Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has launched an office in Hamburg with the hire of a team from Allen & Overy (A&O).

The US firm opened its second German base yesterday (30 April), hiring A&O's local intellectual property (IP) head Nadine Herrmann to lead the office.

Herrmann, whose practice also covers antitrust litigation, has joined Quinn Emanuel with a 10-strong team, which includes six associates and a number of support lawyers and personal assistants.

The team hire means the US disputes specialist now has 20 lawyers across Germany, with the remainder in its Mannheim office, which was also opened last year with an A&O partner hire.

Quinn Emanuel managing partner John Quinn said: "We represent many of the world's leading technology companies. In today's world, big IP disputes are global. Any major patent dispute includes an EU component.

"Germany is the epicentre of EU patent litigation. The EU is at the forefront of antitrust implications of patent litigation."

Herrmann has been at A&O since 2003 and was made up to partner at the magic circle firm in 2009.

News of the office launch comes after Quinn Emanuel set out ambitious plans to expand across Asia and Europe earlier this year, with the firm earmarking Germany and Switzerland for office launches within the next two years, while an office in either Hong Kong or Singapore is planned for a later date.

A further office launch in Germany is also touted for later this year, with the firm expected to open in Munich.

As part of its European expansion, Quinn Emanuel's London base, which was formed in 2008 with the hire of Kirkland & Ellis litigator Richard East and now counts seven partners, is also pegged for further growth.

In particular, the firm wants to bulk up its IP and arbitration offering in the City, where revenues increased by 75% in 2011 to £21.8m.