A&O Quells Merger Talk Blues With Simmons Partner Hire
The firm returns to Simmons for its first lateral hire following the collapse of its merger talks with O'Melveny & Myers earlier this month.
September 12, 2019 at 05:40 AM
2 minute read
Allen & Overy has boosted its employment offering with a partner hire from Simmons & Simmons in London – the firm's first lateral hire following its failed merger talks earlier this month.
Vicky Wickremeratne joins the Magic Circle firm after 10 years at Simmons – four of which were as a partner. She broke up her stay at Simmons with a six-year stint at Goldman Sachs' Hong Kong base, where between 2007 and 2013 she was a managing director and senior counsel, overseeing the bank's employment law group across the Asia-Pacific region.
Having trained and qualified at Linklaters, she advises on people-risk management, largely within the financial services, life sciences and TMT sectors.
Her hire follows the breakdown of long-running merger talks between A&O and U.S. firm O'Melveny & Myers, which were called off earlier this month.
Global head of litigation Karen Seward added: "Clients require a team which has breadth and a high level of specialisation across all areas of corporate culture. This is at the very top of boardroom agendas in an environment of increased governance, accountability and good corporate practice.
"Our employment practice is market-leading and Vicky is the natural choice to join us in taking the practice forward."
A spokesperson for Simmons said in a statement: "We have a long relationship with Vicky in this and previous roles. We thank her for her contribution to the firm and wish her all the best for the future.
"We are excited about the ongoing growth of our international employment practice and continue to expand, including in the U.K., which has seen three new partners in the last 18 months."
The hire represents A&O's latest raid on Simmons, after it made four intellectual property hires from the firm in 2016 and 2017, including the firm's former London IP head Marc Doering.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllAs Uncertainty Continues Over PGA Merger, LIV Golf Hires Entertainment Industry Veteran as Legal Chief
Ted Olson, Legal 'Titan' and Former US Solicitor General Who Argued Bush v. Gore, Dies
Trending Stories
- 1The Importance of Plaintiffs Not Letting Defendants Dictate Settlement Tax Strategies
- 2A New State Law Is a Positive Step Forward for Judicial Security in Pennsylvania—But More Action Is Needed
- 3Does the FAAAA Preempt State Negligence Claims Against Freight Brokers?
- 4People in the News—Nov. 14, 2024—Cummins, McNees
- 5County Reps: Appeal Likely Following State Court's Sales Tax Ruling for Retail Marijuana
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250