Withers has opened three offices across California with the hire of an eight-partner team from McKenna Long & Aldridge.

Partners at McKenna Long voted to merge with Dentons in April, and ahead of that tie-up becoming effective Withers has taken on the bulk of the US firm's California private client services group.

The hires include eight partners, 16 other lawyers and nine support staff from McKenna Long, with Withers also recruiting litigation partner Mike Brophy from Russ August & Kabat and Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton counsel Christine Steiner.

The new offices will give Withers a presence in San Diego, Los Angeles and Rancho Santa Fe.

The news of the hires comes after Withers took on five corporate, litigation and intellectual property partners in Connecticut from Kelley Drye & Warren in April.

"Our new California team provides a huge boost to our US capabilities and, in addition to our recent east coast hires, grows our American partnership size by nearly a third," said Withers managing director Margaret Robertson.

The decision to make a team hire contrasts with Withers' approach to recent entries into Singapore, where it struck a formal alliance with local firm KhattarWong in February, and Australia, where it sealed alliances with Ashurst corporate partner and former Asia practice head for Blake Dawson Justin Shmith and Sydney tax boutique Balazs Lazanas & Welch in December.