DLA Piper elects M&A dealmaker Jon Hayes to replace company lifer Andrew Darwin as head of UK arm
Anglo-American law giant DLA Piper has said M&A lawyer Jon Hayes will take over from DLA veteran Andrew Darwin as the head of DLA’s London partnership.
DLA Piper said Hayes, who joined the firm from Linklaters in 2009, had been elected as co-chair of DLA Piper.
Hayes will take over from longtime DLA partner Andrew Darwin, who has served as co-chair of the law firm since 2018. Darwin first joined DLA Piper in 1981 and became a partner in the firm in 1987.
In taking over from Darwin, Hayes will head the UK arm of law giant DLA Piper, alongside experienced litigator Frank Ryan, who currently heads DLA Piper’s US business.
Formed through a merger between two US law firms and one British one in 2005, DLA Piper operates through a “Swiss Verein” structure, which means that while the US and UK businesses operate under the same brand, they also retain financial independence.
Down with the ancien regime
Hayes’ rise to the top of DLA Piper will see the lawyer – who is currently a lead sponsor of DLA’s LGBTQ+ network – take over from DLA lifer Andrew Darwin, who in the past has been described as part of DLA’s “ancien regime.”
Darwin’s links to former DLA head Nigel Knowles have seen him branded part of the “old guard”.
Hayes, on the other hand, will likely come in as a modernising force.
In particular, Hayes supporters have said the M&A lawyers’ British-American parentage may offer him an advantage in strengthening links between DLA Piper’s US and UK arms.
The vote comes as critics argue the DLA’s Swiss Verein structure essentially allows the law firm to operate as two separate ventures.
Critics also say that any links between DLA Piper’s US and UK arms are shallow.
Anglocentric
Hayes rise to the top of DLA Piper comes after the dealmarker first ran against Darwin, for the position of co-chair of the firm, in 2018.
At the time, the firm came under fire for its “Anglocentric” nature, as critics noted that all three of the candidates – Hayes, Darwin, and Bob Bishop – were English, white anglo-saxon protestants (WASPs).
The comments come amid criticism from DLA’s European and international offices that the firm’s UK headquartered arm, which operates all business outside of America, has become too Anglocentric.
Hayes has also faced criticism for his close proximity to DLA Piper’s senior management, due to his strong links with DLA’s CEO Simon Levine.