Addleshaw Goddard (AG) confirmed today it is to open in Poland after taking over Linklaters’ 80-lawyer Warsaw office, in a move that means the latter will no longer have an on-the-ground presence in Central and Eastern Europe. 

AG said the addition had been agreed with Linklaters and its Warsaw partners, with the new office expected to be a regional hub that would enable the firm to better serve clients across Poland, the CEE region and Turkey.

The office will be AG’s 20th globally and continues an international growth push by the UK-based firm that has seen it open seven offices across Continental Europe since 2019 alongside recent launches in Dublin and Riyadh. 

Firm managing partner, Andrew Johnston, described the move as a “milestone” in the firm’s expansion drive. 

“Warsaw is a vital economic and business hub in Central Europe, and this expansion allows us to better meet the needs of our clients, who are increasingly seeking support across borders in this region. It is a demonstration of our commitment to being wherever our clients need us to be. I would also like to thank the team at Linklaters for working with us so effectively to make this happen to look after our mutual clients’ interests,” he added. 

Addleshaws’ new Polish office includes nine partners and will be led by Linklaters’ Warsaw managing partners Janusz Dzianachowski and Marcin Schulz. AG said the team has been building a full-service legal practice for more than 20 years and acted for clients in domestic, cross-border and regional corporate/M&A, banking, capital markets, energy and infrastructure and real estate transactions. 

Linklaters’ managing partner, Paul Lewis, said the Warsaw team’s move to AG meant they would “have the scope to continue to develop and deliver for clients as part of a firm for which Poland is a growth opportunity”.

He added: “We are grateful for the team’s contribution to Linklaters over many years and look forward to continuing to work with them in the future.”

Warsaw had been Linklaters’ CEE last office. The firm had once had bases across the region but split with its Budapest, Bucharest, Bratislava and Prague teams in 2008, with those offices going on to re-launch as the independent firm Kinstellar and Linklaters remaining active in the region through a ‘best friends’ relationship with the firm. Linklaters also had a base in Moscow, which it shuttered in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Linklaters will continue to operate its Warsaw-based service delivery centre, which supports the firm’s operations globally.

The Warsaw team’s transfer is anticipated to be completed on 30 April 2025, subject to both AG and Linklaters partner votes.

The move follows AG absorbing King & Wood Mallesons’ 70-lawyer Madrid office to debut in Spain last year. Since 2019 the firm has also opened four offices across Germany, launched in Paris with a team of 22 lawyers from BCLP and K&L Gates and set up shop in Luxembourg.