DLA Piper has bolstered its Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) corporate practice with the addition of Linklaters partner Jon Hayes.

Hayes, who trained at the magic circle firm and became a partner in 2001, joins DLA today (1 September) with the aim of boosting client ties with London corporates and international clients. He will work alongside DLA's EMEA corporate head Juan Picon.

Hayes said: "The practice has a strong, upper mid-market reputation in London and fantastic international capabilities that will provide me with a great platform from which to develop relationships with clients whose legal needs extend beyond single transactions or are truly global."

DLA's last London lateral hire came in June when insurance litigator John Curran joined from Clifford Chance, while the firm's last corporate hire came in January 2008 with Will Rosen's move from Weil Gotshal & Manges.

A number of Linklaters partners have recently taken on new roles, with London banking partner Neil Harnby joining General Electric subsidiary GE Capital as general counsel last month, while in May, construction partner Ann Minogue joined Ashurst.

High-profile disputes partner Mark Humphries also left the firm to launch his own boutique named Mark Humphries, which is due to launch today.