Covington's Marchick moves in-house at Carlyle

US private equity house Carlyle has hired its first dedicated in-house lawyer for regulatory and governmental affairs, taking respected partner David Marchick from Covington & Burling.

Marchick will head Carlyle's regulatory affairs from next month as well as certain operations of the private equity house's portfolio companies.

At Covington Washington DC-based Marchick specialised in trade and transport issues, co-heading the firm's international trade and finance group. His clients included IBM and Global Crossing.

Marchick was one of the Covington lawyers who advised strategic advisory group Kissinger McLarty Associates (KMA) as a result of an alliance Covington forged with KMA in 2003. That provided political contacts for both Covington and Marchick. He also worked on Bill Clinton's victorious 1992 presidential campaign.

The news comes as Carlyle, which instructs Latham & Watkins, Linklaters, Ashurst and Clifford Chance in Europe, is mulling an IPO, following a similar move by private equity rival Blackstone earlier this year.

Carlyle co-founder David Rubenstein said: "As transactions get larger and our business expands globally, so does the complexity of the issues. Actively engaging policymakers and other stakeholders is more critical than ever to our business. David's in-house experience, judgment and relationships give Carlyle a competitive edge that will help maximise returns for our investors."