Freshfields promotes 25 to partner - London gets nine

Freshfields has promoted 25 lawyers to partner in its 2025 round, with London once again emerging as the firm’s key talent hub, accounting for nine of the new promotions - more than any other single office.

The latest round is slightly bigger than last year’s, when 23 were promoted, but remains broadly in line with previous cohorts - the firm made up 30 partners in 2023 and 27 in 2022.

Disputes and global transactions dominated the class, making up more than two-thirds of this year’s promotions.

London promotions

The London office saw five disputes lawyers and four transactional specialists make the cut. The full list:

Dispute Resolution:

• Ramya Arnold
• Joshua Kelly
• Emily Knight
• James Raeside
• Jessica Steele

Global Transactions:

• Meredith Bayley - M&A
• Michael Black - M&A
• Kate Hatcher - Leveraged Finance
• Jon Scurr - IP

The global spread saw 11 new partners across continental Europe, three in New York - matching last year’s total - and one each in Abu Dhabi and Singapore.

The round also reflects Freshfields’ continued investment in its US platform - a key focus for the firm globally.

While the number of US promotions held steady, the firm has continued to grow its American presence through strategic lateral hires.

According to recent data from transatlantic recruiter Macrae, Freshfields added five M&A partners in New York last year - the most of any UK-headquartered firm.

What they said

Senior partner Georgia Dawson said:

"This cohort of new Partners deliver market-leading legal expertise for our global client base. They bring with them the insight, ambition and leadership that will help guide the firm and our teams into the future, shaping how we grow, evolve and continue to deliver for our clients. We look forward to working with our new Partners during the next phase of their careers."