Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom has hired the head of Latham & Watkins’ London IP practice, marking the latest in a string of senior exits from Latham’s City office. 

Deborah Kirk has joined Skadden as head of the firm’s intellectual property and technology transactions practice in London. 

Kirk brings more than 20 years of experience in IP and technology matters. Her practice spans M&A, private equity, emerging companies and finance matters, with a particular focus on e-commerce and consumer brands, and she also provides strategic advice on early disputes, IP ownership issues, data privacy and branding strategies.

Richard Youle, head of Skadden’s London office, said Kirk was “a proven innovator in the IP and technology space, with a stellar track record of counselling on some of the most complex transactions across Europe”.

“As IP and technology issues emerge increasingly as areas of focus for companies, our clients will benefit greatly from her experience,” he added. 

Kirk has worked with clients including Goldman Sachs, Permira Advisers and Farfetch. Her most recent deals work includes advising a Kuwait-based consortium on the acquisition of Milton Keynes Dons Football Club in August and advising Verona Pharma in its $650m strategic financing in May – one of the largest life sciences financings of 2024. 

Kirk commented: “Skadden is known for its enviable client base and leading integrated transactional practice. I look forward to joining the team and building on that success.”

Kirk’s is the latest in a string of high-profile departures from Latham in London, although its office remains one of the largest in the UK among leading US firms.

In October high-yield partners Scott Colwell and Patrick Kwak left for Sidley Austin, just a few months after Sidley hired away a five-partner leveraged finance team from the firm led by Jay Sadanandan – a former managing partner of Latham’s London office – and Sam Hamilton. 

Also in the summer, Latham saw collateralised loan obligation partner Alex Martin defect to Milbank with a team of finance lawyers, while in February litigation and trial partners Oliver Browne and Stuart Alford KC joined Paul Hastings.  

According to publicly-available data tracked by Pirical, of US firms that have grown organically in London as opposed to through mergers, Latham has the third-largest office by partner headcount with 137 partners, behind White & Case (153) and Kirkland & Ellis (227).

Skadden, on the other hand, is among a group of elite New York firms whose London operations remain more tightly focused. According to the latest Pirical data, its partner headcount of 34 puts it 30th in Prical’s London ranking for AmLaw firms, neck and neck with Paul Weiss, which has grown rapidly since last summer, repeatedly recruiting partners out of Kirkland. 

Latham, meanwhile, has been replenishing its partner ranks in London. It hit US rival Cahill Gordon & Reindel in the summer to boost its leveraged finance bench, hiring partners Jonathan Brownson, Joydeep Choudhuri and Prue Criddle. 

And the firm announced today (4 November) that it had also recruited leveraged finance lawyer Danielle Brown as a partner from Cahill in London. Brown had been a counsel at her former firm.

Commenting on Kirk’s departure, a Latham spokesperson said: “We thank Deborah for her contributions to the firm and wish her all the best in the future.”