Denton Wilde Sapte’s embattled technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) department has scooped its first lateral hire since the group was hit last year with a damaging wave of departures.
Taylor Wessing IP litigation partner John Linneker is joining Dentons, although a start date is yet to be agreed. Linneker, who was an equity partner at Taylor Wessing, also joins the equity at Dentons.
A specialist in trade-mark disputes and passing off, Linneker was Taylor Wessing’s trademarks head and the joint head of the international trademarks group until the roles were abolished more than a year ago.
He joins as Dentons’ sole IP litigation partner after wave of six partner departures in the past year left the firm with no top-level contentious IP capability. Among the defectors were Simon Levine and Neville Cordell, who quit for DLA, and former department head Tony Grant, who left the firm to launch his own boutique.
The hire comes as Dentons embarks on an ambitious campaign to rebuild its TMT practice. Sector head John Worthy said: “We’re fully committed to IP as part of our growing TMT team and we expect to be hiring further in this area.”
Linneker will be absorbed into the seven-partner core of Dentons’ TMT practice.
