King & Spalding has recruited an antitrust partner in London from Paul Hastings, the top 30 US firm’s second partner lateral in the City in as many days.
Jade-Alexandra Fearns has joined K&S as its sole antitrust partner in London, the day after it signed up Raymond Fang, who advises on real estate private equity deals, from Goodwin.
Fearns has been a partner at Paul Hastings since late 2022, before which she was a counsel at Proskauer Rose. She focuses on antitrust and competition law, along with international sanctions and other regulatory and compliance-related advice across the technology, pharmaceutical and healthcare, financial services, banking and sports sectors, among others.
At K&S, she will be a member of the government matters and regulation practice. Practice co-head Nikki Reeves pointed to Fearns’ experience in merger control and foreign direct investment matters.
“Our clients’ increasing demand for sophisticated UK and EU competition counsel on cross-border M&A, private equity and investment matters aligns closely with Jade’s practice and portfolio,” she said. “It is a great combination.”
Meanwhile, Fang has joined the firm’s real estate and funds practice group after nearly eight years as a partner at Goodwin.
He advises across the full spectrum of real estate private equity deals, including structured M&A, joint ventures and general partner stake investments. At Goodwin, he advised European clients including Orange Capital Partners and Clarion Partners Europe, as well as US clients like BentallGreenOak and Medical Properties Trust, acting for the latter on the acquisition of the corporate structure ultimately owning a portfolio of 30 hospitals in the UK for a consideration of around £1.5bn.
“Ray has a blend of legal and real estate private equity market acumen that is complementary to our US platform as well as our international network, including Europe and the Middle East,” said Erik Andersen, co-head of K&S’s real estate and funds practice group. “The firm is investing in the London practice, with corporate real estate an important component of that plan, and Ray’s experience aligns well with those strategic objectives.”
Since the start of 2024, the firm has made at least 15 senior hires in London across a range of practice areas, including M&A and private equity, tax, financial services litigation, structured finance, fund finance, disputes and energy, growing the practice to around 50 partners, according to its website. Key recruits last year included a pair of partners from Akin to boost its energy and project finance bench and M&A and private equity lawyer James Connor from Orrick.
The firm also expanded internationally late last year when it opened an office in Sydney, its first in Australasia, in an unusual move that marked the first entry of a major law firm in the city since Dentons set up shop there back in 2016 through a tie-up with local firm Gadens.
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