Sullivan heralds New Year with Milbank corporate capture

Hire of the week, surely, is Sullivan & Cromwell's recruitment of UK corporate partner Tim Emmerson from Milbank Tweed in London. The elite Wall Street firm has now got itself a proven dealmaker in London.

It's been a long time in the making. According to many senior corporate partners, Sullivan has been sniffing around the City for more than a year. Its coup in snaring Emmerson - who before taking the Yankee dollar had been a partner at Freshfields - will launch it into the UK deals market.

And Emmerson can deliver: he developed an excellent M&A track record at Milbank despite his slim platform there. Right now he is still on the ski slopes, but is slated to be at Sullivan by the end of February.

Meanwhile, Milbank's corporate capability is looking severely dented. It's now relying heavily on Michael Goroff, who spends his time between London and Frankfurt. Milbank hasn't promoted a corporate partner in London in three years - something it may live to regret.