Several partners are leaving PwC Legal's German public sector team following a change of strategy at the Big Four firm, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

PwC is attempting to build up a team of partners who can focus on specific areas, rather than operating with generalists, which has led some people to leave due to disagreements over strategy, they said.

"The public services unit is generally undergoing a strategic realignment, as this is a priority for PwC Legal and we now want to take the next steps in its development," a spokesperson for the firm said in an e-mailed statement.

In the past, PwC partners offered a combination of tax and legal advice, a strategy that may have led to the firm missing out on the biggest clients, one person said.

The partners that are due to leave include Friedrich Hausmann, a partner in PwC Legal's Berlin office, who is headed for a new position with a law firm shortly, one person said. Düsseldorf-based partners Eike Westermann and Leipzig-based partners Rainer Schindler and Steffen Döring are due to leave by the end of the year, the person added.

PwC Legal has about 250 partners in Germany, about 100 of which work in the public sector team, one person said.

Partners Robert Manger and Boris Scholtka left for EY law near the start of the year.

In January, KPMG's legal arm boosted its legal operations in Germany by hiring an energy law team from PwC, including partner Marc Goldberg to support the development of KPMG Legal's Germany-wide energy law consulting practice, the auditor said at the time.

"The reasons for the departure of colleagues, which we can confirm, were due to a difference of opinion about the new strategic direction," the PwC spokesperson said. " Of course we regret the departures, but in future we will continue to focus on certain areas, as the latest additions have shown. We are confident that we will be able to close the gaps here quickly."