Hackney shores up legal with double hire

Patricia Narebor has been made head of commercial, joining ­Hackney from Westminster City Council, where she was head of planning and ­property, while Stephen Rix has been promoted to the newly created role of head of litigation.

Narebor said: “The opportunities and challenges presented by the Olympics and regeneration projects were obviously an attraction. [Experience] in local authorities and in ­private practice will enable me to manage and steer the team.”

Corporate director for legal and democratic services Gifty Edila restructured the in-house department and created the commercial and litigation teams in order to create economies of scale (The Lawyer, 9 November 2009).