Simmons’ senior partner vote sees six in the frame

The following candidates are understood to be in the frame: litigation partner Philip Vaughan; ­litigation head Colin ­Passmore; ­corporate partner Charles Mayo; corporate partner and Paris head Thierry Gontard; ­former managing partner Mark Dawkins; and energy partner Patrick Wallace.

All except Gontard are based in London.

This is the second ­leadership election at the firm this year. London financial institutions head Jeremy Hoyland was elected managing partner after a battle with labour law ­partner and Germany head Hans-­Hermann Aldenhoff.

Hoyland replaced Dawkins, who became managing partner in 2005 and was elected for a further three years in 2008. Dawkins’ tenure saw a rise in profit per equity partner of 20 per cent, but mixed fortunes internationally, including abortive merger talks with US firm Mayer Brown. Since the ­failure of those talks ­Simmons has focused its efforts on ­bulking up in China and Germany.