Former Eversheds chairman Alan Jenkins is set to retire from the firm at the end of the financial year in April 2011.

His departure comes after Jenkins lost his chairman post to John Heaps in May this year following a contested election. Jenkins chaired the firm for two three-year terms. He was first elected in 2004 and was re-elected in an uncontested vote in 2007.

However, after an overhaul of management structure last year, Jenkins saw his role significantly reduced after it was split into three parts.

Jenkins (pictured) remained head of Eversheds LLP but former chief executive David Gray was appointed to the new role of chairman of Eversheds International and Stephen Hopkins assumed Jenkins' head of international role.

It is unclear what Jenkins' next move will be, although it is understood he intends to take up roles outside of the law.

Elsewhere, Eversheds has appointed company commercial (CoCom) group head Peter Halpin into the newly-created role of client services director. The role will see Halpin take responsibility for bringing together all of Eversheds' client programmes across the business.

Leeds office head Keith Froud will take over from Halpin as CoCom practice head, with both taking up their new positions on 1 May 2011.

Eversheds chief executive Bryan Hughes said: "Moving a member of our leadership team into this new client services director role underlines the importance that we place on service excellence, which sits right at the heart of our strategy and approach."