Burges Salmon commercial partner John Smith has left the firm to become chief executive of the Avon and Somerset Police Authority.

The authority is an existing client of the firm and Smith has previously advised it on its participation in the Southwest One procurement project with IBM, a contract worth £185m.

Smith said: “I thought long and hard before applying for the post, but in the end I thought the opportunity to work with a major client was too good to be missed.”