International legal practice Osborne Clarke has appointed two new Partners to its growing Disputes & Risk practice group.
The firm's UK Disputes & Risk Practice Group now has 40 Partners and more than 160 fee earners working across London, Bristol and Reading. It has grown significantly over recent years, seeing an increase of 24% in FY23 revenue compared to FY22.
Rupa Lakha
Rupa is a construction and engineering disputes expert and joins Osborne Clarke from Charles Russell Speechlys, where she was previously a Partner and head of the firm's India Desk.
She has extensive experience advising clients on a range of issues, including claims for delay and disruption; final account disputes; “smash and grab” adjudications; and defects claims.
Rupa's clients include domestic contractors, developers, landed Estates, international main contractors and international HNI and UHNI individuals, whom she works with across several of Osborne Clarke's key sectors, including retail & consumer; real estate; life sciences & healthcare; as well as mobility & infrastructure.
"I can't wait to get started with the Construction and Engineering Disputes team at Osborne Clarke", said Rupa.
"The team has seen incredible growth over the past few years, making this a really exciting time to join the firm."
"My experience advising clients on complex issues across a variety of sectors will allow me to work across different sector teams at Osborne Clarke, and help us capitalise on more opportunities in the construction market as we continue to grow and strengthen our market share."
Joining the firm's London office, Rupa will work closely with Partner and Head of Construction and Engineering Disputes Rob Horne. The team currently consists of three partners and 29 fee earners across London and Bristol.
Nick Axup
Nick is an experienced insolvency litigator, joining Osborne Clarke from Stephenson Harwood where he was previously a Partner in the firm's restructuring & insolvency practice.
As well as focusing on high-value and complex insolvency litigation and asset-recovery, Nick also has a non-contentious insolvency practice dealing with core advisory and transactional matters such as directors' duties and administrations.
Nick's client base comprises multiple insolvency practitioners as well as direct clients spanning a range of sectors, including financial services and sport.
"It's great to be joining Osborne Clarke's Disputes and Risk Practice Group, at a time of such impressive growth", said Nick.
"My specialist experience in complex insolvency litigation will be a significant addition to the team, and will allow us to seek out new opportunities in an ever-growing insolvency litigation market".
Nick will also be based in the firm's London office, and will work closely with Head of Restructuring and Insolvency Will Gunston. He joins a team consisting of three partners and ten fee earners across London and Bristol.
Catherine Wolfenden, Head of Osborne Clarke's Disputes and Risk Practice Group, said:
"I'm thrilled to welcome Rupa and Nick as Partners into Osborne Clarke's Disputes & Risk Practice Group.
"They both bring extensive experience and expertise that will allow us to continue growing and capitalising on the opportunities that we are seeing in the market."
Rupa and Nick's move to Osborne Clarke follows the hire of tax disputes Partner Jack Prytherch in February. Other lateral hires at Osborne Clarke over the past twelve months include financial services regulatory expert Noline Matemera, private wealth Partner Patrick Wooddisse, and data protection specialist Jonathan McDonald.
The firm's Disputes & Risk Practice Group continues to pursue further growth, currently advertising for multiple IP disputes and patent litigation roles as part of a broader Intellectual Property recruitment effort. The Intellectual Property practice at Osborne Clarke has seen a 250% revenue increase over the past five years, and the firm plans to continue that trajectory and double the size of its IP practice in the UK over the next 18-24 months.
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