Proskauer Rose has recruited a high-profile banking and finance partner from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for its Paris office.

Jean L'Homme – who headed Freshfields' Paris projects group in the 1990s – left the firm in mid-February. He will officially start at Proskauer as a partner in mid-March.

The US firm was also in talks to bring over two associates from Freshfields at the time of going to press, with several clients also expected to follow him.

Proskauer's Paris office currently focuses on corporate and commercial work as well as employment, litigation and tax matters. The hire takes the number of partners in the office to around 10, with the firm planning to add several more during the course of the year.

L'Homme's appointment is the latest part of Proskauer's bid to expand in Europe. Last year it launched an office in London with the hire of
private equity partner Matthew Hudson from O'Melveny & Myers, while in November it formed a French private equity group when it acquired local private equity boutique Schmidt Gicqueau Dumas Mull-Jochen.

Paris managing partner Yasmine Tarasewicz told Legal Week: "Three or four years ago we were a very small office – a service office for French clients working with the US office. A few years ago we decided to grow. With [L'Homme's] experience and his ranking he will help us to compete in the project finance field."

Freshfields' Paris office has 28 partners following the departure of L'Homme. Office managing partner Antoine Colonna d'Istria said the firm is not planning to replace L'Homme in the projects group, which for the last few years has been led by partners Thierry Laloum and Amir Jahanguiri.