Broadfield appoints energy head among five partner hires across UK and US

Broadfield has hired five partners across its London and New York offices, including Pillsbury’s Gavin Watson as partner and global head of energy and infrastructure.

The firm launched in December 2024 when UK firm BDB Pitmans rebranded as Broadfield UK. It now has more than 300 lawyers across the UK, US and Hong Kong.

‍Energy focus

Watson joins Broadfield’s London office from Pillsbury, where he advised on corporate, commercial and project development matters across the global energy and infrastructure sectors.

His practice spans Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Asia, with a focus on the energy transition and sustainability, alongside work supporting near-term energy supply projects across oil and gas, natural gas and petrochemicals.

The hire comes amid a busy six months for the energy lateral market in London. Recent moves include Jones Day hiring partners Caroline Gregson and Nath Curtis, Baker McKenzie hiring Elisabeth Moseley from McDermott, and Gibson Dunn bringing in energy M&A partner Simon Tysoe from Latham & Watkins, among many other energy and infrastructure partner moves.

‍Building the bench

Broadfield has also added two partners to its London private wealth team in response to growing demand from ultra-high-net-worth clients seeking advice on complex financial matters in the current UK tax environment.

Jonathan Kropman joins from JMW Solicitors and advises on family succession planning for family businesses, trusts and family office structures.

Katherine Forster joins after 16 years at Mishcon de Reya and advises on domestic and international private client matters including wealth structuring, offshore trusts and asset protection.

In New York, the firm has hired Michael A. Smith as a corporate and finance partner. He has more than 35 years of experience advising boards, sponsors, asset managers and financial institutions on cross-border transactions, capital markets and governance matters.

Also joining the New York office, Constantinos Pappas arrives from Goodwin as a private equity and M&A partner advising sponsors and portfolio companies on acquisitions, leveraged buyouts and growth investments.

Last year the firm also hired lawyers from Sidley Austin and Kirkland & Ellis across the UK and Hong Kong as it continued building its international team.

Corporate leadership

Separately, Broadfield has appointed Dr. David Ramm as head of corporate for Broadfield UK. Ramm joined the firm as a partner in October 2025 and has nearly 30 years of experience advising on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital transactions, primarily for technology clients.

‍What they said

Watson said: “Energy and infrastructure clients are navigating two realities at once. They need to deliver near-term security while investing in transition, innovation and new technologies.

Broadfield is building an agile platform that is genuinely international, commercially focused, priced rationally, and designed for the future.”

John Hutchinson, managing partner of Broadfield UK, said: “Over the past year, we have been building a firm with international reach, strong regional depth, and a delivery model designed for speed, multifaceted matters, and business outcomes.”