Mishcon de Reya has appointed a new managing partner alongside two executive partners, in a new-look leadership structure for the UK-headquartered firm.
Daniel Naftalin, the chair of the Mishcon’s top-ranking employment practice, will succeed James Libson as managing partner this summer following a transition period. Mishcon said he had been elected by its partnership with a “strong mandate”.
Meanwhile white collar crime specialist Johanna Walsh and real estate litigator Daniel Levy have been named executive partners. They are expected to support Naftalin in the management of the firm and the delivery of its strategic objectives, Mishcon said, and will also continue to advise clients.
For his part Libson was appointed managing partner in 2020 in an uncontested process, overseeing the firm through the Covid-19 pandemic and the shelving of the firm’s highly anticipated listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2022 due to market volatility.
More recently he has steered Mishcon through its combination with UK tech-focused firm Taylor Vinters and international expansion that has seen it launch new offices in Abu Dhabi and Dubai and be granted a licence to practise as a firm of solicitors by the Law Society of Hong Kong. The firm announced a record set of financial results last year, with revenue growing 9% to £330m and profits up 14% to £110m.
Libson commented: “I am delighted that Daniel has been elected as the new managing partner. His deep understanding of and commitment to the firm is unrivalled, and he has exciting plans to continue to grow Mishcon de Reya as an outstanding law firm.”
Naftalin joined has been a partner at Mishcon since 2004 and currently sits on the management board alongside his role as head of the employment department. He advises on complex employment matters, both contentious and non-contentious.
Naftalin said he aimed to guide Mishcon to a “successful, profitable and sustainable future” in an increasingly competitive market.
Walsh leads the white collar crime and investigations team as well as one of two divisions in the dispute resolution department. She joined the firm as a partner in 2019 from Kingsley Napley and sat on its management board for five years until 2025.
Levy leads the real estate litigation team and is division head of property litigation and construction. He joined the firm in 2006, founding and leading the real estate litigation team. He has sat on the management board since 2025 and, for the past two years, has served as partners’ representative on the operations board.
The appointments follow Mishcon launching a new five-year strategy last September focused on disputes, internationalisation and the key sectors of private wealth and private capital, real estate and the innovation economy, and appointing former NatWest chief executive Dame Alison Rose as independent non-executive chair.
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