (banking) from Nabarro Nathanson.


US firm Hunton & Williams has launched a corporate recovery and insolvency practice in London by hiring Mark Fennessy from Clyde & Co.


Speechly Bircham has appointed Richard Keczkes to its planning and environmental team; he joins from Nabarro Nathanson.


Media litigators Susan Aslan and Sue Charles leave Olswang for Howard Kennedy.


Winckworth Sherwood promotes two: proceeds of crime specialist Edward Saffer and property specialist Jane Sewell. Meanwhile, Andrea Squires joins the private finance initiative and projects practice from Finers Stephens Innocent.


Kevin Hand has joined Knightsbridge firm Child & Child from south-east firm Kidd Rapinet.


Payne Hicks Beach has recruited James Bacon for its private client department; he joins from Lawrence Graham.


Desmond Banks joins south London’s Fisher Meredith as head of property after his own firm in Notting Hill closed last year. Fisher Meredith has also promoted five to salaried partner: Angela Jackman and Eleanor Wright (both public services law), Gini Denison-Pender (children), Robert Hush (family) and Stefano Ruis (police and prison law).


Jane Walker joins the licensing unit at Salisbury and Southampton firm Trethowans from Blake Lapthorn Linnell.


Corporate finance specialist Nick Gent joins Blake Lapthorn Linnell in Southampton from Lester Aldridge.


In Bristol, Charles Spragge joins the banking litigation team at TLT from City firm CMS Cameron McKenna.


Chelmsford firm Taylor Haldane Barlex has promoted criminal law specialists Sarah Steggles and Laura Austen.


Duncan Walker joins the corporate team at Kester Cunningham John in Cambridge; he was previously lead counsel and managing director of Barclays Global Investors.


HBJ Gateley Wareing strengthens its Nottingham office with the recruitment of employment specialist Andrew Macmillan from local firm Andersons.


Also in Nottingham, Berryman has hired Alan Millband from Weightmans in Birmingham to launch a business defence team.


AGR in Mansfield has promoted two: Harriet Hawkins in the family department and Charles Lee in the personal injury team.


John Brooke joins the employment and commercial litigation team at Gamlins in Parc Menai, north Wales, from John Hardman & Co in Manchester.


Weightmans has appointed Graeme Creer as head of its national public sector group. He joins from Liverpool City Council.


Hill Dickinson has bolstered its Manchester office by hiring insurance specialist Catherine Grant, who was previously at the local arm of UK/US firm DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary.


Irwin Mitchell has appointed Nick Bates its head of commercial litigation for the north. He joins from Walker Morris and will be based in the Leeds and Sheffield offices.




Management


City firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain has appointed Tim Brown as senior partner to succeed Paul Nicholas, who retires on 1 May. Mr Brown is chairman of the firm’s managing board and head of insurance. Corporate and commercial partner Jonathan Watmough replaces him as chairman of the managing board.




Associates/Assistants


Three join the planning and environmental group at City firm SJ Berwin: Daniel Farrand from Mills & Reeve, Australian-qualified Emily Peters from Bond Pearce, and newly-qualified Meeta Kaur.


Barrister Abimbola Badejo joins London firm Bircham Dyson Bell as an associate in the social housing team; he moves from Lawrence Graham.


Bedfordshire firm Pictons has hired Funke Abimbola as an assistant in its company and commercial department; she was previously at Campbell Hooper in London.


Bhaminee Sharma has joined Pitmans in Reading as an assistant in the commercial property department, moving from Bana Vaid in Middlesex.


Two assistant solicitors for the commercial property team at Brighton firm Griffith Smith: Linda Chapman joins from City firm Devonshires, while Clare Osborn moves after qualifying at Stevens Drake in Crawley.


Robert Fawcett moves to the commercial property team at Bennett Griffin in Worthing from SMR in Selsey.


Susy Perry joins Moore & Blatch in Southampton as an assistant in the employment department; she moves from Dutton Gregory in Winchester.


Also in Southampton, James Hawkeswood joins the corporate finance team at Blake Lapthorn Linnell. He was previously at Bond Pearce.


Two join Kitson Hutchings in Torquay as assistants in the commercial property team: Will Willden moves from Bond Pearce, while Richard Holmes leaves Ashfords.


Stephens & Scown bolsters its corporate team in Truro by hiring assistant James Orpin from Michelmores.


Motorcycle and head injuries specialist Andrew Campbell has joined Withy King in Trowbridge as an assistant from City firm Charles Russell.


Cardiff firm Dolmans has bolstered its commercial litigation team with the appointment of Antony Gibbons as an assistant. He was previously at Shakespeares in Birmingham.


Sally Challinor joins Leathes Prior in Norwich from Eversheds as an associate in the commercial property team.


Also in Norwich, James Slinger joins the commercial property team at Kester Cunningham John as an associate; he moves from City firm Slaughter and May.


Christopher Sing joins the employment team in Geldards’ Derby office as an associate. He was previously at Gorvins in Milton Keynes.


Associate Robert Pannifer joins the probate team at Enoch Evans in Walsall from Sydney Mitchell in Birmingham.


Commercial litigation and insolvency specialist Peter Brewer has joined Else Commercial to set up the firm’s Birmingham office; he was previously at Fraser Brown in Nottingham.


Assistant Laura Bee bolsters the professional indemnity team at Mills & Reeve in Birmingham, moving from City firm Barlow Lyde & Gilbert.


Commercial property specialist Richard Saunders is promoted to senior associate at Silks in Oldbury.


Three join Sheffield firm Ashton Morton Slack after qualification: Sara Longden (business crime), Samuel Price (conveyancing) and Kathryn Turner (personal injury).


Personal injury associate John Hurley joins Williamson Hill in Middlesborough from Redcar firm Richard J Knaggs.


Andrew Burford has joined the personal injury team at Mortons in Sunderland as an assistant, after qualifying at the firm.


Short Richardson & Forth in Newcastle has recruited James Burgess from Dickinson Dees as an assistant in commercial property.



BAR AND BENCH


Solicitor Patrick Wheeler has been appointed a district judge on the northern circuit.


Zachary Douglas, who was formerly an arbitration specialist at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, has joined Matrix Chambers in London after being called to the bar this year.


Commercial and chancery specialist Michael Booth QC has joined 13 Old Square in London. He will retain his membership of Kings Chambers in Manchester.



OTHER


London firm Bircham Dyson Bell has hired Peter Twiddy, former head of litigation at HM Revenue and Customs, as a consultant.