The Nabarro partner double-act

The reality is invariably that lawyers who team-tag do so because of synergies: clients like dealing with a tight-knit team and well established partnerships are a valuable commodity. But, nonetheless, it appeals to something in the human condition.

The Lawyer explored this dynamic among private equity (PE) lawyers just over a year ago. One partner at the time suggested it was a phenomenon peculiar to PE, because the size of deals meant partners needed someone they could trust by their side at all times.

But it appears litigators are also partial to a bit of synchronised firm-switching. In September 2011 DLA Piper picked up a team of three financial litigation partners, two of whom - James Curle and Jean-Pierre Douglas-Henry - had worked together at Slaughter and May and Dorsey & Whitney before moving on to LG.

And now litigation boutique Enyo Law has picked up a pair of litigators - Peter Fitzpatrick and George Maling - who travelled from Howrey to Nabarro together before their latest move.

The move comes as Nabarro posts essentially flat turnover for the 2011-12 financial year. It also brings the number of Enyo partners to 12 or, to put it another way, six pairs. Neat.