Jones Day has hired the head of Nabarro's Singapore office Emerson Holmes as the firm continues to ramp up its arbitration practice in the city state.

The US outfit, which was among a group of four international players to obtain a local or Qualifying Foreign Law Practice (QFLP) licence in Singapore last year in a second round of awards, now has 14 partners on the ground, making it among the biggest US practices locally.

Holmes specialises in construction and engineering disputes and was previously based in Nabarro's London office. He relocated to Singapore in 2010 to launch the firm's local branch, which was its second base outside the UK and its fourth globally, alongside London, Sheffield and Brussels.

He has joined Jones Day to work alongside two other arbitration partners: Matthew Skinner, who moved over from Allens in 2012; and Mike Pollen who was hired from K&L Gates in the same year.

Having acquired the QFLP licence, Jones Day is understood to be growing its team of Singapore qualified lawyers. It currently has three locally qualified partners in the practice.

Nabarro meanwhile, has three remaining partners on the ground in Singapore, including Gerlando Butera, who also transferred from the UK, Glenn Cheng who was recruited from Norton Rose and Singapore qualified Adrian Wong, who joined from Hogan Lovells.

The firm also opened a Middle East hub in Dubai last year, focusing on construction and engineering and led by partner Terry Fleet.