Hammonds' Leeds team defects to Addleshaws

Addleshaw Goddard is bolstering significantly its contentious construction practice with the hire of a five-partner team from Hammonds' Leeds office.

As first revealed on www. thelawyer.com (2 March), the team will add £4m to Addleshaws' £40m Leeds revenues and increase the size of its national construction department, which currently numbers 25.

Hammonds' national construction head Simon Palmer will be joined by fellow partners John Emerton, Mark Hilton, Andrew MacCuish and Jonathan Tattersall. It has not been confirmed whether any associates are joining them, but sources say up to 12 could follow.

Addleshaws' managing partner Mark Jones said the appointments were in line with the firm's strategy for growth leading up to the end of the decade.

Jones told The Lawyer: "When we had the opportunity to hire the leading contentious construction practice in Yorkshire and Humberside we were very interested."

Although Addleshaws has long had a stellar reputation in non-contentious construction, its contentious capability is weaker and the appointments will broaden the firm's depth in construction work.

There are understood to be no conflicts between the two teams' clients. In the past, Addleshaws has advised companies including Landmark Development projects and St James Securities. Clients of the Hammonds team include Mowlem and Shepherd.

The hires follow the February announcement that Addleshaws was strengthening its projects practice in Manchester with the appointment of Hammonds' head of PFI and public-private partnerships Nigel Proctor.

David Moss, a partner in Hammonds' Manchester construction team, will take over as department head at the firm. He said that the firm remains fully committed to the development of a strong construction practice nationally and internationally, and will work with its clients to fulfil that strategy.