Abu Dhabi, UAE. Source: BloombergMorgan Lewis opens Abu Dhabi office amid 15-lawyer raid on US rival
US firm secures four-partner Middle East team as well as a three-partner Washington DC team from the same rival
February 11, 2019 at 09:53 AM
3 minute read
Morgan Lewis is opening its first Abu Dhabi office with an eight-lawyer team hire from Squire Patton Boggs. The move coincides with an additional seven-lawyer hire from the same firm in the US.
Four partners, four associates and 13 support staff will join Morgan Lewis in the Middle East for the new base, which will open on 1 March and be led by former Squire Patton Boggs Abu Dhabi office head Bill Nash. It will include funds partner Alishia Sullivan and corporate partners Mark Gilligan and Jay Gladis.
Additionally, Morgan Lewis has also hired three partners, four associates and three support staff from Squire Patton Boggs' Washington DC office.
That team is led by Courtney Nowell, who headed Squire Patton Boggs' sovereign and institutional investors' practice. She is joined in the move by Squire Patton Boggs' private investment funds practice head Gregg Buksbaum and tax partner Kathryn Hambrick.
The Abu Dhabi and Washington teams have worked closely together for more than a decade, with team heads Nowell and Nash working with the same core clients for the past 12 years.
Morgan Lewis managing partner Steven Wall said it is not a coincidence the two teams were approached together. He said: "Although these teams come from two different parts of the world… they're very closely connected and have worked together for a very long time."
Morgan Lewis launched in Dubai in 2013. Ayman Khaleq, managing partner of Morgan Lewis's Dubai office, said in a statement: "The synergies of Dubai and Abu Dhabi as financial centres in the UAE will solidify our Middle East practice, including outbound investments by clients in the region, and will give us additional insight in assessing current market terms and conditions that benefit our clients."
Squire Patton Boggs will keep its Abu Dhabi base open, serviced by lawyers from its other Middle East offices in Riyahd, Doha and Dubai. The firm said the reshuffle is part of a global re-evaluation of its positioning in the different regions.
Squire Patton Boggs also closed its Budapest base at the end of last month, it has emerged, with the exit of the office's four-lawyer team including two partners – dispute resolution partner Judit Kelemen and transactions partner Akos Mester. It is not yet known by the firm what they plan to do next.
Squire Patton Boggs' CEO and global chairman Mark Ruehlmann said in a statement: "Like any well-run business, we constantly evaluate how to best support clients and respond to shifting market needs. We have deep connections in both the Middle East and central and eastern Europe that go back decades and [we] will continue to support clients through a hub of regional offices in each of those markets."
The Budapest closure follows a trend of international firms calling time on their CEE offices. Last year, Weil Gotshal & Manges closed its Budapest office and announced it would be closing its Prague office. There are also questions about the future of its Poland office. In 2014, Norton Rose Fulbright closed its Prague office, and a month later Hogan Lovells announced it would be doing the same.
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