Highly-regarded Romanian independent Nestor Nestor Diculescu Kingston Petersen is set to lose three partners, including the heads of its M&A and real estate groups.

The three are planning to leave the firm, a referral partner of Slaughter and May, later this summer (15 August) to launch their own practice in Bucharest.

M&A co-heads Cristina Filip and Carmen Peli and real estate leader Francisc Peli are expected to be joined by around 10 associates from Nestor, as well as lawyers from other firms.

The new firm, to be called Peli Filip, will launch with five partners covering real estate and corporate work in addition to energy, competition and capital markets matters.

In addition, Ioan Dumitrascu, who specialises in private equity work, is also joining as a partner from Nestor, where he was a senior associate.

Meanwhile, Alexandru Barsan joins the new firm as a partner from Linklaters' office in Bucharest, where he was a managing associate.

He will be joined by one other lawyer from Linklaters' Romania office, which was one of four bases in Central and Eastern Europe that the magic circle firm opted to split from earlier this year.

Filip told Legal Week: "This is an opportunity that we are taking to do what we do best in a concept where we are comfortable. We want to be less corporate, more involved and more creative."

Following the departures, Nestor will have nine partners and around 100 lawyers across offices in Bucharest, Timisoara and Brasov.

Its M&A group will be headed by newly-promoted partner Gabriela Cacerea, while Alina Radu will take over as managing partner of the real estate group.