Seen as one of the firm's top M&A players, he has been advising Barclays for several years and returned to the London office in 2013 after a three-year stint in Dubai where he helped implement a strategic implementation plan for the practice. But his promotion is seen as coinciding with a challenging time for the firm which is prone to more competition on leveraged buyouts in Europe now and which has recently seen its third private equity partner to Latham & Watkins. Source: Legal Business