White & Case's Paris arm has secured a major boost to its local practice with the appointment of Coudert Brothers' global co-head of arbitration Michael Polkinghorne.

Polkinghorne, who joined Coudert from Norton Rose in 1988, started at the New York firm's 100-lawyer Paris office along with a team of three associates this month.

Polkinghorne, who has spent most of his time in the US firm's Paris arm, also served as managing partner of Coudert's Bangkok and Vietnam offices.