White & Case has begun drafting in additional finance partners in the City and Middle East after the walkout of 13 partners to Latham & Watkins.

New York bank finance partner Jake Mincemoyer has permanently relocated to the London office to support Magdalene Bayim-Adomako, now the sole head of the bank finance practice in London.

In addition, global banking head and Deutsche Bank relationship partner Eric Berg (pictured) will split his time between New York and London. The office was hit last month by the four-partner walkout of a bank finance team led by Chris Kandel, as well as the subsequent departure of two energy partners to Latham.

The co-head of the US firm's Central and Eastern Europe banking and finance practice, Jonathan Weinberg, is also set to spend more time in the City as White & Case sets about rebuilding its finance practice in London.

Doug Peel will make the permanent move from Singapore to the Middle East to run the firm's US operations in Abu Dhabi as the office's executive partner following the departure of all of the firm's partners in the region. London project finance partner Saul Daniel, who focuses on energy, oil and gas, will temporarily relocate to Abu Dhabi this week.

Meanwhile, New York corporate partner Neal Grenley, who was resident with the firm in Saudi Arabia from 1978 to 1986, will move to Riyadh on a temporary basis while the firm looks for a new association, with oil and gas practice leader Wendell Maddrey to be located in Dhahran, servicing the firm's relationship with Saudi Aramco. Senior corporate partner Ken Ellis will move to Doha from New York for the next few months to stay close to clients and rebuild the practice.

Philip Stopford, head of the firm's Western Europe, Middle East and Africa practice, will split his time between London and the Middle East for the time being.

The departing Middle East team comprised corporate partner Villiers Terblanche, energy and infrastructure partner Nick Collins, projects partner Christopher Langdon, Riyadh office head Mohammed Al-Sheikh and Doha M&A specialist Andrew Macklin, with a further two partners also leaving in the US.