Global law firm DLA Piper announces today that Michael Bowen, Scott Gibson and Marc Wilshaw of leading Perth corporate law firm Hardy Bowen have agreed to join the firm as partners, effective 1 July 2015, in a move which significantly increases DLA Piper’s corporate capability and makes its Perth office one of the largest in the market for a global firm.
The three partners will be accompanied by their team of nine corporate lawyers and five support staff, growing DLA Piper’s Perth office to a 115 person strong team.
DLA Piper Managing Partner in Australia, John Weber, commented: “These appointments demonstrate our commitment to the Perth market and our strategy to grow our corporate capabilities across Australia. Adding the team from Hardy Bowen enhances our ability to support our local and regional corporate, mining and resources clients as a global firm with a substantial Perth presence.”
DLA Piper Head of Corporate, Asia Pacific, Bryan Pointon, said: “This forms part of a strategic expansion of our first-tier corporate capabilities across Australia, specifically in transactional M&A, ECM and private equity. We are gaining a high calibre, highly experienced team in Hardy Bowen.”
DLA Piper Perth Office Managing Partner, Cameron Maclean, said: “Hardy Bowen has deep roots in the West Australian business community. The team from Hardy Bowen are a perfect fit for a firm like ours that believes our strength globally is built on well-established and vibrant local offices.”
Hardy Bowen founding partner, Michael Bowen, said: “It is DLA Piper’s unwavering commitment to servicing its clients locally that attracted us to join this firm above all others. The Hardy Bowen practice was fundamentally built on personal and committed relationships with clients, referrers and other professional service firms alike. This move will allow us to maintain those trusted relationships and continue to deliver a bespoke level of service, with added global strength when required.”
Globally, DLA Piper has invested heavily in its mining and energy sectors. The firm recently expanded by combining with Canadian firm Davis LLP and Mexican firm Gallastegui y Lozano, S.C. The firm’s Singapore office has grown its corporate team with the recent appointments of John Viverito, Joe Bauerschmidt and Myles Hankin, all of whom have solid resources track records.
“The capabilities and sector experience of the team from Hardy Bowen offer a tremendous synergistic complement to our offerings in the Americas and Africa, in addition to their anticipated impact in the Asia-Pacific region and Australia,” said Cameron Jay Rains, Global Co-CEO and Co-Chairman (Americas) of DLA Piper. “We look forward to integrating them into our global network and working together to expand our offerings across multiple markets and industries.”
This announcement comes during a period of strategic growth for DLA Piper in Australia. The firm has recently concluded a number of high-profile lateral hires across its other Australian offices, largely in the corporate, finance, projects and real estate practices.
Source: www.dlapiper.com
