Signature Litigation has made a double partner hire from Goodwin and Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft in London to launch the firm’s white-collar crime and investigations practice.
The new recruits include Mark Beardsworth, who joins from Goodwin, and Duncan Grieve, who joins from Cadwalader. The pair will co-lead the new practice.
Beardsworth brings 25 years of experience representing individuals and corporations in high-profile Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigations, as well as internal corporate investigations. He has represented clients in LIBOR/EURIBOR rate-setting cases, as well as in aspects of foreign exchange litigation. He also acted in a litigation case that ended in the acquittal of Barclays over Qatari investments, regarded as one of the leading banking enforcement cases of recent times.
In addition, he advises companies on governance, compliance, management systems, controls, policy implementation and risk management, particularly in M&A and distressed situations.
Meanwhile, Grieve is an emerging markets specialist who brings around 15 years of experience advising corporations and individuals on cross-border matters involving major enforcement agencies and multinational proceedings. Grieve’s multi-jurisdictional experience and bilingual ability in Portuguese distinguish him in the London market, along with his client work in Portugal and Lusophone Africa, as well as his expertise in ESG compliance.
Signature’s founding partner Graham Huntley called both partners “formidable operators”, stressing that Signature would continue to work alongside the Bar.
Signature will provide “fresh opportunities for Mark and Duncan to extend their reach collectively in London and internationally”, Huntley added.
Beardsworth departs from Goodwin after a year, where he led the firm’s European investigations team, having previously been a partner at Cadwalader for just shy of four years, where he managed a team that included Grieve.
Before that, he was a partner for more than seven years at Brown Rudnick and spent 10 years at Kingsley Napley, having trained and qualified at Peters & Peters.
Grieve leaves Cadwalader after more than five years, having been promoted to partner at the start of last year. Before joining Cadwalader, he spent two years in Brazil advising clients on investigations related to Lava Jato (Operation Car Wash), including negotiating innovative leniency agreements with Brazilian prosecutors and regulators. He started his career at Morrison & Foerster, where he spent just shy of a decade.
Beardsworth said he was pleased to reunite with Grieve, adding that their combined focus would “add increased depth to Signature’s already robust offering”, while Grieve said the firm would offer “an end-to-end service that covers commercial litigation, international arbitration and white-collar crime and investigations”.
The double hire comes after Signature recruited Paris disputes partner Laurent Martinet from US firm Paul Hastings.
Beardsworth’s skills will complement those of the existing Signature partners, such as Graham Huntley and Daniel Spendlove, who have previously been involved in high-profile parallel proceedings involving civil and regulatory litigation, including the long-running SFO v ENRC civil litigation, which raised significant issues concerning the interaction between privilege and self-reporting.
Goodwin and Cadwalader were contacted for comment.
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