Kirkland & Ellis has hired Haarmann Hemmelrath partner Roderic Pagel to launch a tax practice for the Chicago giant’s infant German law team.

Pagel, who quit Haarmanns after just six months to join the top 25 US firm’s newly-launched Munich practice, will primarily work with Kirkland’s core private equity team. He has previously worked at Clifford Chance’s German arm and in-house with JPMorgan in London. He joins Kirkland as the US firm’s sixth local partner.