US firms hired 67 partners across the City in 2007 – a slight dip on the recruitment peak of 2005, despite last year's booming markets.

Legal Week research into hiring trends at 24 of the US' biggest players in the UK found that while recruitment activity was up on 2006 – when 60 partners joined US practices – it failed to match 2005′s five-year high of 72.

Much of the activity came in the mid-market. Mayer Brown was the biggest lateral recruiter of 2007, with the firm bringing in nine partners, including two high-profile names – McDermott Will & Emery corporate partner William Charnley and Ashurst real estate partner Gary Watson.

White & Case came a close second with eight partner hires in 2007, including Clifford Chance funds partner Matthew Judd and McDermott capital markets partners Andrew Caunt and Andrew Croxford. The firm has been the most expansive US firm in London in recent years, bringing in 30 partners over the last five years.

McDermott also scored highly after recruiting six lateral partners in 2007, although the Chicago firm has also seen a number of senior departures.

In contrast, some of the US' top firms saw a drop in their recruitment activity in 2007, with firms such as Sidley Austin, Weil Gotshal & Manges, Kirkland & Ellis, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Latham & Watkins all bringing in fewer partners last year compared with 2006.

Latham hired only McDermott intellectual property partner Larry Cohen, while in 2006 it brought in four partners from rival firms.

Similarly, Weil Gotshal lost both private equity partner Will Rosen and restructuring partner Chris Mallon to rival practices (DLA Piper and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom respectively) but failed to attract a single lateral. In contrast, it brought in high-profile private equity partner Marco Compagnoni and fellow Lovells lawyer Jonathan Wood in 2006.

The Legal Week research also revealed that while former years were full of big-name partner moves from magic circle and top-tier UK firms to US practices, in 2007 many of those moving were not partners at their previous firms and around half came from rival US firms rather than UK practices.

Seventeen of those moving only made partner at their new firms, while only 33 came from other UK firms, including eight partners from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. Twenty-nine of the hires were from other US firms and the remaining moves were from in-house positions.

Shearman & Sterling London head Kenneth MacRitchie told Legal Week: "If someone has made a move once, they are more likely to make a move again. Plus, UK firms have risen to the challenge of raising their profitability to a competitive level and that has closed off a number of opportunities."

The City heads of US firms were more upbeat about hiring trends in the coming year, arguing that the current economic downturn could see weaker results from UK firms as well as crackdowns on partner performance, which may provide more opportunities.

Weil Gotshal London managing partner Mike Francies (pictured above) commented: "There will probably be more opportunities to make hires this year as there should be more good people thinking about moving."

He added: "The more established US firms have been around for a while so we have already got a lot of good people. That means we tend to be after something specific so there are fewer people we want to recruit."

MacRitchie added: "You may see hiring at those firms that are less strategic tailing off and it will be the longer-term players who remain active. We see opportunities as when the markets are good, laterals do not tend to want to move."

Macfarlanes senior partner-elect Charles Martin said: "US firms are selective about what they are doing here at the moment – the land-grab is probably over and they are very picky about who they hire."