Abu Dhabi office opened by Morgan Lewis; firm poaches 15 lawyers from Squire Patton Boggs

Having hired an eight lawyer team from Squire Patton Boggs, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius is opening its first Abu Dhabi office. The move comes at the same time as an additional seven-lawyer hire from the same firm in the U.S.

Joining Morgan Lewis in the Middle East for the new base, which will open on March 1, four partners, four associates and 13 support staff will join.

The new base will be led by former Squire Abu Dhabi office head Bill Nash, and will include funds partner Alishia Sullivan and corporate partners Mark Gilligan and Jay Gladis.

In addition, three partners, four associates and three support staff from Squire’s Washington D.C. office have been hired by Morgan Lewis.

Leading that team will be Courtney Nowell, who headed Squire’s sovereign and institutional investors practice. She is joined in the move by Squire’s private investment funds practice head, Gregg Buksbaum, and tax partner, Kathryn Hambrick. The Washington and Abu Dhabi teams have worked closely together for over a decade, with team heads Nowell and Nash working with the same core clients for the past 12 years.

Morgan Lewis managing partner Steven Wall said, “Although these teams come from two different parts of the world … they’re very closely connected and have worked together for a very long time.”