New York leader Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz has made a very rare senior appointment after hiring an official from the US' market regulator as a partner.

Wayne Carlin, the director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC's) northeast regional office, is leaving the SEC this month to become the 78th partner at Wachtells. Carlin had been in the role since October 2000.

At the SEC, he was responsible for the commission's enforcement and examination programmes in 13 states and has led significant cases involving Adelphia, Symbol Technologies, Credit Suisse First Boston, Raytheon, Motorola and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The move is a rare hire for the New York firm which, in common with its leading Manhattan rivals, rarely offers externally-appointed lawyers partnership.

Partnership at Wachtells brings the benefit of joining the world's most profitable law firm, with average partner profits last year estimated at $2.92m (£1.63m)

SEC chairman William Donaldson commented:

"Carlin has served the commission with distinction, participating in and leading action in some of our most significant enforcement cases."

The appointment reflects the current demand for SEC-related legal advice, with US lawyers
reporting record levels of enforcement activity from the regulator after two years in which corporate America has been dogged by scandals.

Carlin began as an associate at Wachtells in 1984, before moving to Boston's Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault, where he became a partner. He joined the SEC in 1993.

First reported on www.legalweek.com (5 January).