Mayer Brown continues Baker McKenzie raid with Brussels team hire

Mayer Brown has hired another partner from Baker McKenzie, bringing in international trade partner Pablo Bentes and his team in Brussels just days after poaching three finance partners from the firm in London.

Bentes joins Mayer Brown’s international trade practice after nearly seven years at Baker McKenzie, where he led the firm’s global international economic disputes resolution practice.

He previously worked at US firm Steptoe, where he served as managing director of international trade and investment.

The move expands Mayer Brown’s Brussels office, which has seven partners working across areas including competition, trade and regulation.

Another Baker McKenzie raid

Bentes’ arrival comes just days after Mayer Brown hired a three-partner leveraged finance and high yield team from Baker McKenzie in London.

Rob Mathews, David Becker and Ben Bierwirth joined Mayer Brown’s banking and finance practice. The trio have worked together for years and moved to Baker McKenzie from White & Case in 2019.

They are not the only recent Baker McKenzie hires. In August, Mayer Brown also recruited London finance partner James Clarke from the firm.

The moves come amid a broader hiring push at Mayer Brown, particularly around private capital in London.

Over the past year, the US firm has recruited leveraged finance partners Philip Butler and David Miles and private equity partner Mark Evans from Dechert, followed by private equity partner Tessa Agar from Goodwin. Earlier this year, it added leveraged finance partner Sarah Goodwin from Kirkland.

London push paying off

The hiring comes as Mayer Brown’s London business grows quickly. Revenue at the office jumped 20% last year to $268 million.

London managing partner Dominic Griffiths recently told The Non-Billable Podcast that the firm has been building a broader private capital offering spanning areas including private equity, leveraged finance, structured finance, asset-based lending and fund finance.

The aim is to offer clients a range of services that “very few firms out there can provide,” Griffiths said.