Ashurst private equity head Charlie Geffen (pictured) and litigation partner Ed Sparrow are going head-to-head to take over from Geoffrey Green as the firm's new senior partner.

Voting has kicked off at the top 10 City firm after the pair officially confirmed their intention to stand for the role.

Geffen has long been linked to the senior partner position but, as previously reported by Legal Week, Sparrow only emerged as a serious contender earlier this year.

The partnership is expected to finish voting by 22 September with Green's successor to be confirmed shortly after.

Green's 10-year tenure as senior partner is to come to a close at the end of this year. He is set to head to Hong Kong early next year to launch Ashurst's first Chinese practice.

The firm already has offices in Singapore and Tokyo and plans to focus on corporate, M&A and finance work in Hong Kong – practice areas it has in its other Asian bases.

Green, along with managing partner Simon Bromwich, has overseen a period of significant growth at the City leader. This year profits per equity partner broke through the £1m barrier, up around 9% on the previous year, while turnover was up 17% to £323m.