Simmons & Simmons is boosting its crime, fraud and investigations team with the hire of Kingsley Napley criminal litigation partner Stephen Gentle.

Gentle (pictured), who is top-ranked in Chambers and Partners for both UK cartel defence and corporate crime, joined Kingsley Napley in 1993, becoming a partner in 2001. He will join Simmons' nine-partner crime, fraud and investigations team, which is headed by Nick Benwell, in June.

His practice covers white collar crime and contentious regulatory cases, with a focus on corruption and bribery matters, as well as investigations and proceedings around insider dealing, market misconduct and regulatory issues. Gentle has also represented members of the Chief Police Officers Staff Association facing internal disciplinary inquiries.

Simmons senior partner Colin Passmore said: ''Although I know that Kingsley Napley is sad to see [Gentle] leave, our firms have worked well together over the years and I'm sure we will continue to do so."

In 2010 Gentle won an acquittal for former McDermott Will & Emery London corporate partner Michael McFall when he was charged with insider trading by the FSA.

Gentle's hire comes after Simmons' white collar crime partner Louise Delahunty left the firm in 2011 to join the London arm of Sullivan & Cromwell as a European counsel. Delahunty had played a key role in setting up Simmons' crime, fraud and investigations group when she joined in 2006 from Peters & Peters, a move that saw Simmons become one of the first major City firms to take a serious step into the fraud arena.

Last month Simmons made a double partner hire from K&L Gates, taking on pensions partner Danny Tsang and employment partner Ian Fraser, taking total partner count in the group to 10.

Other recent partner hires include Addleshaw Goddard energy and infrastructure partner Andrew Petry in London, as well as Field Fisher Waterhouse partner Thomas Adam and Norton Rose banking and finance partner Dan Marjanovic, who have been recruited for the firm's launches in Munich and Singapore respectively.