Baker McKenzie has promoted 41 new partners across its international network in its annual summer promotions round, with 18 new partners having been made up across North and Latin America in January.

This year’s 59 promotions form the smallest cohort for the firm in the past 10 years, during which it has regularly promoted more than 80 to partner. 

Overall women made up 47% of this year’s promotions, down from last year’s record high of 52% but a proportion that nevertheless moves the firm closer to the 40:40:20 gender diversity targets it announced in 2019 for partners, representing 40% women, 40% men and 20% flexible (women, men or non-binary persons). 

As in previous years, the firm’s M&A and tax practices saw the most promotions, welcoming 14 and nine new partners, respectively. Employment and compensation matched tax this year with nine new partners, followed by dispute resolution (seven), banking and finance (four) and international commercial and trade (four).

There were also three promotions in the capital markets team and two apiece in the antitrust and competition, and energy and infrastructure teams, with the rest spread across diverse practices including private equity, real estate and restructuring. 

Like last year, Europe gained the most new partners – 19 – including seven in London, where pharmaceuticals and healthcare M&A specialist Alexander Gee was made up alongside employment duo Matthew Berridge and Gillian Parnell, with the other promotions spread across international commercial and trade, disputes, capital markets and banking. 

Since the start of the year, the 500-lawyer office has seen partners leave for rivals including Morgan Lewis and Jenner & Block, although earlier this month it boosted its private equity team in the city with the hire of leading investment funds partner Nick Benson from Latham & Watkins. 

There were also two promotions each in Paris, Amsterdam and Barcelona and two in Germany, where employment lawyer Agnes Herwig moved up in Frankfurt and Rabea Pape-Lingier got the nod in the tax team in Düsseldorf. 

Like in previous years, the Asia Pacific promotions were dominated by Thailand, where seven partners were made up in Bangkok. There were also two promotions in Singapore and one each in Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta, with the final promotion in the region going to private equity lawyer John Coleman in Sydney. 

Elsewhere there were three promotions in Africa – one in Cairo and two in Johannesburg, where M&A lawyer Tanya Seitz and energy specialist Ryan Alho got the nod. 

Baker McKenzie’s global chair, Milton Cheng, said: “More than ever this year, it is an honour to announce our promotions to partner. I extend my congratulations to this talented group of lawyers who will help us continue to build on our strengths as a global firm across locations, practices and sectors. Their dedication to client service and excellence will be key in driving our firm’s success.”

Looking back on January’s round, the firm made up 12 lawyers across the US, where New York gained the most new partners (four), followed by three each in Washington DC and Chicago and one apiece in Houston and San Francisco. The sole promotion in Canada went to business litigation specialist Brendan O’Grady in Toronto. 

There were also four promotions in Latin America – one apiece in Mexico City and Monterrey and one each in Bogotá and Caracas. 

Bakers has also secured 48 lateral partners this financial year, meaning it has added a total of 107 partners globally since 1 July 2024.

Among the arrivals from rival firms is Indradeep Bhattacharya, who joined last month in London having been co-chair of Eversheds Sutherland’s European life sciences steering committee. In March, the firm also hired M&A partner Michal Berkner, who had left McDermott Will & Emery last November after less than a year.