King & Wood Mallesons has strengthened its dispute resolution and corporate practices in Europe with the promotion of James McKenzie (London) and Christian Ostermöller (Frankfurt) to Partner, effective 1 January 2023.
James is an international arbitration specialist with broad experience acting for clients in the construction, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and resources sectors. James is also recognised as an “Asian disputes” specialist, having previously worked in the firm’s Hong Kong office before relocating to London in 2019. As a result, he has advised clients in a number of jurisdictions in both Asia and Europe, as well as under a wide range of arbitration rules including LCIA, HKIAC, SIAC, ICC, CIETAC, DIAC and UNCITRAL. James has also acted in complex cross border litigation in the UK, Hong Kong and BVI.
James has been recommended by Legal 500 (UK) for International Arbitration and Commercial Litigation and was recently described by a client in that directory as “first class”. James is qualified in England & Wales, Hong Kong and Australia.
London Managing Partner, Mark Schaub expressed his congratulations:
"I am delighted to welcome James to the partnership. James is an excellent lawyer and a home-grown talent with a deep knowledge of the firm, its clients and the UK and Asian markets more generally. His expertise will serve to further strengthen our Dispute Resolution team here in London."
Christian is a certified expert for corporate and commercial law (Fachanwalt für Handels- und Gesellschaftsrecht). His services include all aspects of commercial and corporate transactions, focusing on commercial contracts, cross-border M&A, portfolio deals, joint ventures, carve-outs and restructuring transactions.
Christian is regularly engaged to advise on general legal aspects of strategic transactions and disputes as well as on complex framework agreements. He advises both German and international clients across a range of sectors with an emphasis on automotive, aviation, sports, IT and regulated industries.
Rüdiger Knopf, Partner in Charge Germany commented:
"We congratulate Christian to this significant step in his career and are more than happy to expand our partner base with a member of our corporate practice group. Christian was already part of the core team when the German office was established in 2017. With his outstanding work, he has contributed significantly to our success over the past years, and we are sure that he will continue to have an important role in KWM Frankfurt's positive development in the years to come."
