A&O Shearman has hit Clifford Chance for a pair of funds lawyers in Luxembourg, as it restocks its bench following defections to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and legacy Herbert Smith Freehills.
Partner Kristof Meynaerts has joined the firm as head of its Luxembourg funds and asset management practice alongside Severina Käppeli, who has made partner on the move having been a counsel at Clifford Chance.
The duo’s arrival follows A&O Shearman’s former Luxembourg funds head, Jean-Christian Six, and fellow funds partner Yannick Arbaut defecting to Simpson Thacher late last year for the US firm’s debut in the city, around the same time that funds counsel Joanna Pecenik Vergès d’Espagne left alongside M&A lawyer Marc Tkatcheff to help launch legacy Herbert Smith Freehills’ Luxembourg office.
Patrick Mischo, managing partner of A&O Shearman in Luxembourg, commented: “Private capital remains a core strategic growth area for our firm, and our Luxembourg funds and asset management practice is central to delivering on that ambition.
“Kristof and Severina are both highly regarded for their client-focused, solutions-oriented approach, as well as their legal and regulatory expertise. Their addition significantly strengthens our team.”
Meynaerts has spent the past 17 years at Clifford Chance and is well regarded in the market for his experience in the structuring and operation of both regulated and unregulated funds, with a particular focus on real estate, private equity and debt funds. At his former firm, he led the team that advised Three Hills Capital Partners on its €1bn fundraising in 2022, the same year as he co-led the team that guided Mercer on its $4.8bn fundraising.
Meanwhile, Käppeli brings more than 12 years of experience in the structuring and setting up of both regulated and unregulated investment funds. Her practice spans, on one side, a spectrum of asset classes including real estate, private equity and debt, and, on the other side, experience advising investors.
The duo’s arrival will bring A&O Shearman’s Luxembourg partner count to 20, according to the firm’s website, including funds partners Miao Wang and Vittoria Faraone.
“Luxembourg plays a strategic role in the global investment funds landscape, and I am excited to lead a practice that is so central to A&O Shearman’s private capital strategy,” Meynaerts said.
The duo’s hire follows Luxembourg establishing itself as a premier hub for private equity and investment funds over the past decade, thanks to its regulatory framework, tax efficiencies and access to European jurisdictions. It is a dominant force in the domiciliation of funds and, with more than €5.2trn in assets under management, is second only to the US in terms of net assets of domiciled funds, according to a report by Société Générale.
Clifford Chance did not respond to a request for comment. The firm’s Luxembourg co-head of investment funds, Paul Van den Abeele, left for Simpson Thacher late last year.
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