Clifford Chance (CC) has launched a push for its European high-yield offering with the rehire of former partner Michael Dakin to its City practice.

Dakin, who is relocating from Dubai-based client Future Group, will join CC this month along with senior associate Jeremy Traster from Cahill Gordon & Reindel in New York. The pair bring the London high-yield team to a total of four partners and 12 associates.

Dakin, who is US-qualified, first joined CC in 2005 from Cahill Gordon in New York. He was initially based in CC's London office, but relocated to the Middle East as the European deal finance market slowed during the credit crisis. He joined Future Group in August last year as its chief legal officer.

The hires will be seen as part of a renewed push by the magic circle to enter the US law firm-dominated high-yield market, which typically sees Cahill Gordon and a select group of US-based firms, including Latham & Watkins and Cravath Swaine & Moore, advising on a majority of deals.

CC said the hires came in response to an expected revival of the European high-yield market, which despite seeing a flurry of activity earlier in the decade had failed to grow and match US activity levels.

CC head of US securities John Connolly said: "We see this becoming a viable long-term market in Europe, and will continue to invest in talent in this area. High-yield funding is and will become increasingly relevant to our broad European private equity and banking client base, and the market will favour law firms able to handle both the bank and bond sides of this work."