White & Case and Dentons have confirmed to CEE Legal Matters that the Reczicza White & Case office in Budapest has agreed to join Dentons, and that after the May 3, 2015 move, White & Case itself will no longer have an office in the Hungarian capital.
White & Case Equity Partners Istvan Reczicza, Rob Irving, and Edward Keller will be joining Dentons together with the rest of the members of the 30-strong legal team of the White & Case Budapest office.
According to a brief statement provided to CEE Legal Matters by White & Case in London: “The White & Case office in Budapest will move to Dentons with effect from 3 May 2015. From this date, we will no longer maintain an office there. The Firm is committed to supporting our clients’ cross-border needs in Central & Eastern Europe and we will continue to be recognized as a market leader for international work in the region. We wish Istvan, Rob and Edward and the Budapest team well in their future endeavors.” A White & Case spokesman also confirmed that the firm hopes to maintain good working relationships with the three Budapest-based partners for the benefit of its clients needing local Hungarian assistance in the future, though no formal or exclusive relationship is expected.
According to a Dentons spokesperson, “Dentons is pleased to confirm that the team from White & Case's Budapest office will be joining Dentons to further strengthen our Corporate M&A, Private Equity, TMT and Dispute Resolution offering in Hungary, the Central and South Eastern Europe region and across Europe. This news follows Dentons' recently announced merger with US law firm McKenna Long & Aldridge as well as the combination between Dentons and [a Chinese law firm], creating the world’s largest law firm. We look forward to making a formal announcement later this month.”
This move follows White & Case’s withdrawal from Romania in spring of 2014, and subsequent 2014 moves of White & Case’s Prague-based Director for Strategic Projects for EMEA Richard Singer and Banking/Finance Partner Jiri Tomola to Dentons. The addition of the Budapest team is yet another sign of Dentons’ recent growth across the region, as 2014 also saw the firm pick up former Clifford Chance Partner Perry Zizzi in Romania and former Chadbourne & Parke co-Managing Partner Adam Mycyk in Kyiv.
More details are expected in the following days.
This information was relayed to CEE Legal Matters, initially, via our tip-line. If you have any similar information about major acquisitions, lateral moves, office closings, or other developments of significance in a CEE legal market, please contact us using this form or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Confidentiality is guaranteed.
Editorial Note: The article originally reported that it was uncertain if the Local Partners and Associates will be joining Dentons as well. After publication, a Dentons spokesperson contacted us to clarify that they will, in fact, all be joining.
