Van Bael & Bellis (VBB), Pinsent Masons and Euclid Law all strengthened their London antitrust benches this week in a merry-go-round of partner hires.
Belgian independent VBB hired Becket McGrath from Euclid Law to head its UK competition team, Pinsent Masons hired Alex Stratakis from VBB, and Euclid Law hired Amy McMeekin, who most recently was head of competition and consumer law at Sainsbury’s.
McGrath leaves the competition law boutique after six years, bringing significant UK and EU competition law expertise to VBB – which opened its London office in 2020 – particularly on merger control, complex selective distribution and other distribution-related issues and behavioural investigations, such as cartels.
He advises on national security, FDI and consumer protection. He is representing a party in the High Court under the UK’s previous consumer protection regime and another in one of the first cases under the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act 2024, effective April 2025.
McGrath is dual-qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales and is also called to the Flemish-speaking side of the Brussels Bar, as well as being a non-practising solicitor in Ireland. Before joining Euclid, he was a partner in Cooley’s London office for five years and at legacy Edwards Wildman Palmer for five years before that, having joined in 2009 from what is now BCLP, where he spent four years.
Earlier in his career he also served as a branch director for competition enforcement at the Office of Fair Trading, a predecessor of the current Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Before that, he enjoyed shorter stints at Freshfields, Simmons & Simmons and Baker McKenzie.
VBB managing partner Andreas Reindl said McGrath’s “impressive merger control and investigation defence expertise and his track record of counselling major brands and online marketplaces on e-commerce distribution will enhance our already strong reputation in these areas”.
McGrath said he already knew the competition team well from past experience, saying: “I am looking forward to getting started and making the most of the VBB platform in Brussels and London.”
The move follows VBB’s hire of Brussels competition partner Claire Simpson in October 2025 from the ETFA Surveillance Authority, where she spent eight years, having previously been at Euroclear in the Belgian capital for a decade as lead competition counsel.
Porter Elliot, VBB’s co-head of the competition law practice, said McGrath’s hire reflected the firm’s “strong and unwavering” commitment to its UK antitrust practice, adding the move was “a testament to our continued ability to attract top talent at all levels of seniority”.
Elliot also thanked Alex Stratakis, the firm’s former head of UK competition, for “his invaluable efforts in helping launch our London office”, following his departure to Pinsent Masons earlier this week. Like McGrath, he has spent almost 15 years practising in both London and Brussels in senior roles.
Andreas Haak, Pinsents’ global head of antitrust, said Stratakis would “play a key role in meeting growing client demand for competition law advice and further strengthening our outstanding client offering”.
Stratakis said he moved to work with Pinsent’s larger international platform and to benefit from the strength of its City practice, adding: “I will always be grateful to my former Van Bael & Bellis colleagues for their support.”
Euclid Law, meanwhile, announced the arrival of former Sainsbury’s in-house lawyer Amy McMeekin as a partner. McMeekin, who is dual-qualified in South Africa and England and Wales, has held private practice and senior in-house roles, advising on complex mergers, antitrust and consumer issues, mainly in retail.
She has contributed to recent CMA reviews on retail, including loyalty pricing, fuel markets and grocery profits. McMeekin spent eight years at Sainsbury’s, where she helped implement the new consumer regime under the DMCC Act. She previously worked at Slaughter & May in London and ENS in Johannesburg.
Oliver Bretz, managing partner of Euclid Law, said: “Amy brings a highly complementary skill set with her deep experience in the retail and consumer space, where UK regulators are particularly active. The CMA’s increased focus on consumer enforcement means this is a priority area for all customer-facing businesses – and Amy’s experience will be extremely valued by our clients.”
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