BCLP has boosted its London bench with the hire of a partner apiece from A&O Shearman and Taylor Wessing. 

Lerika Le Grange, whose practice covers corporate finance, leveraged and acquisition finance and litigation funding, among other matters, has joined the firm from Taylor Wessing. Meanwhile Simon Letherman, the longtime head of legacy Shearman & Sterling’s London tax practice, has moved over from A&O Shearman.

Le Grange will be a member of BCLP’s finance transactions practice, while Letherman will sit in its tax and controversy group. 

Carol Osborne, global department leader for corporate and finance transactions, said the duo had joined practices that were “critical” to BCLP’s growth strategy. 

“Their experience and leading market reputations will enhance our ability to counsel clients as the transactional markets rebound,” Osborne added. 

Le Grange was an associate at Slaughter and May before joining Taylor Wessing, where she made partner in 2018. She brings a broad practice covering general corporate finance, leveraged and acquisition finance, derivatives, trade and receivables finance, asset-based lending, venture debt, litigation funding and debt capital markets. Her experience also covers distressed debt and restructuring.

Le Grange is dual-qualified in South Africa and England and Wales and led the Africa group at Taylor Wessing. She was also co-head of litigation funding and experienced in various transactional matters relating to litigation funding.

Meanwhile, Letherman led the London tax practice at Shearman & Sterling for nearly 10 years prior to its merger with Allen & Overy last year to create A&O Shearman. He advises on corporate tax matters including M&A, joint ventures, private equity, loan finance, capital markets, restructuring and investment funds. 

Letherman also practised at Slaughter and May before joining his former firm in 2010 as counsel. He made partner in 2016. In the past he has worked with Anglo American, General Electric, Intercontinental Exchange, Liberty Global and the Qatar Investment Authority, among other clients. 

News of duo’s hire comes just a day after BCLP added a four-lawyer litigation team in New York from Lewis Brisbois led by partner Sana Suhail, who was vice chair of the products liability practice at his former firm. 

The twin sets of hires on both sides of the Atlantic come against a background of a raft of partner departures from the transatlantic firm in recent years as it seeks to reposition itself in the market with a tighter focus on core sectors and practice areas. 

According to research published by Law.com, the firm’s overall partnership dropped to 440 last year from 528 in 2020. Earlier this month, the firm confirmed it was cutting jobs in its business support team, affecting around 8% of its global business services population, as part of what it dubbed a broader business modernisation programme.