Herbert Smith has appointed Austin Sweeney as the new head of its Singapore office, with the corporate partner relocating from the firm's City base to take up the management role.

Sweeney will begin in his new post on 1 August for a three-year term. He takes over the reins from corporate partner Veronica O'Shea, who has managed the firm's Singapore office since 2004. She will return to full-time client work with a brief to develop the corporate practice in Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia.

Sweeney has been a partner at Herbert Smith since 2003, having joined the firm in 1994. From 2001 to 2003 he was based in the firm's Tokyo office.

In his new role, Sweeney will report to Herbert Smith's head of Asia, Ashley Alder, and will also work closely with Singapore-based partners Maurice Burke and Michelle Chen, who respectively head up the firm's regional dispute resolution and banking practices.

Sweeney's move means the office – which was launched in 1995 – now has 21 lawyers, including six partners, advising on corporate and commercial work, capital markets and structured finance, projects and dispute resolution.

In April the firm hired former Linklaters managing associate Richard Nelson as a partner – the firm's first energy and infrastructure partner in Singapore. Last month the firm moved to larger office premises in Singapore's financial district.