Arbitration boutique Three Crowns has officially opened for business today (7 April), with 20 associates joining the firm's six founding partners.

The boutique was set up by three senior arbitrators from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer alongside partners from Jones Day, Covington & Burling and Shearman & Sterling. The new firm will be run from offices in Washington, London and Paris.

The 20 associates will be spread across the three offices. A number of the junior lawyers have joined from the partners' former firms.

Three Crowns plans to have two partners working on each case, while barristers, consultants, and other professionals will be sourced as needed, depending on the size of the case.

Former Freshfields Paris-based disputes partner Georgios Petrochilos said: "The concerns of clients are for sharper teams, hands-on partner involvement and more flexible billing arrangements. If large firms think they can deliver this they will continue with their model but we have felt a need for this in the market."

He said that the firm is open to using a range of pricing models, including hourly rates, fixed fees and other structures.

While Petrochilos said the move was not primarily driven by client conflicts, he added: "Conflicts exist in large firms and it is frustrating when you have a good existing client you can't act for."

Petrochilos claimed that a number of Freshfields clients have already opted to move across to his new firm. However, the firm will continue to work with Freshfields on certain cases and is already working with other international firms.

On the Three Crowns' growth potential, Petrochilos said: "We have an idea of our maximum growth which would allow us to deliver our principles. Nothing is excluded – we will follow our clients." 

The firm's six founding partners are:

Jan Paulsson – until 2013, co-head of Freshfields international arbitration and public international law groups
Luke Sobota – previously a partner in Jones Day's global disputes group, based in Washington
Constantine Partasides – London head of arbitration at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
Gaetan Verhoosel – formerly co-chair of the Covington & Burling international arbitration practice
Georgios Petrochilos – previously Freshfields Paris head of arbitration and head of public international law
Todd Wetmore – formerly a partner at Sherman & Sterling