London, 20 September 2010

Following recent investment in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, Holman Fenwick Willan is set to further expand its global footprint by opening an office in Geneva in early October. The move is the latest in a period of sustained growth for HFW and underpins its positioning as the leading law firm for international commerce.

The office will be headed by new recruit Jeremy Davies - an established figure in the local commodities and shipping markets, who joins from the Geneva office of Davies Johnson. Jeremy and his team of lawyers will be based at Rive in the heart of Geneva's business district, where they will be supported by Partners and Associates from London.

The new office will provide a springboard for further expansion of HFW’s core capabilities in the region, servicing clients involved in all aspects of international commerce. HFW has a market leading trade and energy practice, specialising in both dispute resolution and transactional work, and has long represented clients in Geneva, and throughout Switzerland, which serves as an important hub in the international shipping, commodities, energy, and related insurance/reinsurance, corporate, projects and finance markets. It is also an important centre for International Arbitration. The announcement comes in response to increasing client demand and forms part of the firm’s ongoing strategy of having a physical footprint in all key jurisdictions worldwide.

In addition, HFW is also preparing for further growth in a number of its other key regional hubs, acquiring more space in its Melbourne (which has more than doubled in both income and headcount since opening in 2006), Singapore and Hong Kong offices.

Chris Swart, head of the firm’s Trade & Energy practice: “We’ve been servicing trade and energy clients in Geneva for a number of years now, but having a physical footprint in the region will further boost the expansion of our capabilities.”

Richard Crump, senior partner, added: “We are continuing to see strong opportunities for international growth and, in response to client needs, we will continue to invest in new offices. At the moment our international offices account for around 45% of our global revenue and we envisage this figure moving to 50% in five years time. The market place for international commerce is constantly evolving and, consequently, so is HFW.”

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