Lawyer Moves RECENT APPOINTMENTS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE Jones Day announced the arrival of Pulina Whitaker as a partner in its labour and employment practice. Whitaker will be based in the firm’s London office. She joins from the London office of Morgan Lewis, where she was cohead of the firm’s global privacy and cybersecurity practice. Whitaker has 25 years of experience advising clients on matters involving employment and data privacy issues, and boasts particular experience managing key employment matters in sales and acquisitions, commercial outsourcing and business restructurings. She regularly advises on international employee misconduct investigations and defence strategies in response to a wide range of employment and data privacy allegations and claims. In her new role at Jones Day, Whitaker will work alongside the firm’s senior-level employment lawyers to advise clients facing cases involving employment discrimination, harassment, wagehour and restrictive covenant disputes. “Pulina is highly accomplished at helping clients navigate complex employment law matters in the UK and across other European jurisdictions,” said Elizabeth McRee, co-leader of Jones Day’s labour and employment practice. “Her practice spans internationally and includes some of the world’s largest companies in the technology, financial services and life sciences industries. Her background is an excellent complement to our global practice and I am pleased to welcome her to Jones Day.” Leading European law firm Fieldfisher announced the appointment of Marguerite Brac de La Perrière in the firm's Paris office to bolster its life sciences and digital health capabilities. She brings more than 15 years’ experience in medical sciences law and digital health, along with particular expertise in IT contracts and data protection. Her past clients have included medtechs, biotechs, medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers, healthcare organisations and insurance companies, whom she has advised on issues including GDPR and local data protection regulations, as well as SaaS licensing, AI and cybersecurity. Before her career moved to private practice, Brac de La Perrière worked at telecommunications operator Orange, where she was responsible for managing the Group’s healthcare activities. She commented on her new appointment: “Fieldfisher is an internationally recognised law firm for life sciences and technology law. Joining the firm will see my clients benefit from their extensive international network and in-depth sector capabilities. I very much look forward to collaborating with the wider network and building out the firm’s European offering across digital law." New Partner Boosts Jones Day’s London Labour & Employment Practice Fieldfisher Bolsters European Life Sciences Offering With New Partner London, United Kingdom Jones Day Paris, France Fieldfisher Johannesburg, South Africa DLA Piper Global law firm DLA Piper announced the appointment of Nick Grootes as director in its South African Johannesburg finance, projects and restructuring FP&R team. Grootes joins the firm from Allen & Overy, where his practice was focused on transactional and advisory work in the banking and finance sector. His clients include local and international banks and real estate investment trusts, whom he advises on matters involving debt restructuring, acquisition finance, real estate finance and corporate lending. “Nick is a great fit for our South Africa FP&R practice,” said Jackie Pennington, DLA Piper’s South Africa practice head. “His skillset means that he will not only bolster our existing leveraged finance capability but also improve our capacity to work on wider debt restructuring mandates. We look forward to him joining the firm and adding further bench strength to our already successful team.” Grootes also spoke of his eagerness to join the firm. “DLA Piper’s strong reputation in the South African market and impressive reach across the African continent and globally really appealed to me,” he said. “They are delivering some really cutting-edge work for clients in the finance space and are known for their collaborative culture and innovative approach to client service – two things I am also passionate about. I am pleased to be joining and look forward to further enhancing our leveraged finance offering to clients.” DLA Piper Gains Finance Director for South Africa Team 10 LAWYER MONTHLY SEPTEMBER 2023
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