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Linklaters hired a team of litigation partners in New York in the last attempt of the “Magic Circle” law firms from the United Kingdom to face American rivals on their domestic lawn.
The partners Adeel Mangi, Muhammad Faridi, Diana Conner and George Lobiondo will join Linklaters from the New York Dispute Boutique, Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, said the company whose firm is at the Financial Times.
The team acted for a number of large American companies such as Johnson & Johnson. President Joe Biden also named Mangi to a judge of the Federal Court of Appeal, making him the first Muslim American to receive such a appointment, before he was controversially blocked by the lack of support for the American Senate .
Linklaters has pushed in recent years to strengthen its American presence by hiring heavy strikers rather than pursuing a merger. The company brought in the negotiation veteran George Casey and his team from Shearman & Sterling last year, hiring a total of 10 partners for its American operations in 2024.
Bringing Rainmakers costs money and British companies have historically had trouble corresponding to the remuneration packages of their American rivals. The “magic circle”, including Linklaters, now offers two -digit offers from millions of dollars to attract key hires, according to people who know the compensation packages.
Linklaters refused to comment on the remuneration offered to Mangi and his team.
Such hiring has been helped by Linklaters ‘decision to leave its “Lockedstep” remuneration model, where partners’ remuneration increases according to the years served, introducing greater flexibility in recent years to pay and recruit the most efficient.
“We have changed our Lockstep model to compete with American companies hunting for best talents. . .[this team]To join is another vote of confidence in the place where we are heading as a business, “said Aedamar ComiskeyMain partner at Linklaters.
Elite companies in the United Kingdom have long struggled to break out on the most profitable legal market in the world against the established Wall Street outfits. Linklaters and Freshfields tried to increase their market share thanks to individual hires, while Legacy Allen & Overy merged with Shearman & Sterling from New York in May from last year. Following a difficult merger in the United States for Clifford Chance two decades ago, the company has also hired aggressively in recent years.
There are signs that certain strategies are starting to bear fruit. Linklaters and Freshfields have won large ticket work. Linklaters advised Volkswagen on his joint venture of $ 6 billion and his investment with Rivian last year, the first time the company acted for the company on an American agreement.
“Growth in the United States by hiring first-rate talents in key practice are a strategic priority for the company,” said Comiskey. “But American growth is not an end in itself – we just want the best American lawyers on our world platform.”
Linklaters has 53 partners in the United States in its offices in New York and Washington DC.
The co -president and managing partner of Patterson Belknap, Dahlia Doumar, thanked the dispute team for his contribution to the company and said that they had been “appreciated partners”.
