SJ Berwin is to add to its structured finance practice with the hire of a partner from Sidley Austin, doubling the team's partner capacity in London.

Sidley finance partner Andrew Bliss, who is a UK-qualified solicitor in the US firm's London office, is set to join SJ Berwin's City finance group after being voted into the partnership on 7 October.

Bliss, who joined Sidley in 1999, has a practice focused around structured finance deals, including the securitisation of loans and rental deposits, repackagings, and bond and equity-linked transactions in the developed and emerging markets.