McDermott Will & Emery has strengthened its fledgling Paris office with a hire from local firm Jeantet Associes, with the hire marking the latest in a string of partner moves in the city in recent weeks.

Jonathan Wohl joined McDermott as a partner in its Paris corporate practice last month from Jeantet, where he was a senior counsel specialising in cross-border M&A.

Wohl joined Jeantet as a partner in 2006 after 27 years with now-defunct firm Coudert Brothers. When he moved to Jeantet in January that year he became the final partner from Coudert's flagship Paris office to find a new home in the wake of the firm announcing plans to wind up in the summer of 2005.

The move reunites him with several of his former Coudert colleagues, as four of the five partners in McDermott's Paris office are ex-Coudert, including Wohl and the office's head, Jacques Buhart. McDermott opened in Paris in May this year with the hire of four partners including Buhart, who joined from Herbert Smith, where he headed the corporate and competition groups in Paris.

Wohl said: "This move is more than just a reunion with some old friends – although that was one of the things that did make me want to join. McDermott has big plans for its Paris office and I look forward to helping to grow its client base."

News of McDermott's hire comes after Norton Rose Paris corporate head Herve Castelnau joined Jones Day on 1 September, bringing with him a team of three associates, two of whom were promoted to counsel at their new firm. Castelnau had been a partner with Norton Rose since 2003.

At the same time, Bird & Bird saw two partners leave for Salans, with intellectual property partner Isabelle Leroux and tax partner Anne Quenedey both making the move at the start of September.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that Ashurst's former Paris managing partner Frederic Pinet has joined French boutique Desfilis & McGowan. Pinet, an M&A and leveraged buyout specialist, left the UK firm at the end of May to join the French boutique. He has been replaced by corporate partner Bertrand Delaunay.

Linklaters Paris managing partner Paul Lignieres said: "The movement in the Paris market reflects the level of uncertainty and instability in the global economy. A number of firms have made some unreasonable investments and are being forced to make cutbacks, while some partners are looking for more stable firms."