French firm hires lecturer to aid Kazakh expansion

FRENCH firm Salans Hertzfield & Heilbronn has taken on a university lecturer from Kazakhstan as a consultant to help develop its new office in the capital, Almaty.

Anatoly Didenko, head of the civil law department, will work with the firm's full-time lawyers, Karen Widess, a Russian-speaking Western corporate lawyer, and Aigoul Kenjebayeva, a Kazakh natural resources lawyer.

The firm's clients in the former Soviet Republic include foreign construction investors and UK food and drinks manufacturers.

The move comes as part of a shake-up of the firm's Eastern Europe and CIS offices, driven by expansion.

Charles Platto has been appointed partner and will head the firm's New York office.