UK associates lose out as DWS, Watson Farley favour overseas promotions

Denton Wilde Sapte has made six new appointments to the partnership, half of the total promoted at the firm last year. The majority are based in emerging markets.

The firm, which has an extensive network of offices across the Middle East and the CIS, has made up two in Dubai, one in Almaty and one in Singapore. A further two are based in London. They bring the total number of partners globally at Dentons to 186.

CEO Howard Morris said that the decision to emphasise emerging markets wasn’t a sign of London’s decline in importance for the firm: “The UK economy has stalled and the amount of business has declined, but [the new promotions are rather] a recognition of those international markets that are growing. We now have three partners in Almaty and - much like the Dubai office is a hub for the Middle East network - Almaty is at the centre of a central Asian network.”

Last year Dentons’ foreign offices also enjoyed new joiners, with promotions made in Moscow, Paris, Istanbul and Muscat. Six were made up during the same period in London.

The new partners, who will join from 1 May 2009, are:

Banking & Finance: Matthew Cox (Singapore) and Sarah Dyke (London)

Corporate: Dean Alderton (Dubai)

Energy Infrastructure & Project Finance: Udayan Mukherjee (Dubai), Tammy Samuel (London) and Almas Zhaiylgan (Almaty)

Meanwhile Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) has promoted five new partners, all of whom are based abroad. Two of them are based in Singapore, one in Hamburg, one in Paris and one in Rome. This brings the total number of partners at the firm to 91.

It is a fall from last year’s total of nine promotions at WFW, five of whom were based in London. This year’s new joiners include one who trained with the firm. Lindsey Keeble, who is an asset and project finance and leasing specialist based in Paris joined WFW as a trainee in 1999.

They new partners, who will join from 1 May, are:

International Corporate: Christian Ulrich Wolf (Hamburg)

International Finance: Lindsey Keeble (Paris) and Furio Samela (Rome)

International Litigation: Marcus Gordon (Singapore)

International Corporate: Nicholas Hanna