Jeffrey Fickes said his move to Ballard Spahr to serve as co-leader of its private equity group was clinched by the firm’s focus on growing the M&A and private equity practice for clients in the middle-market and large-cap range.

“You can see how active the firm has been in growing certain practice areas over the years, both organically and by lateral recruitment,” said Fickes, who joined the firm as a partner in November from Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease.