DLA Piper raids Orrick Italy for six-lawyer team

DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary has raided Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe’s Milan office, scooping a six-lawyer team as part of a nation-wide recruitment push.

DLA bagged public law partners Guido Bardelli and Alessandra Bazzani, along with associates Paolo Bertacco, Jacopo Recla, Gabriella Rondoni e Chiara Brunelli.

Federico Sutti, DLA’s managing partner for Italy, said the firm was looking to expand further: “We are planning some investments. We need to strengthen M&A and we need to build up a more credible capital markets and securities offering.”

Sutti said he would like to add an M&A partner in both Rome and Milan, because the local corporate markets work separately.

Alessandro De Nicola, managing partner for Orrick in Italy, said: "From a personal point of view I am very sorry to see them leave. In reality there wasn't that much synergy between [the administrative law group] and the rest of the firm."

"They were worried that their costs were rising. From our point of view we have 10 administrative lawyers still and do not need replacements."

DLA’s Milan office specializes in real estate funds and banking work, and accounts for 85% of the firm’s revenue from Italy.