Milbank regains one female partner in London promotions round

Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy has promoted one woman in London, making her the sole female partner in the firm’s City office.

Alexandra Schofield Grant is one of seven to be elected to the firm’s partnership this year and is a member of Milbank’s leveraged finance group.

She becomes Milbank’s sole female partner in the City after the departure of Laetitia Costa in April 2015. Milbank’s London office is comprised of 22 partners at present.

Costa had been made a partner just a few months before her exit; the first female partner in the London office since the retirement of project finance lawyer Cathy Marsh in 2013. Costa resurfaced as PwC Legal’s head of banking in 2016.

This year, Milbank has promoted two women to partner worldwide. Alternative investments lawyer Catherine Leef Martin has also been made up in New York.

All of the firm’s promotions were made in its New York office, bar the one in London. There were two promotions in leveraged finance, as well as two in tax.

Milbank tends to focus primarily on New York promotions, with the firm last announcing a solely New York/London round in 2016.

One partner was made up in São Paulo in 2017, while 2015 was the most geographically diverse round in recent years seeing promotions in Washington DC, Munich, Los Angeles and Frankfurt.

This week, Jenner & Block also announced its promotions for 2018 with the firm making up one partner in London.

Arbitration and litigation partner James Woolrich has been made up in the City, becoming one of nine partners in the office.