UK

West End law firm Davenport Lyons has hired an intellectual property specialist to boost its IP practice as the firm prepares to move offices and convert to an LLP.  Gavin Llewellyn is an experienced litigator in IP and specialises in areas including copyright, design, trademark, passing off work and internet liabilities and rights, and has acted for design businesses and clients from a wide range of different industries.

The London office of German law firm Hengeler Mueller is strengthening its private equity presence in the City by moving partner Steffen Oppenländer from Germany to London. Taking the London practice’s total up to three partners, Mr Oppenländer will work with fellow partners Martin Geiger and Daniel Kress. This is the latest in a series of moves that have seen various European law firms, including Italian firm Bonelli Erede Pappalardo and Spanish/Portuguese firm Cuatrecasas Gonçalves Pereira, relocating partners to London offices to bolster their City offerings.

US

Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP’s corporate and intellectual property practices have hired four new partners across three offices. In San Francisco, Peter Carson joins the finance and bankruptcy practice group - he was previously co-head of the healthcare industry group at Bingham McCutchen LLP.  Lorna Tanner joins the IP practice at Sheppard’s Palo Alto office from Foley & Lardner LLP, and Stephanie Zeppa joins the Palo Alto corporate practice group from Dentons LLP. In New York, corporate partner Tom Devaney joins from Morrison & Foerster LLP, reports Bloomberg.

US business law firm Thompson Hine LLP has hired Michael Coleman as partner in the Corporate Transactions & Securities practice along with his colleague of ten years, corporate lawyer Tara Evans, who joins as counsel, Bloomberg Law reports. Mr Coleman practices corporate issues such as finance and internal investigations, mergers and acquisitions, public and private transactions and business litigation. Joining from Epstein Becker & Green PC, the duo will be based in the firm’s Atlanta office, one of its seven US offices.

Hong Kong

London-headquartered global firm Ashurst has nabbed a leading corporate partner from leading Korean law firm Yulchon for the firm’s Hong Kong Office. John K.J Kim advised Korean clients on outbound M&A and other cross-border corporate transactions as head of Yulchon’s Outbound Practice Group. He has a wealth of experience that covers a wide range of industry sectors, from financial services to automotive. Mr Kim worked for Korean firm Kim & Chang before joining Yulchon.

Australia

Clayton Utz, one of Australia’s Big Six law firms, has added two new partners to its financial services practices, Lawyers Weekly reports. Sonia Goumenis will return to the firm after a three-year stint as a partner at Allen & Overy, to join the national securitisation practice. Ms Goumenis began her career at Clayton Utz in 2001 as a graduate, and now has over 12 years’ experience in securitisation transactions. David Ephraums, who has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services sector, is joining the superannuation team as partner. Prior to the appointment he was executive legal counsel (integration) at independent wealth management company AMP.