The firm has selected commercial real estate partner Kevin O’Shea (pictured) as the office’s new managing partner, while Dan Cunningham will continue for another three years as New York senior partner.
O’Shea replaces Michael Feldberg and Ian Shrank, who have been sharing the managing partner position for the last three years. Feldberg and Shrank will return to full-time fee earning.
The move follows a busy period for A&O New York, despite the downturn in the US. The firm’s corporate team recently won a lead role on the $39bn (£19.6bn) buy-out of eyecare company Alcon by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis, while last year it won a role advising on the creation of an $80bn (£40.2bn) fund designed to kickstart US debt markets.
The office has also been expanding significantly over the last two years. Recent hires include the recruitment of a senior finance duo from Mayer Brown in August last year and the hire of the former chief of the securities fraud unit for the New York Southern District US Attorney’s Office, David Esseks, in October.
O’Shea, who joined the magic circle firm in 2002, told Legal Week his priorities included strengthening links with A&O’s global offices and improving client relationships across different practice areas.
He said: “We want to better interact with colleagues in the global offices to become more client-facing. It is important for us to get more plugged in to London.”
The New York office is also gaining a new member on A&O’s global partnership board, with US securities partner and co-head of the Latin American practice Cathleen McLaughlin taking up a two-year posting on the board.
Commenting on the appointment, O’Shea said: “She will be a terrific representative with terrific resources.”
The changes follow the February election of David Morley and Wim Dejonghe to senior partner and managing partner of the firm’s global practice respectively.
All of the new appointments take effect from 1 May.