Clifford Chance's (CC) Munich intellectual property (IP) head, Marc Holtorf, has left for Pinsent Masons in the latest departure from the magic circle firm's German practice.

Holtorf, who was also co-head of CC's China desk in Germany and has led the firm's Munich IP practice for eight years, leaves the firm amid a restructuring in the country that will see up to nine partners exit before the end of the year.

Pinsents has hired six partners in Germany since opening its Munich office in 2012, taking its total partner count to 13 and number of fee earners to 40.

Pinsents managing partner John Cleland said Holtorf's hire was part of continued "strategic investment within the firm".

It is understood that no decision has been taken by CC management on whether to replace Holtorf and the firm would not be drawn on whether his departure was part of the restructuring in Germany.

Most of the exits during CC's region-specific review have been partners from the corporate practice.

CC German corporate head Arndt Stengel in Munich quit for Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy in March, along with two Duesseldorf corporate partners who joined White & Case in the same month.

A month earlier Latham & Watkins took two CC private equity partners – Oliver Felsenstein, global co-head of private equity, and Burc Hesse – over to its Frankfurt office.