Herbert Smith is set to see the departure of contentious regulatory heavyweight Martyn Hopper to magic circle firm Linklaters.

Hopper, who is highly rated by Chambers & Partners, is understood to have handed in his notice in recent weeks after eight years with Herbert Smith.

He joined the City firm as a partner in 2004 from the Financial Services Authority (FSA), where he was head of the market integrity group in the enforcement division.

Hopper has acted on a number of high-profile investigations while at the UK top 10 outfit including representing former Shell chairman Sir Phillip Watts in the FSA investigation into Shell's reserves recategorisation in 2005.

Hopper also took the lead role for UBS in September last year when trader Kweku Adoboli was accused of costing the bank $2.3bn (£1.4bn) in losses through unauthorised trades.

His hire represents a significant boost for Linklaters, which to date has not built up as significant a contentious regulatory capability as many of its rivals.

Hopper's move marks another blow for Herbert Smith, after the departure of fellow contentious regulatory partner Peter Burrell to Willkie Farr & Gallagher in May last year.

News of the move comes after Herbert Smith announced the hire of Salans' Moscow dispute resolution head Alexei Panich for its local practice in the Russian capital today (3 September).

The hire takes the total number of fee earners in Herbert Smith's Russia disputes practice to 12, including two partners.