The Transfer Window is a regular round-up of recent legal moves in the UK and abroad. Please send all announcements to [email protected].

US firm Goodwin Procter has added a fifth partner to its London office with the hire of Allen & Overy (A&O) tax counsel Ben Eaton.

Eaton, whose tax practice focuses on investment funds and real estate transactions, also has broad tax experience of private equity, infrastructure and renewables, debt, hedge funds and real estate.

"Ben's arrival is the latest piece of our London build, supporting our strategic plan and adding to our existing capability in funds, real estate and financial services regulatory work," said Goodwin's London office chair David Evans.

Evans has helped oversee the relaunch of Goodwin's London office since he and fellow real estate funds partner Samantha Lake Coghlan were hired from Ashurst a year ago. The firm also took on Linklaters real estate partner Joe Conder earlier this year.

The London office now boasts five partners, five associates, one counsel and one paralegal.

Stephenson Harwood has boosted its corporate practice with the hire of competition specialist Marta Garcia from Clifford Chance (CC). Garcia was a senior associate at CC, before which she was an associate at Baker & McKenzie. She has worked with a range of clients including Barclays, Morgan Stanley, Swiss Re and Chevron.

White & Case has added corporate partner Abdulwahid Al UIama to its Abu Dhabi office, in a move the firm says is the first time an Emirati national and UAE-qualified lawyer has joined any of the major international law firms currently active in the Middle East.

Al Ulama, who joins the US firm's global M&A practice, is a former partner of Al Tamimi & Company and former group chief legal officer of Dubai World Group.

Locke Lord has boosted its London office with the hire of Mishcon de Reya finance and banking partner Luke Morris, marking the third recent partner hire for the City base. He advises lenders, financial institutions, real estate and private equity houses and funds on debt financing transactions.

The hire comes after the US firm – which launched in London in January this year  - took on Fox Williams corporate finance partner James Channo and Mayer Brown insurance and reinsurance partner Ian McKenna during recent weeks.

Dechert has bolstered its Luxembourg office with the hire of A&O counsel Patrick Goebel. He joins the firm's financial services and investment management group from A&O's local office.

Prior to his stint at A&O in Luxembourg, Goebel had been with Banque Generale du Luxembourg since 1999 (now known as BGL BNP Paribas). His last role there was as head of fund engineering within prime fund solutions.

Norton Rose has appointed former Greenberg Traurig partner Pawel Bajno to its five-partner Warsaw corporate practice. Bajno, a former Dewey & LeBoeuf partner, has particular experience of advising private equity funds in M&A transactions.

Simmons & Simmons has hired Berrymans Lace Mawer disputes partner Simon Hilditch. He joins Simmons' insurance litigation practice after 22 years at his previous firm.

Hilditch's practice covers defending claims against insurers and insureds in the financial institutions, directors and officers and professional liability insurance sectors.

Field Fisher Waterhouse Munich patent litigation partner Jochen Herr has departed for Baker & McKenzie's Germany practice.

The move comes shortly after former Field Fisher partner Joachim Feldges joined A&O's Munich office. Herr joined Field Fisher alongside Feldges in January 2011 from Howrey, and will take up his new position in February next year.

Herbert Smith Freehills corporate and energy partner Robin Wittering has joined CIS firm Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners. Wittering, who joined Egorov's Moscow office at the start of November, made partner at his former firm in 2003.

Key recent roles he has taken have included acting for Sinopec on its $3.7bn (£2.3bn) acquisition of Russian oil producer Udmurtneft from TNK-BP, as well as the leveraged buyout and joint venture with Rosneft in relation to the deal, and acting for TNK-BP's management in the shareholder dispute between BP and Alfa Access Renova.

Eversheds has bolstered its financial services dispute resolution practice with the hire of Veronique Marquis as partner from Simmons. Marquis joined the firm's London office on 5 November after six years at Simmons, where she was a senior associate. 

Osborne Clarke has strengthened its digital business practice with the hire of YouView TV's head of legal John Davidson-Kelly. Davidson-Kelly, who joined the firm's City office at the start of the month, had been general counsel at YouView TV since 2010 and departs following the launch of the TV service in July.

Taylor Wessing has boosted its private equity team with two new partners from Jones Day and Eversheds.

James Goold joins from Jones Day, where he has been a partner since 2003. His practice covers management buyouts, venture and development capital, strategic investments and cross-border M&A. He joins Taylor Wessing alongside Eversheds corporate associate Edward Waldron, who has been appointed as a partner.