L-R: Liam O'Connell, Michael Scott and Deborah Manus of Nutter.

Boston-based Nutter McClennen & Fish has appointed Liam O'Connell and Michael Scott to take over as leaders of the firm later this year.

The duo will begin serving as co-managing partners for an eight-year term beginning in July, replacing longtime managing partner Deborah Manus, who will step down at the end of June.

Manus has led the firm since 2011. At the end of her tenure she will remain at the firm as a partner in its private client department.

“Nutter is a wonderful firm with a long and distinguished history and reputation for excellence, with a team of talented and passionate lawyers and professional support staff,” said O'Connell, who joined in 2008 from Holland & Knight.

“I'm grateful for the confidence our fellow partners have placed in Mike and I and look forward to working with our fellow partners as the firm continues to build on its rich history,” he added.

O'Connell is a member of the firm's executive committee and chairs its labor, employment and benefits practice group. He is also a former chair of the firm's litigation department.

Scott, also a member of the firm's executive committee, joined the firm in 1999. He previously chaired Nutter's real estate and finance department and currently serves as co-chair of the lateral partner hiring committee and as a member of the firm's diversity and inclusion committee.

O'Connell and Scott plan on maintaining active practices while taking on their new leadership roles. And while they will share many of the duties of managing the 145-lawyer firm, they will also play to their respective strengths in dividing up and allocating management responsibilities, Scott said.

One priority for the Boston-based firm, which rebranded to simply “Nutter” in 2016, is to continue to grow its corporate, intellectual property and IP litigation departments.

“Given that the Boston economy is one of innovation, we think it makes sense to focus and to build upon our strengths in those areas,” Scott said, noting that the firm plans on growing its real estate and litigation practices opportunistically going forward.

Last year the firm added a seven-lawyer team from Boston-based intellectual property boutique Sunstein Kann Murphy & Timbers, that included two new co-chairs for its IP and life sciences practices.

And despite the increased presence of national firms in Boston, both O'Connell and Scott said they believe Nutter's approach, experience and roots in the area give it an edge.

“We have a unique model here [and] we think that we have a competitive advantage that we think we offer to our clients,” Scott said. “There is an intimacy here of knowing each other really well because we're all under one roof and our model is that of bringing the best resources together to serve our clients.”

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