Global Law Firm Announces Partner and Director Promotions Worldwide
Globally, our site highlights 54 legal professionals as new partners in the 2022 class.
A leading global law firm has announced the promotion of 54 lawyers to partner and director positions, effective January 1, 2022. The promotions span 11 practice areas, reflecting the firm's commitment to fostering growth and expertise across its diverse legal services.
In the litigation and disputes practice area, notable promotions include Paul Cartwright in Johannesburg, South Africa, Joseph Drapalski in Los Angeles, United States, and Matthew Buckle in London, United Kingdom. The litigation and disputes practice area saw the highest number of promotions with 18 lawyers.
The corporate, M&A and securities practice area also saw significant growth, with Jared Kaplan and Bernd Dreier in New York and Munich, respectively, and Blake Redwine in Dallas, United States, among those promoted. This practice area had 10 promotions.
In the banking and finance practice area, Dimitri Millas in Houston, United States, and Alex Zekkos in London, United Kingdom, were among those promoted. The real estate practice area saw the promotion of Louisa Roe in London, United Kingdom, while the projects practice area welcomed Laura Kiwelu and Rebecca Abou-Chedid in London and Washington, D.C., respectively.
Helen Fairhead was promoted in the antitrust and competition practice area in London, United Kingdom, and Eric Green was promoted in the intellectual property practice area in Austin, United States. The tax practice area saw the promotion of Justin Coddington in Houston, United States, and Claudia Posluschny in Munich. The employment and labor practice area welcomed Kimberly Cheeseman in Houston, United States, and the bankruptcy, financial restructuring and insolvency practice area promoted Rebecca Winthrop in Los Angeles, United States.
The information governance, privacy and cybersecurity practice area saw the promotion of Anna Rudawski in New York, United States, and Veit Sahlfeld in Hamburg. The practice area with the fewest promotions was bankruptcy, financial restructuring and insolvency, with one promotion.
Notably, 23 of the promoted lawyers are women, representing 43% of the total. This reflects the firm's ongoing gender diversity target of 40% women in its partnership, leadership roles, lawyer promotions, lateral additions, and senior business services hires.
The firm's Global Chief Executive, Gerry Pecht, praised the promoted lawyers for their industry knowledge, business acumen, and innovative solutions. He emphasized the importance of gender diversity in the legal profession and the firm's commitment to creating a more inclusive environment.
As the legal profession continues to evolve, the firm is committed to adapting and leading the way in promoting gender diversity and creating a more equitable work environment for all its lawyers. The firm is actively working to improve its transparency in promotion processes, implement flexible work policies, and provide active mentoring to help address gender disparities at the partner level.
Younger legal professionals are increasingly prioritizing firms with effective Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, particularly regarding leadership and promotion equity. The firm's focus on gender diversity is not only a moral imperative but also a strategic business decision that will help attract and retain top talent.
References:
[1] Randstad Legal Market Report 2021 [2] The American Lawyer’s 2021 A-List [3] Covington & Burling LLP, Gender Diversity Report 2021 [4] Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, Gender Diversity Report 2021 [5] National Association for Law Placement (NALP) 2021 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms
Additional promotions in Canada: Robin Acworth, Véronique Barry, Scott Boucher, Brian Chau, Matthew Choi, Jenna Anne de Jong, Russell Dufault, Alison FitzGerald, Caroline Jodoin, Jonathan Lafrance, Brigitte LeBlanc-Lapointe, Jennifer McPherson, Brian Milne, Fahad Siddiqui, Joshua Sprague, Nikita Stepin, Tim Stewart were promoted in various roles in Canada. (No specific practice areas were mentioned for these individuals.)
In South Africa, lawyers receive promotions to director instead of partner. Notable promotions include Kate Green and Harriet Oldmeadow in the litigation and disputes practice area in Sydney, Australia. Darren Smith was promoted in the intellectual property practice area in Houston, United States. Zayba Drabu, Nathan Baum, Rafe Schaefer, and Victoria Corder were promoted in the litigation and disputes practice area in various locations in the United States. Nicolas Sirtoli was promoted in the corporate, M&A and securities practice area in London, United Kingdom. Anna Rudawski was promoted in the information governance, privacy and cybersecurity practice area in New York, United States. Geraldine Young was promoted in the litigation and disputes practice area in Houston, United States. James Lockwood was promoted in the litigation and disputes practice area in London, United Kingdom. Annabelle Wheeler was promoted in the litigation and disputes practice area in Munich/London. Marianne McMahon was promoted to the general counsel position in London, United Kingdom. Rachel Chan was promoted in the corporate, M&A and securities practice area in Hong Kong.
The global law firm's banking and finance practice area welcomed Dimitri Millas in Houston, United States, and Alex Zekkos in London, United Kingdom, as part of their partner and director promotions. The real estate practice area also saw the promotion of Louisa Roe in London, United Kingdom.
Subsequently, the firm's Global Chief Executive, Gerry Pecht, emphasized the importance of gender diversity in the legal profession and the firm's commitment to creating a more inclusive environment, as 23 of the promoted lawyers are women, representing 43% of the total.
