Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has continued the expansion of its US transactional practice with the star hire of Shearman & Sterling partner Peter Lyons as co-head of the firm's global public M&A group.

Lyons had been a Shearman partner since 1989, serving as its global M&A group head from 2000 through to 2008.

He specialises in domestic M&A deals for US clients, as well as inbound M&A from overseas clients, recently advising on the $4bn (£2.47bn) acquisition of generic pharmaceutical company Ranbaxy by India's Sun Pharmaceutical Industries.

The hire of Lyons builds on the recruitment of two Wall Street heavyweights in New York earlier this month.

Former Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom banking partner James Douglas will head Freshfields' US leveraged finance practice, while Mitchell Presser, who was at Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz for 17 years before helping to found private equity firm Paine & Partners, has taken on the leadership of Freshfields' US M&A practice.

"Peter has been one of the most well-regarded M&A practitioners – by both clients and peers," said Presser of the latest appointment. "We are excited he is joining us as we continue to build out a world-class transactional M&A team in the US."

Shortly after Presser and Douglas were brought in, Freshfields global senior partner Will Lawes told Legal Week the frim intends to keep investing in the US business, expanding the transactional team from five to 25 partners.