White & Case has hired City structured finance partner Chris McGarry from Ropes & Gray.
McGarry, the third partner to join the US firm’s London office since the beginning of 2017, starts today (24 April) as a partner in the firm’s global capital markets practice.
He joined Ropes in August 2015 as a partner from Weil Gotshal & Manges, where he was an associate.
McGarry’s practice is focused on structured finance transactions, advising sponsors, issuers, arrangers and investors on securitisations and collateralised loan obligations.
Last November, White & Case identified London growth as a key component of its new five-year strategy, setting out plans to significantly ramp up the proportion of its lawyers based in the UK capital – from roughly 350 at present to more than 500 by 2020.
London managing partner Oliver Brettle said: “Our 2020 strategy includes a focus on profitable growth in London, in capital markets and in the global financial institutions industry; and Chris drives us forward in all three areas. His addition follows the arrival in London since the beginning of 2017 of Patrick Sarch and Marc Israel, as well as the promotion of eight new partners.”
Israel previously spent 15 years at Macfarlanes, where he also led its cross-departmental competition litigation team. Meanwhile, Sarch was formerly global banking co-head at Clifford Chance and had been a partner there since 2001. Last year, the firm also hired Ashurst London disputes head Mark Clarke and Berwin Leighton Paisner partner Michael Wistow as co-head of its Europe and Middle East tax practice.
