Holman Fenwick Willan has launched in Brazil with the acquisition of Barlow Lyde & Gilbert's local arm.

The two firms signed an agreement on Tuesday (11 October) that will see Holman take on Barlows' existing branch in Sao Paulo, following the earlier hire of Barlows' sole partner in the country, aviation partner Jeremy Shebson.

Shebson's move to Holman was announced in March as part of an ambitious deal to take on Barlows' eight-partner aviation practice. The group, which is expected to hand Holman a commanding position in the aerospace sector, is set to join the firm next week after serving a seven-month notice period at Barlows.

Two associates and two support staff are transferring in the Sao Paolo office, handing the transport and insurance specialist firm its first outpost in Latin America. In total, 16 associates and one trainee are transferring from Barlows' aviation team, with the remainder spread across offices in Singapore, Hong Kong and London offices.

Holman senior partner Richard Crump commented: "Brazil has been an area of significant interest for us for some time, and when we hired the aerospace team, it granted us a perfect opportunity to work from an established presence in the region through the office there.

"The offshore, mining and energy markets are also significant hubs of activity in the region as well as insurance and commodities as a direct result. We will be looking to see how we can take advantage of this over the coming months including our marine expertise."

Holman has also hired a further partner from Barlows with City marine partner Simon Chumas set to join Holman in the coming months.

The finalisation of the aviation move caps off an expansive period for the top 30 UK law firm, which has recently been investing in its Asian network with a string of senior appointments. Holman has emerged as one of the fastest-growing major practices this year, with revenues rising by 12.5% to £112.5m in 2010-11.

The news also follows the formal signing of the merger agreement between Barlows and Clyde & Co earlier this week (11 October), with the firms set to merge from 1 November this year. The deal, which was agreed in principle at the end of July, will create an insurance giant and constitutes the largest-ever merger between two UK law firms in revenue terms.