Ashurst is set to see two senior departures from its litigation practice, with litigation chief Michael Madden leaving the firm and partner Wil Thorburn set to join JP Morgan Chase in a newly-created role as EMEA litigation head. Separately, fellow litigation partner Arundel McDougall is set to retire from the firm at the end of January.

Madden, who has been a partner since 1995, is leaving at the end of this month and will be replaced by senior litigation partner Ed Sparrow in his management role. He initially took over the post from Sparrow in 2003.

Thorburn will join US investment bank JP Morgan in the new year after serving out a period of notice. The 
new role will see him report into the bank's US-based global co-heads of litigation Jill Centella and Mike Coyne.

He has been a partner at Ashurst since 2004 and specialises in contentious financial services issues, corporate investigations and financial regulatory investigations. He has previously spent time on secondment to the Financial Services Authority and counted JP Morgan among his clients while at Ashurst.

Madden's exit comes as several partners within the firm have suggested that managing partner Simon Bromwich could take the helm of the litigation practice when his term leading the firm comes to a close at the end of 2012.

Commenting on his role, Sparrow said: "I have enjoyed a couple of years without management responsibilities and the opportunity to work closely with clients. I am looking forward to building on Michael's success but will be doing so – with the help of my colleagues – in a way that does not reduce my client contact."

News of Madden and Thorburn's departures follow a string of partner exits from Ashurst in recent months. It emerged yesterday that real estate funds partners David Evans and Samantha Lake Coghlan are leaving to join US firm Goodwin Procter's London office.

In addition, real estate partner Simon Cookson has joined DLA Piper, while non-contentious construction partner Marc Hanson is leaving to join Berwin Leighton Paisner. Meanwhile, employment partner Barbara Allen is launching an employee benefits and incentives practice for fellow UK top 30 firm Stephenson Harwood.