Pinsent Masons has promoted 25 to partner in its latest round that brings the firm closer to reaching its gender diversity targets. 

The cohort features 11 women, or 44% of the total - broadly in line with last year’s 23-strong round that also included 11 women (48%). 

Pinsents, which narrowly missed its target of achieving a 30% female partnership by 2020, said it aims to have a partnership that is 35% female by 2030 and taking this year’s promotions into account it currently stands at 31%. 

Like last year, the bulk of the promotions were handed out on the firm’s home turf, with 14 of the 25 spots going to lawyers in the UK. Six were promoted across EMEA and five in Asia Pacific. 

The firm’s international arbitration team welcomed four new partners, including Rachel Turner in Shanghai, Hinson Cheung (Hong Kong), Andrew Fawcett (Johannesburg) and Alexander Shchavelev (Munich). 

Real estate likewise gained four new partners across its UK offices in Leeds, Birmingham and Glasgow, while the firm’s technology, science and industry group welcomed Lisa Early and Tracey Roberts in the UK, Jules Fabre in Paris and Jennifer Wu in Hong Kong. 

The financial services team had three promotions, two in the UK and another in Ireland, and the energy practice welcomed two partners, one each in the UK and Melbourne. 

Like last year, the firm promoted members of its professional services practice group Vario to partner, this time making up Munich-based Vario Germany co-heads Carl Renner and Michael Zollner. Last year Pinsents promoted Geraldine Kelm, who leads Vario’s UK account management delivery team, having made Vario head Matthew Kay a partner in 2021. 

This year Pinsents has also promoted a lawyer - Glasgow-based Susannah Donaldson - in its Equality Law group, which it launched two years ago to support clients in managing the cultural and legal aspects of discrimination and inclusion issues. The firm said her promotion reflected its efforts to “embed its support for clients in their diversity and inclusion journey”.

The rest of the promotions were spread between the firm's finance and projects, financial crime and investigations, environment, infrastructure and energy and infrastructure teams. 

Pinsents’ senior partner, Andrew Masraf, said: “I am incredibly proud of all of our new partners taking the next step in their careers as we recognise the talent that will help shape the future of our business.

“This year’s partner promotions show our commitment to invest across our sectors, our diverse skill sets, our priority investment areas and our locations enhancing our partner capability, capacity and expertise.”

The promotions, effective 1 May, follow the firm reporting a 16% rise in profit per equity partner to £739,000 for the 2022 financial year, when revenue rose 6% to £531.1m. The results marked the tenth successive year the UK firm has increased turnover. 

The full list of those promoted to partner is as follows:

Hinson Cheung, International Arbitration (Hong Kong)

Danielle Clifford, Real Estate (UK)

Susannah Donaldson, Employment & Reward/ Equality Law (UK)

Tim Dorgan, Energy (Australia)

Howat Duncan, Financial Services (UK)

Lisa Early, Technology, Science and Industry (UK)

Jules Fabre, Technology, Science and Industry (France)

Andrew Fawcett, International Arbitration (South Africa)

Mike Hawthorne, Financial Services (UK)

Sean Henderson, Finance and Projects (Australia)

Natalie Hughes, Real Estate (UK)

Stacy Keen, Financial Crime and Investigations (UK)

Andrew McCarthy, Real Estate, (UK)

Ross McDowall, Environment (UK)

Ciaran McNamara, Energy (UK)

Carl Renner, Vario (Germany)

Tracey Roberts, Technology, Science and Industry (UK)

Andrew Senior, Infrastructure (UK)

Alexander Shchavelev, International Arbitration (Germany)

Heidi Slater, Energy & Infrastructure (UK)

Lesley-Anne Todd, Real Estate (UK)

Rachel Turner, International Arbitration (Shanghai)

Zara West, Financial Services (Ireland)

Jennifer Wu, Technology, Science and Industry (Hong Kong)

Michael Zollner, Vario (Germany)