Mr Kessler has been a partner at Olswang since 2011, when he joined the UK firm’s Paris office after serving as a partner at French law firm Brandford-Griffith & Associes and earlier stints at magic circle outfits Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Clifford Chance. His departure from Olswang comes just months before the firm’s prolific three-way tie-up with rivals Nabarro and CMS Cameron McKenna goes lives on 1 May. Last year, it was revealed that Olswang’s Paris office had been relocated to smaller premises on a flexible lease and was considering opting out of the planned merger. According to the firm’s website, there are four other partners in Paris besides Mr Kessler.

Mr Kessler, who was also formerly Olswang’s corporate head in Paris, advises on financial transactions, including domestic and cross-border M&A, takeovers, take privates, private equity, restructuring and international joint ventures, among others. Orrick’s France-based head of M&A and private equity Saam Golshani commented: ‘We are delighted to continue to grow our French corporate practice with a practitioner of Guillaume’s calibre. He is a recognised player in the French market, with particularly deep ties to the technology sector and a go-to source for the private equity market.’

Sources: Legal Business; Legal Week