Kirkland & Ellis has strengthened its London antitrust and competition practice this week with a double partner hire from Weil.

Nafees Saeed and Chris Thomas join as partners, the former after more 12 years at Weil, making partner in 2024, and the latter after serving six years as counsel at the firm.

Matthew Elliot, Kirkland corporate partner and executive committee member said: ‘Nafees and Chris bring unique skill sets and insights to our business. Both have strong track records advising private capital clients on all aspects of competition law, and we are excited to welcome them to our fully integrated London and Brussels antitrust & competition team.’

Also active in London was Paul Hastings, which has expanded its London bench with its hire of partner Stephen Diosi.

Diosi joins from Mishcon de Reya, where he spent ten years as head of the firm’s employment incentives team. He is ranked as a Legal 500 leading partner for employee share schemes, and brings 25 years of employment law expertise advising on issues including employee share plans, management incentive plans, and executive remuneration arrangements.

‘Our London office continues to see remarkable demand across our transactional practices, and this growth is matched by the need to provide clients with sophisticated advice in compensation and other supporting areas on their most complex matters,’ Paul Hastings chair Frank Lopez said.

The hire comes after the firm brought on four London partners in November: funds finance partner Jennifer Passagne from Haynes Boone, tax partners Jenny Doake and Catherine Richardson from Weil and Cadwalader respectively, and structured finance partner Thomas Picton from Ashurst.

Citing similar demand, Gibson Dunn has bolstered its City employment offering with its hire of A&O Shearman partner Robbie Sinclair.

A Legal 500 leading partner for employment, Sinclair joins Gibson Dunn’s labour and employment practice group, where he will advise on a range of employment matters, with a focus on litigation, crisis management and investigations.

Sinclair brings with him almost twelve years of employment law experience at legacy Allen & Overy, making partner in 2019 and remaining in post following the completion of the firm’s merger with legacy Shearman & Stirling in May 2024.

Osma Hudda, co-chair of the London disputes group and co-partner in charge of the London office said: ‘Client demand for business protection, investigations, and employment litigation continues to rise in the UK, US, and other key markets.’

She added: ‘Building on the strong performance of our transactional practices in London, we are executing a focused expansion of litigation and investigations bench. Robbie’s practice sits exactly at that intersection and squarely meets client demand.’

Elsewhere, Goodwin has brought White & Case fast-growth practice head Emmie Jones into its technology M&A team in the latest finance-related hire for the tech-focused US firm.

Jones brings experience advising founders, growth investors, private equity sponsors, and corporate venture capital providers, on matters across the full investment cycle.

She joined White & Case’s PE team in 2018 from Macfarlanes, where she made partner in 2013.

The move follows a series of hires into Goodwin’s PE and finance offerings in London and across Europe. In summer the firm brought on Travers Smith leveraged finance head Matthew Ayre as a partner in London, just weeks after it hired leveraged finance partner Tom Roberts from Kirkland.

Also in London, Addleshaw Goddard has hired Nicholas Queree as a partner into its global investigations team.

Queree joins from Slaughter and May, where he was senior counsel, and brings expertise across government and internal investigations, sanctions and regulatory advisory and global investigations.

Michelle de Kluyver, partner and head of global investigations at AG, said: ‘Corporate criminal enforcement risk is expected to rise sharply, driven by sweeping reforms under ECCTA that lower the threshold for corporate criminal liability and introduce new corporate offence.

‘Nick’s experience in navigating these challenges – combined with AG’s established reputation in investigations – positions us to deliver strong support to clients facing high-stakes regulatory scrutiny.’

The hire sees AG continue to build out its global investigations practice. Last month it hired Morgan Stanley corporate advisory lawyer Ross McCartney as a legal director, and in August it launched a dedicated tax disputes and investigations arm led by partner Steven Porter, who joined from Pinsent Masons with four other lawyers. 

AG has also strengthened its European real estate offering, tapping a private equity firm for a senior in-house hire.

Farhod Moghadam joins as a partner in the London real estate investments team. This follows 14 years in-house as a senior advisor and lead counsel to Patron Capital, with experience structuring and executing complex private equity real estate transactions across the UK and Europe.

Also in London this week, DLA Piper has hired Pinsent Masons partner Oliver Crowley into its investment and funds practice. He brings experience advising on pension funds, development finance institutions, and fund managers on private market strategies and regulatory frameworks.

Jon Kenworthy, Global Co-Chair of DLA Piper’s Corporate Group, said: ‘Our cross-border investment management & funds capability is a strategic priority for the firm, where we see significant cross-border activity and growth. Oliver’s appointment will support our growth in the sector and allows us to further develop our offering to clients.’

Baker McKenzie has bolstered its global transactional capabilities in London with its hire of partner Elisabeth Mosley into its energy and infrastructure team.

Moseley joins from McDermott Will & Schulte, having joined the firm in 2017 from Clyde & Co, and made partner there in 2024. She has experience advising clients including national and oil companies, financial institutions, suppliers and manufactures on cross-border transactions in the energy sector, particularly in Africa.

Finally in London, Freshfields has hired private funds and secondaries specialist Nick Kagan as a partner in its private capital group. Kagan joins from Debevoise, where he was a counsel.

In the Middle East, Hogan Lovells has hired Eversheds Sutherland head of M&A for Saudi Arabia Walid Salib into its corporate and finance team in Riyadh.

Prior to Eversheds Sutherland, Salib was Saudi Arabia M&A head at Freshfields. His practice includes public and private M&A, strategic joint ventures, corporate structuring and restructuring, capital markets-related M&A, and obtaining Saudi merger control clearances.

Hogan Lovells first opened an independent office in the region last year, joining a growing number of firms looking to Saudi Arabia, spurred on by ambitious initiatives in the Kingdom such as its Vision 2030 programme.

Also in Riyadh, A&O Shearman has strengthened its corporate practice, hiring Hassana Investment Company general counsel Shaima Bakhsh as a partner.

Hosam Ibn Ghaith, managing partner of A&O Shearman’s Riyadh office, said: ‘Shaima brings a rare combination of board‑level insight and execution experience in the Kingdom. Her arrival strengthens our on‑the‑ground capability in Riyadh and enhances how we help clients navigate Saudi Arabia’s fast‑moving corporate landscape.’

The firm was also active in London, hiring Louise Batty as an employee equity incentives and executive remuneration partner. Batty rejoins the firm from Skadden, where she spent five years as a counsel after leaving legacy Allen & Overy in 2020.

Also active in the Middle East was Morgan Lewis, which hired Victoria Ferres and Sami Ben Dechiche in Dubai. Ferres joins from A&O Shearman, where she was a counsel, while Ben Dechiche was previously an associate at Simmons & Simmons.

Ferres specialises in financial services regulation, while Ben Dechiche specialises in funds.

In Europe, Orrick has hired a four-lawyer M&A and private equity team from Norton Rose Fulbright in Munich, including the firm’s head of corporate, M&A and securities for Germany, Michael Prüßner.

Also joining as a partner is Benjamin Schikora, who was a counsel at NRF.

Meanwhile in Hamburg, DWF has opened an office with a team from various German boutiques. The team comprises three partners, a further eight fee earners, and five business services staff.

The combined team will be be led by Marco Remiorz, who joins from  German firm ASD, with partners Phillip Hartmann and Niels Witt from SKW Schwarz, a second independent German firm.

Matthew Doughty, CEO of DWF Group said: ‘Germany is an important territory for DWF. It is the largest economy in Europe and the largest legal and insurance market in the EU.’

Finally, in Paris, White & Case has added tax partner Cyril Valentin from Freshfields, where he spent the previous 25 years.

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