Keystone Law has welcomed nine senior lawyers from firms including Allen & Overy, Charles Russell Speechlys and Samsung Construction & Trading Corporation.

Having welcomed 50 new lawyers since January and generated double digit revenue growth, the firm is ending a successful year, on a high, with its latest hiring round of practitioners across 6 departments.

Managing Partner and founder James Knight commented:

“It’s been an exceptional year for the firm. As we look towards 2017, we welcome 8 talented and experienced lawyers who will each be an invaluable asset to the firm. This fast and continued expansion is a constant endorsement of our approach to the practice of law and only looks set to continue.”

Banking and Finance

Banking and finance specialist Laura Ings joins from Allen and Overy with over a decade’s experience advising financial institutions and corporates on international capital markets, derivatives and structured finance transactions, and related corporate and regulatory considerations. Whilst at A&O she undertook in-house secondments at both Citigroup and Credit Suisse.

Commercial

The firm’s Commercial Team continues to thrive with the arrival of ex Charles Russell Speechlys Partner and TMT Co- Head Vanessa Barnett. She specialises in advising tech-driven clients and market disrupters – from household names to innovating start-ups. Her impressive portfolio of experience includes acting for Apple, Balfour Beatty, Google, Tesco and Westfield.

Construction

The Construction Team has seen significant growth in 2016, announcing 5 new hires with ex Samsung C&T’s Alex Mosson recently joining the practice. Alex’s practice is split between contentious and non-contentious matters and he advises on all aspects of construction law. In addition, he spent a decade working as a civil engineer and project manager, prior to becoming a lawyer.

Employment

David Poddington joins Keystone’s growing Employment Team from leading Yorkshire firm Taylor & Emmet where he was both a Partner and Head of Employment. With 20 years’ experience David advises established brands across a number of sectors on an array of contentious and non-contentious employment law issues. He has particular expertise in collective redundancies, changing terms and conditions of employment, and the application of the TUPE Regulations. Meanwhile, Fiona MacDonald also bolsters the team’s capabilities with particular expertise in contractual disputes relating to bonus and incentive schemes and post-termination restraints, and discrimination and whistleblowing claims in the Employment Tribunal. She also advises in relation to FCA regulatory matters, and acts for businesses in respect of contentious and non-contentious HR and employment issues.

Family

Kim Marshall is an experienced family lawyer. She specialises in advising high-net-worth individuals on financial settlements on marriage breakdown, pre-and post-marital agreements, co-habitation and separation agreements, children law, and property disputes between cohabitees. Her caseload comprises a broad range of financial remedy work, often with an international element.

Health and Safety

Ex BP and Harsco Corporation In-House Counsel, David Beckenham arrives as the firm’s first dedicated health and safety lawyer. David advises clients in a range of sectors on a full spectrum of health and safety matters. He is well placed to assist on work-related accidents, corporate manslaughter, product recalls, defence against enforcement action under consumer and food safety laws, complex litigation arising out of contractual disputes, high-value debt recovery, and environmental pollution matters.

Immigration

Keystone has also appointed its first immigration lawyer, Tsige Berhanu. For a decade she has specialised in this area across both private and corporate work, advising clients across the financial, oil and gas, IT and digital technology sectors. Prior to joining Keystone Tsige spent a number of years at Fragomen.

Restructuring and Insolvency

Finally, Stephen Young has boosted the firm’s burgeoning Restructuring & Insolvency Team, bringing experience in dealing with all aspects of corporate and personal insolvency issues, including litigious and transactional matters. Stephen acts for insolvency officeholders, businesses facing financial difficulty, directors, lenders and creditors. His work incorporates a cross-border element and he often traces, secures and recovers assets from a number of global jurisdictions