GSC Solicitors brings in Irwin Mitchell litigator

London boutique GSC Solicitors has recruited ­former Irwin Mitchell ­London office head Amina Somers to push the growth of its litigation practice.

Somers, who left Irwin Mitchell in 2004 after spearheading the growth of its London office, has since been a consultant for technology, media and telecoms boutique iLaw. She will become a salaried partner at GSC.

GSC ;senior ;partner Saleem Sheikh said Somers was expected to be the first in a series of lateral hires to the commercial litigation practice.

“Our ;current ;core ­practices are commercial property, IP and company commercial,” said Sheikh. “We want to grow commercial litigation to become another key area because we have some very good work coming through in this area.”

Somers, who focuses on complex litigation with cross-border and multijurisdictional dimensions, added: “This is a new challenge and means I can help grow a strong litigation practice.”

It is rare for GSC to make hires at partner level, but Sheikh said the firm is ­looking to move away from pure organic growth. He added that ideally the firm will have a six-lawyer ­litigation team in place within three years. Somers is the first lawyer dedicated solely to litigation.