Cravath Swaine & Moore’s next presiding partner, Evan Chesler, has vowed to maintain the elite Wall Street firm’s core principles, despite increasing pressure on US firms to branch into foreign law.

As first reported on legalweek. com (16 November), Chesler, head of litigation and a partner since 1982, has been elected to succeed Robert Joffe on 1 January, 2007 with Richard Clary becoming head of Cravath’s 157-lawyer litigation department.