Hogan Lovells' Brussels managing partner Catriona Hatton has left the firm to launch a European competition practice for US firm Baker Botts.

The hire of Hatton, who will join her new firm on 5 September, comes after Baker Botts took on 32 antitrust lawyers from Howrey in March last year, including the now-defunct firm's former vice-chair Sean Boland. The nine-partner team joined Baker Botts' Washington DC base.

At the time Boland told the Am Law Daily that Baker Botts was planning to expand into Brussels in the near future. The US firm currently has two European bases in London and Moscow.

Hatton, whose practice focuses on EC competition law, has worked on a number of major M&A deals while at Hogan Lovells and legacy Hogan & Hartson, including advising Ford in connection with its $2.3bn (£1.9bn) sale of Jaguar and Land Rover to Tata Motors in 2008, as well as Black & Decker on its $4.5bn (£2.8bn) merger with Stanley Works in 2009.

Other significant work she has been involved in has included providing antitrust counsel to Norilsk Nickel on the $6.3bn (£4bn) acquisition of LionOre Mining International in 2007 – the largest cross-border acquisition ever made by a Russian company.

Susan Bright, the co-head of Hogan Lovells' antitrust, competition and economic regulation (ACER) practice, said: "While we are sorry to see Catriona move on, we are very confident about the future of the practice in Brussels and globally."

Bright cited a number of recent recruits – including last year's hire of ex-Howrey partner Paris Anestis – and "a strong pipeline of future partners internally" as positives for Lovells' ACER practice.