Paul Weiss launches in Toronto with double Shearman hire

Partners Christopher Cummings and Adam Giverta are joining the Toronto team from Shearman & Sterling’s Toronto office, where they have focused on cross-border capital markets and M&A transactions.

Paul Weiss chairman Brad Karp said the firm was expanding its practice to respond to Canadian clients’ increasing cross-border business activities.

“Our Toronto office will help us provide enhanced service to our clients on the ground in Canada,” he said in a statement. “The step reflects our long-standing commitment to our Canada-US cross-border practice and will allow us to better serve our clients in western Canada and our firm’s growing client base in Toronto and eastern Canada.”

Edwin Maynard, chairman of Paul Weiss’s Canadian practice group, added: “We’re very pleased to have Chris and Adam join us. Adding their talents to our market leading team clearly establishes Paul Weiss as the pre-eminent Canada-US cross-border practice.”

Canadian practice group member Andrew Foley will relocate to the new Toronto office while Maynard and other Canadian group members Matthew Abbott and Ariel Deckelbaum will remain at the firm’s New York headquarters.

The Paul Weiss Canadian practice group represents major Canadian companies and their underwriters. The work has covered a range of industries including aerospace, agriculture, communications, financial services, manufacturing, mining, oil and gas, real estate, software and transportation.

The Toronto office will practice only US law and the firm will continue to work in partnership with Canadian firms.

Paul Weiss is the latest in a line of firms to take an interest in the Canadian market. Clyde & Co is to merge with Canadian insurance firm Nicholl Paskell-Mede while DLA Piper is also close to doing a deal in the North American country (7 March 2011).

Last year Norton Rose announced its merger with Canadian firm Ogilvy Renault, which will go live on 1 June (15 November 2010).