LONDON, 8 October 2018: Morgan Lewis continues the significant expansion of its London corporate capabilities as it welcomes today two new partners, Mike Pierides and Simon Lightman. Both have extensive backgrounds representing clients on major outsourcing and complex commercial transactions, adding further strength to Morgan Lewis’s top-tier outsourcing transactions team. They arrive from another global law firm.
Mike and Simon represent clients throughout Europe, the Middle East, and Asia whose businesses span a wide range of industries, including financial services, life sciences, technology, publishing, and telecommunications, as well as government authorities. Their arrival closely follows the announcement that three M&A and private equity partners will soon join Morgan Lewis’s London office.
“Bringing Mike and Simon on board—and adding outsourcing and commercial transactions capabilities to our London office—highlights once again our strong and continued commitment to serving clients in the United Kingdom and throughout Europe,” said Firm Chair Jami McKeon. “The arrival of Mike and Simon further solidifies our status as a go-to firm for global outsourcing and commercial matters.”
Mike has worked on some of the largest information technology and business process outsourcing transactions in the market. He also has negotiated complex agreements involving multijurisdictional arrangements, technology development, implementation and services, and strategic restructurings.
Simon has advised on the transitional and subsequent activities resulting from major corporate divestments and acquisitions, as well as data protection, privacy, and ecommerce issues arising in commercial agreements. He also previously worked in-house as a legal director at one of the United Kingdom’s largest business outsourcing companies.
The two new partners join a rapidly growing and skilled bench of corporate and finance partners in London who in the last two years have led multibillion dollar deals involving Silversea Cruises, Ciner Group, and Yandex.
“Mike and Simon will spearhead our outsourcing and commercial services in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and further round out our services to corporate clients around the world,” said Steven Browne, who leads Morgan Lewis’s global corporate and business transactions practice. “Their areas of expertise have great synergy with our existing sector services and will complement our deep bench of outsourcing and commercial transactions professionals in the United States.”
Now with more than 80 lawyers, Morgan Lewis’s London office has grown over 300% in the last five years. Other recent additions include finance partner Paul Denham, who joined in May, and finance partner Georgia Quenby, who joined earlier this year with finance of counsel Victoria Thompson and two associates.
“Mike, Simon, and the other partners who have joined us in London this year provide Morgan Lewis with an exceptionally strong ability to serve clients in the UK, Europe, and globally,” said Frances Murphy, managing partner of the London office. “I look forward to working with them and supporting their collaboration with our practices in London and throughout the world.”