Reed Smith signage Photo: Jason Doiy/ALM

Reed Smith has hired two longtime disputes partners – Peter Glover in Hong Kong and Nick Austin in London.

Glover and Austin join from Norton Rose Fulbright and Clyde & Co, respectively. Both specialise in shipping, international trade and arbitration. Glover focuses on advising trading companies, shipowners, charterers, banks and insurers on disputes, while Austin acts for charterers, traders, shipowners and insurers on general shipping issues.

Glover leaves Norton Rose Fulbright after a decade with the firm. He joined in 2009 and relocated from London to Hong Kong in 2017, where he made partner the same year. Previously, he served at sea for 11 years on oil tankers, including as a fleet safety officer.

Austin leaves Clyde & Co after more than 14 years with the firm. He made partner in 2005 and was promoted to senior equity partner in 2011. Previously, he practised at legacy Norton Rose for six years.

"We have a longstanding reputation for supporting the shipping industry throughout the [Asia] region and [Glover's] arrival underlines our continued commitment to providing our maritime clients with the very best advice," Denise Jong, Reed Smith's Hong Kong-based Asia-Pacific managing partner, said in a statement. "[Austin] also has strong ties to the region and will be of great benefit to our maritime and trading clients operating in Asia," she added.

Glover is the third disputes partner to join Reed Smith's Hong Kong office in recent months, following the arrival of Mark West from Kennedys in June and Stephen Chan from domestic firm Oldham, Li & Nie in May. The hires help cover the loss of 20 disputes lawyers, including nine partners, leaving the firm for Australian outfit MinterEllison at the beginning of the year.

Elsewhere in Asia, Reed Smith also recently recruited natural resources partner Eric Lin in Beijing from Simmons & Simmons, where he headed the firm's office in the Chinese capital, and regulatory enforcement partner Dora Wang in Shanghai in May from Morgan, Lewis & Bockius.

Meanwhile, Austin is the latest in a string of partner departures globally from Clyde & Co. This month alone, a total of 17 partner, including Austin, have resigned from or have left the firm in London, Edinburgh, San Francisco and Singapore. The departures include a six-partner shipping team in London who left to launch their own boutique firm. Last week, international arbitration partner June Yeum left the Singapore office to join Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman.

Clyde & Co's former senior partner and head of the Americas, James Burns, retired from the partnership in April and recently left after 30 years with the firm. The firm's current senior partner, Simon Konsta, who succeeded Burns in 2016 on a five-year term, will step down from his role two years early at the end of October and will be replaced by Clyde & Co's arbitration co-chairman Peter Hirst.

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