Offshore law firm Harneys has hired a partner from rival Walkers to lead its expanded London-based litigation, insolvency and restructuring team. 

John O’Driscoll has joined the firm after 11 years at Walkers, where he led the London insolvency and dispute resolution ream, practising the laws of BVI and Cayman. Earlier he practised at Proskauer Rose and Dewey & LeBoeuf. 

He advises on all forms of formal office holder appointments for a client base that includes creditors, debtors, banks, hedge funds and private equity funds. He has extensive experience in multi-jurisdictional disputes and restructurings, with Harneys noting he would add expertise to its disputes practice in the cryptocurrency and digital assets space.

His hire continues a growth spurt in Harneys’ London litigation and insolvency team that has seen existing partners Jeremy Child and Francesca Gibbons be joined by Paul Goss from Ogier last month as of counsel. Partner Paul Madden and senior associate Gerrard Tin, who specialise in insolvency and commercial litigation, have also relocated to London recently from Harneys’ Luxembourg and BVI offices respectively.  

William Peake, Harneys global managing partner, commented: “As we advise clients navigating global economic turbulence, we are seeing a growing need for our restructuring and insolvency expertise. 

“John will play an important role in the evolution of our litigation, insolvency and restructuring practice, and our established team in London will continue to provide impeccable service to our clients.”

O’Driscoll is ranked by Chambers and Partners and is noted as a ‘Leading Individual’ in Legal 500. He is also co-founder of the RAIIDAR International network of more than 1,000 insolvency and restructuring professionals in London.

His hire follows Harneys growing its litigation, insolvency and restructuring group in the Cayman Islands in September with the hire of partner Ben Hobden from Forbes Hare. 

In August Harneys announced it had signed a definitive agreement to sell its 50-strong fiduciary business to private equity giant Hillhouse for an undisclosed amount. The firm said at the time that the sale would provide it with the means to invest in growing the law firm, with a focus on innovation, including the development of new products and services and investment in technology to enhance client service and delivery.