Linklaters has dipped back into the A&O Shearman pool, picking up a four-partner team in New York as the UK-founded firm continues its stateside expansion.
David Lucking, John Hwang, Derek Poon and Dan Guyder are joining Linklaters as partners in its finance division, the firm announced on Monday.
Linklaters, which reported its highest-ever revenue and pre-tax profits last year, has been rapidly expanding its presence in the US.
At the beginning of the year, George Casey, former global managing partner of Shearman & Sterling, joined Linklaters as a part of a six-partner M&A team that included Heiko Schiwek who serves as global leader of Linklaters chemicals sectors. Casey now serves as global chairman of corporate at Linklaters.
The firm then also picked up Simpson Thacher & Bartlett partner Michael Torkin head of US capital solutions and special situations in New York in September and Paul Hastings partner Joseph Profaizer as global co-chair of international arbitration.
“Building out a top talent team in the US as part of our global offering is a key priority for us,” Aedamar Comiskey, Linklaters’ senior partner and chair said in a statement.
Linklaters came in No. 9 on the third quarter legal M&A league tables this year, working on 152 deals worth $128 billion over the first nine months of 2024.
Lucking, a longtime Allen & Overy partner, served as global co-head of A&O Shearman’s global financial markets practice. He has particular expertise in derivatives and structured finance transactions as well as the regulatory framework that underpins the US derivatives market.
Lucking was also one of eight candidates vying for managing partner and senior partner roles in A&O Shearman, which was officially formed on May 1 by the combination of Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling.
Hwang serves as US head of A&O Shearman’s international capital markets practice, focusing on securitizations and asset finance. He also is a former member of the US executive committee and the global equity committee at Allen & Overy.
Poon advises clients in the structured finance and securitization markets across a wide range of structures and asset classes.
Guyder represents debtors, secured and unsecured creditors, creditors’ committees, and ad hoc bondholder committees in out-of-court restructurings, bankruptcy cases throughout the United States.
“David, John, Derek and Dan are top-tier additions to our US practice,” Linklaters US global practice head Tom McGrath said in a statement.
“Their deep expertise across structured finance and restructuring is a perfect complement to our existing teams, and significantly enhances our offering for our clients in the US and globally,” he said.