Reed Smith has hired experienced antitrust partner Paul Johnson in London from Morgan Lewis & Bockius.
Johnson leaves Morgan Lewis after 18 months, having previously worked at Baker McKenzie, where he was based in London and Brussels and made partner in 2015.
Johnson has 20 years’ experience advising clients in all areas of UK and EU competition law, including UK, EU and multi-jurisdictional merger control, foreign investment review, joint ventures, cartels, abuse of dominance, distribution agreements and other commercial relationships.
He is expected to form an important partnership with London team lead Marjorie Holmes, who is well known for her work with trade associations and has significant merger control experience to match his own in merger clearances.
He has represented clients across the energy and heavy industry, financial services, life sciences, and technology sectors on competition matters before the European Commission, the UK Competition and Markets Authority and in relation to issues in more than 100 jurisdictions.
Like many competition partners, Johnson is qualified in England & Wales law and a member of the Brussels Bar, allowing his EU practice to continue post-Brexit. Prior to his time at Bakers, he had a brief spell at the UK Financial Conduct Authority having spent ten years at legacy Berwin Leighton Paisner working alongside recognised figures like David Harrison, Dave Anderson, and Adrian Magnus.
While Reed Smith unveiled one of its largest partner classes in recent years at the start of the year, none of the four new London partners was an antitrust specialist, although Emma Weedon was promoted to counsel.
Mike Lowell, global regulatory chair, said: “Paul is a standout name in the market with a wealth of experience. His arrival deepens our bench strength in Europe and complements existing capabilities while enhancing our ability to continue to deliver exceptional service to our clients.”
Brigid North, Reed Smith’s London office managing partner, added: “We’re delighted to welcome Paul to the firm. He is a highly experienced partner with a strong practice that will help to accelerate the growth of the London office.”
Other hires North has overseen include David Brennan’s arrival from Gowling WLG as a tech partner in February and white-collar crime specialist Richard Kovalevsky KC’s hire in June 2025 from Cohen & Gresser.
In June, Kirkland recruited four competition partners from Cleary Gottlieb's Brussels and London offices, while Arnold & Porter hired former Willkie Farr & Gallagher partner Nicola Chesaites in London the previous month.
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