Kirkland & Ellis continued its Magic Circle hiring spree with the appointment of Allen & Overy's Nicola Dagg as a partner in London. Dagg, who was the UK firm's global head of intellectual property, brings over 20 years of experience to bear in complex patent litigation and breach of confidence disputes.

The news was welcomed by Jeffrey Hames, chairman of the firm's global management executive committee, who remarked: "Nicola is one of the leading lights of the UK intellectual property community. Her arrival expands our Europe-based talent in our market-leading global IP practice and we are thrilled to have her join us. Her experience is quite complementary to our existing practice and will be particularly useful to our life sciences and technology clients as they defend their intellectual property around the world.”

The news follows a spate of arrivals at Kirkland from leading London firms over the last few years, most notably the high-profile appointment of former Freshfields' star private equity partner David Higgins.