Addleshaw Goddard (AG) has added to its teams in Dubai and Singapore with the hire of two lawyers from Clyde & Co and DLA Piper.

M&A expert Ben Gillespie joins the UK firm as a partner in Dubai from Clyde & Co's Middle East group, whilst shipping lawyer Mike Melwood-Smith joins as a consultant in Singapore from DLA Piper.

Gillespie has seven years of experience in Dubai, with a focus on regional and international M&A, joint ventures and private equity investments.

At AG he will support projects and construction partner Andrew Greaves with the day-to-day running of the Dubai office, and work alongside corporate partners Keith Johnston and Tim Field on UAE transactions.

Melwood-Smith has spent 20 years in South East Asia, initially with Richards Butler and then with DLA Piper working in energy, shippping and international trade.

At DLA he was based in the firm's Hong Kong office from 1997, before establishing its Singapore branch in 2000.

He also has experience in the GCC, having spent three years working as senior legal counsel for Qatargas in Doha.

The two hires come as AG looks to expand its coverage of Asia as part of a wider international expansion strategy.

The UK firm, which launched its first international office in Singapore in April 2012, has since opened in Dubai, Muscat, Doha and Hong Kong, and continues to eye additional capacity.

Its most recent opening was in Doha in May this year, where the firm hired Patton Boggs corporate partner Hussein Damirji and Dentons banking and finance partner Martin Brown to lead the base.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong office, which also launched in May, recently entered into an association with local outfit Stewien & Co headed partners from Minter Ellison and DLA Piper, giving it the ability to practice local law.

In Tokyo the firm this year entered into a formal alliance with its Japanese best friend Hashidate Law Office, with whom it has had a loose partnership arrangement for 15 years.

The aim of the alliance was to ensure a strong footprint in one of the world's most significant economies as part of international expansion strategy.