Gibson Dunn & Crutcher has turned to Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for the hire of Munich-based corporate partner Ferdinand Fromholzer.
Fromholzer is the second partner to leave Freshfields in Germany in six weeks, following the departure of competition Michael Esser for Latham & Watkins last month.
He is the first hire for Gibson Dunn in Europe for some time. The US firm’s recent recruitment efforts have been focused on London with a string of corporate and finance hires, most recently that of Ashurst finance partner James Perry.
Freshfields has lost a number of partners and senior associates from its European platform in the past few months. Notably a team of four partners quit the magic circle firm’s Paris office to join Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, while former Paris managing partner Jean-Claude Cotoni left for August & Debouzy and tax partner Antoine Colonna d’Istria moved to Norton Rose Fulbright.
In Germany, Frankfurt corporate partner Anselm Raddatz left Freshfields last year for Clifford Chance.
The firm has made no partner hires in Germany in over two years.