Mayer Brown has strengthened its London office with the hire of corporate partner William Charnley from rival Chicago firm McDermott Will & Emery.

Charnley, who will join Mayer Brown on 1 October, has been handed a mandate to develop the firm’s practice in private equity, hedge funds and the investment banking arena.

The former McDermott London head was one of the founding partners of the US law firm’s City arm, which opened in 1998 after Charnley quit Simmons & Simmons along with banking partner Graham Rowbotham to launch the venture.

The hire follows a period of change at the firm, which recently undertook a partnership restructuring in a bid to boost profitability. Around 45 partners have been axed from its equity — equivalent to around 10% of its equity partnership.

The firm’s London arm, which houses around 100 partners, has come out of the shake-up relatively unscathed, with the majority of the cuts taking place in its US offices.

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