Linklaters has launched an office in Abu Dhabi, with New York finance partner Paul Kruger among a number of partners relocating to the new arm.

The office launch, first reported by Legal Week last month, marks Linklaters' 27th office worldwide.

Middle East managing partner Sarosh Mewawalla is leading the initiative, which will see corporate partner Nick Garland relocating from Dubai in addition to Kruger's move. Kruger previously headed Linklaters' Asia structured finance and real estate practices from Tokyo before moving to the US.

Garland, meanwhile, specialises in cross-border M&A and has been in the UAE since 2007. Mewawalla specialises in project finance with a particular focus on the banking, project and export financing sectors.

The Abu Dhabi launch marks Linklaters' first new office since it opened in Duesseldorf in November 2007 and will mean that all of the magic circle firms – bar Slaughter and May – will have a presence in Abu Dhabi.

The new practice will work with the firm's existing 40-lawyer team in the Dubai office, which opened in February 2006.

Mewawalla commented: "The new Abu Dhabi office further enhances our ability to support our clients' needs in the Middle East region."

Linklaters in the Middle East offers capital markets, corporate/M&A, project finance, banking, commercial, Islamic finance, funds and real estate advice."

News of the office launch comes after Linklaters' newly-elected senior partner Robert Elliot confirmed that further expansion in the Middle East and Asia will be among his key priorities when he formally replaces David Cheyne as managing partner on 1 October.