New York leader Sullivan & Cromwell has hired Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy M&A partner Tim Emmerson in a major addition to its London office.
Emmerson is expected to join the firm by the end of February, and is currently working out his exit terms from Milbank after resigning at the end of 2006.
His hire gives Sullivan its first pure UK M&A partner and its fifth UK-qualified partner. The firm has made little secret of its desire to build a UK corporate presence and has long been hunting for local corporate lawyers in an effort to replicate its success in the Paris market.
In May, the elite US firm launched a UK corporate practice with the hire of Allen & Overy partner Vanessa Blackmore, who focuses primarily on equity capital markets work, but until now it has failed to find a big name. Linklaters senior partner David Cheyne was linked to the role for years.
Emmerson, who before joining Milbank in 2003 spent nine years as a partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, has been instructed on several high-profile deals while at Milbank.
He has close links with Sullivan & Cromwell client Goldman Sachs. The relationship has generated a string of mandates over the last year including advising the bank on Macquarie’s bid for the London Stock Exchange, Singapore port operator PSA’s £3.5bn bid for P&O, a consortium bid for ITV and Robert Tchenguiz’s bid for pub chain Mitchells & Butler.
His departure leaves Milbank without a single UK-qualified corporate partner. However, the firm remains committed to building a corporate practice with more than one UK partner and is looking for a lateral replacement for Emmerson.
Phillip Fletcher, head of Milbank’s London office, told Legal Week: “It is a setback. We have always intended to grow corporate and other practices. We have been doing so in the last few years and we will continue to do so.”
M&A partners at magic circle firms reacted to the move by saying the hire could make Sullivan a threat to UK firms.
One partner commented: “Sullivan has a fantastic M&A franchise but it sometimes gets credit for things it has not had a big role on — this allows them to do that work. It is terrific news for Sullivan, but not so good for us UK firms.”
News
Sullivan hires Emmerson for UK M&A drive
Published: 10/01/2007 15:17
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