Dibbs bolsters City presence

National firm Dibb Lupton Alsop has restated its intention to become a bigger player in the City with its new partner promotions.
Of its 18 new partners, seven are in the corporate group with four of that number based in London. Five of the 18 are women. Four will be in corporate recovery and insolvency groups across the country The other departments gaining partners are litigation, property and human resources.
The concentration on the City side of its practice is the first part of a three- year plan due to be announced in detail by Dibbs in a month's time, which it hopes will establish the firm as both a strong City and international player.
At the moment Dibbs only has a Brussels office, but is thought to be planning a more extensive European network through exclusive alliance arrangements with local firms.
A spokeswoman from Dibbs says that this year's list shows that the firm is "really bringing real quality people through it".
"We are putting a lot of effort into improving quality lawyers," she adds.
Dibb Lupton Alsop has lost a litigation partner from its London office. Paul Thomas has been in the firm for eight years and came from the Alsop Wilkinson side of the merger.
It is understood that Thomas is leaving to rejoin a life of leisure and that he has no immediate plans to join another firm, according to a Dibbs spokeswoman.
Thomas was unavailable to comment late last week due to celebrations for his departure.