King & Wood Mallesons signs up Dewey Beijing partner
King & Wood Mallesons has hired a three-lawyer energy and resources team in Beijing led by former Dewey & LeBoeuf partner Dirk Walker.
Walker is experienced in representing large Chinese oil and gas companies in overseas acquisitions and has advised both privately owned and state-owned enterprises in transactions across Africa, South America, the US and the CIS. He will bring his background as a petroleum engineer combined with five years in Beijing leading outbound deals to King & Wood Mallesons.
King & Wood Mallesons China managing partner Wang Ling said in a statement: “The energy and resources sector continues to be a priority for us. The regional market is fiercely competitive.
“With the arrival of one of the leading energy and resources teams to King & Wood Mallesons we’re able to provide clients with unparalleled substantive experience and fire-power. This is proof that we’re delivering on our commitment to our clients.”
Walker noted that in weighing up his options on the collapse of Dewey he had spoken to a number of clients, who supported his move to King & Wood Mallesons.
Along with Walker Dewey associate Miao Jing and Linklaters of counsel Dina Yin, who also previously worked as an associate at Dewey, have joined King & Wood Mallesons. Prior to joining Linklaters, Yin worked at the Beijing and Houston offices of Dewey.
The announcement comes shortly after Dewey Beijing managing partner Ingrid Zhu-Clark’s appointment with Morgan Lewis in Beijing (31 May 2012).
The combination between China’s King & Wood and Australia’s Mallesons Stephen Jaques took effect on 1 March (15 December 2011). The enlarged firm’s Beijing office includes over 90 partners and 460 fee-earners, with 1,800 lawyers across the Asia-Pacific region, including 1,000 in Greater China.
