Olswang hires top SJ Berwin film and television partner

Olswang has taken on a partner in the film and television practice at SJ Berwin, Jacqueline Hurt.

Hurt fills a gap left by David Bouchier, who went in-house at BSkyB in January. She worked at SJ Berwin under Nigel Palmer, one of the leading players in the sector.

Lisbeth Saville, head of the film and TV finance group at Olswang, believes that Hurt's presence will help to spread the workload from clients that include Twentieth Century Fox, Miramax and MGM.

Saville says: "We've been recruiting recently, heavily, and we need a senior person to help us manage those recruits and to help us train them. But also to take on some of the senior responsibilities for client development and client care."

Olswang, which claims the largest film and TV practice in the country, is now well placed to tackle the increasing work from US companies working in the UK and Europe.

Charles Moore, film and TV production partner, who has worked in-house for movie companies in the US, cites tax incentives as one reason for the increasing influx of work from the US.

He adds: "There is also a potentially dramatic strike [among actors] happening next year in the US, so we're already seeing a bit of work coming [to the British film industry] out of that.

"The Screen Actors Guild is threatening to strike from June. This is one reason for us hiring Jacqueline."

SJ Berwin wish her well in her new post.