Partners from Stibbe and Field Fisher Waterhouse are among a 15-strong team of lawyers set to launch a new boutique in Brussels, in the second recent spin-off from the Benelux firm.

Stibbe pensions head Corinne Merla, employment head Jean-Philippe Cordier and counsel Sebastien Roger are leaving the firm to launch an employment and pensions boutique alongside Field Fisher employment head Olivier Rijckaert and senior associate Brecht Cops from Belgian firm Reliance.

All five will be partners at the new firm.

The boutique is set to go live on 1 October under the name Younity, with about 10 further fee earners joining alongside the partners.

The group boasts a client list including GlaxoSmithKline, ING Direct, AXA, TNT Airways, and biopharmaceutical company UCB.

Merla (pictured) said: "We have decided to launch Younity because we wanted to be able to offer a more specific, tailor-made and flexible service to our clients.  Stibbe's strategy is to be a leading full service firm in Benelux.

"Our approach is to create a firm where employment and pensions are central and which is independent, so that it has access to a wider international network when we need to without having to consider the firm's preferred relationships.

"We think this is a great time in the market to open a niche firm, as pressure on pricing and quality continues."

The news comes after Stibbe partner Olivier Clevenbergh – former secretary general of the now-defunct Herbert Smith alliance – left the firm in July to launch his own corporate and litigation boutique, set to go live from January 2013, with between three and four partners from other firms set to join him.

Prior to joining Stibbe in 2009, Merla was a partner at Field Fisher, while Rijckaert and Cordier have both spent time at Bird & Bird and local boutique Taquet Clesse & Van Eeckhoutte respectively.