Weeks ahead of its May 1 merger with London-headquartered Allen & Overy, New York-founded Shearman & Sterling has lost a highly regarded tax team to McDermott Will & Emery.

Chicago-based McDermott said it hired a two-lawyer tax team in Paris led by former longtime Shearman partner Niels Dejean. Dejean, who joined Shearman in 2002, arrives at McDermott with Shearman counsel Anne-Sophie Maes, who had been at Shearman for 20 years and joins as a partner.