Legal Business Blogs

Tale of two strategies: Cleary Gottlieb passes on London again as White & Case promotes heavily in the City

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has made up seven partners across its global network with London missing out for the second year in a row. Of its seven new partners globally, Cleary Gottlieb made up six in the US.

The promotions become effective on 1 January 2016. 

Moscow associate Mikhail Suvorov was the sole lawyer outside of the US to make partner, having formed strong relationships with some of that country’s biggest energy companies, including Gazprom and Rosneft.

Meanwhile Milo Molfa, a London-based disputes associate, was made up to counsel along with six others internationally. He specialises in investor-state arbitration, with the Russian government one of Molfa’s biggest clients.

In contrast White & Case has focused heavily on London its latest round, with eight of its 31-strong promotions based in the City. While six (16%) of last year’s round comprised London promotions, this year’s round sees 26% of the promotions handed to City lawyers. These promotions also take effect in the new year.

While the total promotions round is six fewer than last year, when 37 lawyers got made up to partner, more than half of those came in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

With fewer partners being made up by White & Case in Asia and Eastern Europe this time around, the London promotions saw investment made in the firm’s disputes, finance and M&A teams.

Half of White & Case’s City promotions came in disputes, with litigators Edward Attenborough and Rory Hishon rising to partner. The duo also handle arbitration, one of the firm’s strongest practice areas, where Julian Bailey and Clare Connellan also made partner.

Private equity counsel Emma Parr – who joined from Linklaters last year to reunite with the Magic Circle firm’s former private equity co-heads Ian Bagshaw and Richard Youle – was also made up as that group continues to make rapid growth.

Leveraged finance lawyer Ben Wilkinson, who counts Deutsche Bank as a client, was also promoted, while M&A lawyer Victoria Landsbert and project finance associate Carina Radford also made the grade in London. 

tom.moore@legalease.co.uk