Howrey

Shearman & Sterling’s Brussels office has picked up a number of clients from defunct firm Howrey, including Nestle and Hilton. The US law firm, which hired a five-partner competition team led by the co-head of Howrey’s global antitrust practice, Trevor Soames, in February, is advising on a number of matters for the team’s former Howrey clients.

Shearman & Sterling has hired a five-partner antitrust team from Howrey’s Brussels arm in a major boost for the firm’s competition practice, reports The Am Law Daily. The group includes the firm’s former global antitrust co-chair, Trevor Soames, who will be joined by partners Goetz Drauz, Geert Goeteyn, Stephen Mavroghenis and Miguel Rato. The five partners will start at Shearman’s Brussels office at different points over the next two weeks, with a team of associates expected to follow.

Howrey’s Brussels chief and global antitrust co-head Trevor Soames has become the latest in a string of partners to quit the US firm’s European network. Soames, who works from Brussels and London, sent an email to contacts earlier today (20 January) confirming that he has left the firm.

Does the global litigation law firm model work? This disturbing question has been explicitly raised this month by news of a 12-partner exodus from the European network of disputes and intellectual property (IP) specialist Howrey. Indeed, departing partners from Howrey, who are heavily concentrated in the firm’s Amsterdam and Brussels offices, have made much of the problems of working within a US-based firm. The argument goes that the US’ generally stricter conflicts rules are a real hurdle for litigators operating in Europe, particularly when the bulk of the practice is weighted stateside, which makes it inevitable that American clients will get the upper hand in a close call on conflicts.

Two partners have left Howrey’s Brussels office to join Olswang and McDermott Will & Emery in the Belgian capital. Patricia Cappuyns joins Olswang’s intellectual property (IP) group today (1 September) after five years at Howrey, where she made partner in January 2009. Her client portfolio includes MEGA Brands, DSM, Sara Lee and Elvis Presley Enterprises.

Field Fisher Waterhouse is set to launch in Munich and Duesseldorf, following the hire of a four-partner team from Howrey led by German managing partner Joachim Feldges. Feldges will oversee all three of Field Fisher’s German offices, including the firm’s existing Hamburg base. He joins alongside fellow Howrey intellectual property (IP) partners Thomas Adam and Jochen Herr in Munich, as well as Duesseldorf-based Christoph Lenz.

Howrey has closed its intellectual property (IP) practice in London following the departure of London managing partner Mark Hodgson to Field Fisher Waterhouse. Hodgson’s move comes after three partner departures from Howrey’s London IP practice during 2010 – Marjan Noor, Paul Inman and Richard Willoughby, who joined Simmons & Simmons, Wragge & Co and Rouse Legal respectively.

Shearman & Sterling’s Brussels office has picked up a number of clients from defunct firm Howrey, including Nestle and Hilton. The US law firm, which hired a five-partner competition team led by the co-head of Howrey’s global antitrust practice, Trevor Soames, in February, is advising on a number of matters for the team’s former Howrey clients.

Shearman & Sterling has hired a five-partner antitrust team from Howrey’s Brussels arm in a major boost for the firm’s competition practice, reports The Am Law Daily. The group includes the firm’s former global antitrust co-chair, Trevor Soames, who will be joined by partners Goetz Drauz, Geert Goeteyn, Stephen Mavroghenis and Miguel Rato. The five partners will start at Shearman’s Brussels office at different points over the next two weeks, with a team of associates expected to follow.

Two partners have left Howrey’s Brussels office to join Olswang and McDermott Will & Emery in the Belgian capital. Patricia Cappuyns joins Olswang’s intellectual property (IP) group today (1 September) after five years at Howrey, where she made partner in January 2009. Her client portfolio includes MEGA Brands, DSM, Sara Lee and Elvis Presley Enterprises.

Field Fisher Waterhouse is set to launch in Munich and Duesseldorf, following the hire of a four-partner team from Howrey led by German managing partner Joachim Feldges. Feldges will oversee all three of Field Fisher’s German offices, including the firm’s existing Hamburg base. He joins alongside fellow Howrey intellectual property (IP) partners Thomas Adam and Jochen Herr in Munich, as well as Duesseldorf-based Christoph Lenz.

Two partners have left Howrey’s Brussels office to join Olswang and McDermott Will & Emery in the Belgian capital. Patricia Cappuyns joins Olswang’s intellectual property (IP) group today (1 September) after five years at Howrey, where she made partner in January 2009. Her client portfolio includes MEGA Brands, DSM, Sara Lee and Elvis Presley Enterprises.

Kirkland & Ellis has added two partners to its City competition practice with a double hire from Howrey’s London office. Shaun Goodman, one of the last remaining Howrey partners in London following a slew of departures in recent months, focuses on merger control, market dominance, cartel investigations, sector inquiries and private enforcement.

Reed Smith is set to launch a Paris intellectual property (IP) practice with the hire of a five-strong team from Howrey. Marina Couste and Francois Jonqueres will join Reed Smith as partners on 28 May, along with two associates and one paralegal, bringing the number of partners at the US firm’s Paris office to 15.

Wragge & Co has bolstered its intellectual property (IP) practice with the hire of Paul Inman from Howrey. Inman is set to join the national law firm’s City office next week (8 November), becoming the 12th partner in the firm’s IP team. He will work with Patrick Duxbury, who leads the UK top 30 firm’s 16-strong life sciences team.

Reed Smith is set to launch a Paris intellectual property (IP) practice with the hire of a five-strong team from Howrey. Marina Couste and Francois Jonqueres will join Reed Smith as partners on 28 May, along with two associates and one paralegal, bringing the number of partners at the US firm’s Paris office to 15.