- Europe
- Big Law Weekly
Week covered: 5–11 October 2026 · Back to the week page
Most of the week's moves were in London. Law.com reported a wave of partner departures from Weil's London base, naming no individuals or figures. WilmerHale appointed a new head of disputes, while two Freshfields private capital partners in New York were reported to be moving to Debevoise.
At the City's entry level, Cleary Gottlieb raised newly qualified pay again. Kirkland & Ellis, the first firm to pass $10 billion in revenue, said it would stop publishing the revenue and profit figures used in those comparisons.
Weil's London departures, WilmerHale's disputes hire and Freshfields partners moving to Debevoise
Law.com reported a wave of partner departures from Weil's London office, speaking to several people about the reasons behind them. The report named no individuals or figures. Read more.
WilmerHale named Jeremy Kosky its first head of disputes in London, a role he takes after roughly 35 years at Clifford Chance, according to Bar & Bench. He joined alongside Charlie Lightfoot, who moved to the international arbitration practice from Cooley. The hires follow the departure earlier this year of Gary Born and six partners from WilmerHale's arbitration group.
Two Freshfields private capital partners in New York, co-head Neal Reenan and US private capital head Ian Bushner, are leaving less than three years after joining from Latham & Watkins in March 2024, Legal Business reported. They are understood to be moving to Debevoise. Debevoise has expanded its private capital platform through 2026, adding partners from Freshfields, Weil and Ropes & Gray since June. With Reenan and Bushner, it has more Chambers-ranked New York private equity buyouts partners than any firm, ABL Advisor reported.
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer opened October with two partner hires, including Marie Manley, head of Sidley's UK life sciences practice and a Legal 500 Hall of Famer, Legal Business reported. Clifford Chance separately changed its senior private equity roles as it develops a global private capital brand, Law.com reported.
Pinsent Masons, Reed Smith and Gide elect new leaders; Morgan Lewis builds EMEA council
Pinsent Masons elected Richard Griffiths, its UK-based global head of property, as managing partner from 1 November. He succeeds Laura Cameron and will work with senior partner-elect John Maciver, Australasian Lawyer reported. Griffiths joined as a trainee in 2002 and became a partner in 2012. Over four years, he grew the property group by 13% and expanded its planning and environment practice into Australia, the Middle East and Europe. Read more.
Reed Smith named Jimmy Theodorou, its London senior partner and chair of the Global Real Estate Group, managing partner for Europe and the Middle East, Le Monde du Droit reported. He succeeds Gregor Pryor, who held the role since 2023 and opened the firm's Riyadh office. Pryor is returning to his entertainment and media practice.
Gide re-elected senior partner Frédéric Nouel and managing partner Jean-François Levraud to third terms. Franck Audran and Laetitia Lemercier are also returning to the leadership team, Le Monde du Droit reported.
Morgan Lewis chair David McManus told Law360 that he had met more lateral candidates and groups over the past six months than before. He said the firm intended to grow in line with its culture. The firm also created a 12-member council for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Law360 reported.
Kirkland ends disclosure after $10.6bn as Cleary lifts London NQ pay to £172,500
Kirkland & Ellis told The American Lawyer that 2026 will be the last year it provides revenue and profit figures. The firm said the numbers add no meaningful value for clients and do not reflect the quality of legal service, the ABA Journal reported. It posted revenue of $10.6bn in 2025 and profit per equity partner of $11.1m, up about 20%. It pays London newly qualified lawyers £175,000, Legal Cheek reported. According to the 2026 Am Law 100, it was the first firm to pass $10 billion in revenue.
Cleary Gottlieb raised its London NQ salary to £172,500 from £164,500, an increase of £8,000. It also added a £500 allowance for vacation-scheme participants, Legal Cheek reported. Legal Cheek research across 113 top UK firms put average NQ pay at around £119,000. Sixty-four firms pay London NQs at least six figures, and 50 have raised salaries this year, according to Legal Cheek.
Goodwin promoted 43 lawyers to partnership, a slightly larger round than last year despite a decline in the firm's total headcount, Law.com reported. Read more.
Pérez-Llorca moves partners to Mexico City and Lisbon; Wolf Theiss opens in London
Pérez-Llorca is relocating Corporate/M&A partner Alfredo Lafita from Madrid to Mexico City to lead a new Iberia-Latam team as senior vice president. He is taking newly named partner Gonzalo Sánchez-Quiñones and six other Spanish lawyers with him, Lawyerpress reported. The firm also added Joana Mota Agostinho as a partner in Lisbon to lead a new intellectual property, industrial property and technology practice, Lawyerpress reported.
Clifford Chance is concentrating its transactional practices in Madrid while keeping litigation and intellectual property in Barcelona, Expansión reported.
Wolf Theiss, headquartered in Vienna, opened a London office for British investors in central, eastern and south-eastern Europe. Anna Dąbrowska, previously head of its Warsaw M&A team, leads the office, Extrajournal reported.
CMS Francis Lefebvre, Baker Tilly and Fish & Richardson add partners
CMS Francis Lefebvre hired Christophe Pourreau, a conseiller d'État and former director of tax legislation at France's economy and finance ministry, as a partner in its tax department, Le Monde du Droit reported.
Baker Tilly added Carlos Robles y Zepf from Mayer Brown as a partner in its Frankfurt Corporate/M&A practice. The hire is part of a broader expansion of its transaction advisory work, JUVE reported.
Fish & Richardson hired Armin Kühne from Noerr as a principal in Munich. He brings standard-essential-patent and life sciences litigation experience after ten years at his former firm, JUVE Patent reported.
The week's moves clustered in London and in two practices. In disputes, WilmerHale filled a new leadership role while Weil saw departures. In private capital, Debevoise drew Freshfields partners and Clifford Chance restructured its roles. Pay rose again at the City's entry level, with Cleary at £172,500 and Kirkland at £175,000. That happened in the same week Kirkland said it would stop publishing the revenue and profit figures used to compare firms.
The full list of the week's moves is on the Europe week page.
