Ashurst has moved to expand its Washington DC practice with its first lateral hire in the US since its high-profile American launch last year.

Margaret Sheehan (pictured) is set to join Ashurst after resigning from US law firm Alston & Bird. Sheehan has worked as a partner at Alston since 1996 in the firm’s financial services and products department and will join Ashurst as a partner in its financial regulation group.