Reed Smith has bolstered its London real estate practice, making its second lateral hire into the group within a month.

Real estate partner Philip Olmer is set to join the international firm next month from Olswang, where he has been a partner for more than a decade.

His hire comes after Reed Smith hired Jimmy Theodorou as a partner from Denton Wilde Sapte at the beginning of the year. Theodorou was an associate with Dentons.

Olmer advises on property and joint venture work with a particular focus on development and regeneration projects. He regularly acts for overseas investors, institutional City funds and public and private UK property entities.

Prior to joining Olswang in 1999, Olmer was a partner with Berwin Leighton Paisner for eight years.

Reed Smith said that both hires were part of the firm's wider strategy to grow its real estate offering despite the difficulties the market has faced during the downturn.

Graham Reid, the firm's real estate chief for Europe and the Middle East, said: "We will use this time in the market [to our advantage]. Reed Smith maintains a balance of practices. While transactional practices are booming we invest in litigation, so now we're investing in transactional practices.

"Several partners have dealt with Philip in the past and have been impressed by him. He is a clear and strategic thinker who does complex and large scale transactions. He has a very good client base."

Olmer's hire will bring Reed Smith's London real estate headcount to 14 partners.