Eastern European independent Magisters has opened a London office, with Kiev-based partner Andrew Mac appointed to oversee operations in the City on a part-time basis.

The CIS-based firm's City base will be purely a representative office, intended to raise the firm's commitment to existing relationships and add quality of service to the European client base. More than two-thirds of Magisters' clients are US or European clients.

Mac's practice focuses on M&A, commercial law, real estate, investment, securities, and privatisation.

He said: "Magisters' London launch is a direct response to our clients' needs and requests. The London office will allow us to discuss more regularly with our clients the rapidly changing investment and legal environments in our region relevant for their investment plans."

Magisters is also set to launch in Kazakhstan later this month, with an office in Kazakh capital Astana.

Last month Magisters announced it was to set to launch in Belarus via a merger with Belarus-based 12-lawyer firm BelJurBureau – believed to be the first cross-border merger by a Belarus law firm.

The deal, closed this month, followed two previous mergers by Magisters in the Ukraine and Russia in 2006, when the firm combined with Ukrainian Pravis Reznikov Vlasenko and Partners and Russian Legas Legal Solutions, strengthening existing offerings in Kiev and Moscow.