RPC has lost an eight-strong construction team to Fieldfisher, including its practice head Dan Preston and another partner.

Preston, head of construction and projects at RPC, will join Fieldfisher on May 1 alongside partner David Thorne, a team of five associates and an assistant – all of whom will be based primarily in the City.

Preston will become Fieldfisher's head of construction and projects – a new role at the firm – and report to head of real estate Antony Phillips.

Philips said the move will strengthen the firm's energy and natural resources sector "where we are seeing increasing interest in construction projects".

He added that the real estate team had doubled in size and turnover during the last five years and said: "It makes sense to strengthen our construction capability. [The hires] make us market leading."

Preston counts a number of large businesses in his client base, including the Morgan Sindall Group, Sir Robert McAlpine and SPIE, and has worked on a number of national energy and infrastructure projects including HS2.

He said: "There are a lot of synergies with Fieldfisher and we really clicked with the partners we met during the recruitment process.

"We share a number of clients already, and with a lot of these having a focus in the midlands and northwest, this is a move which gives us a better-suited platform to service their needs throughout the country."

The hires are also designed to complement Fieldfisher's recent national expansion effort that has seen it take more space in Manchester and Birmingham. It is about to launch in Dublin. Last year the firm saw significant financial growth as revenues surged 26 percent to £97 million in the six months to April 2018.

"Manchester is our second city now," Phillips added.

The latest additions come on back of the hire of property finance partner Iain Thomas from DWF in January. The real estate team is particularly focused on expanding in Manchester – which in 2017 added former Clyde & Co real estate head  to its ranks – to the point that it generates its own work and client base, rather than act as a low-cost centre.

RPC said in a statement: "We are very sorry to see the team go, but completely understand their reasons. The parting of ways is extremely amicable, and we know that we will maintain a great relationship over the years to come. Fieldfisher is an excellent firm, and we wish them the best of luck there for the future."