LONDON (July 8, 2013) Lawfuel.com – UK Law News Daily — International law firm McDermott Will & Emery today announced that Ziva Robertson has joined as a partner in its International Private Client Practice Group, based in the Firm’s London office. 
Ziva specialises in complex cross-jurisdictional trust issues advising trustees, beneficiaries, settlors and protectors on contentious and non-contentious cases. Ziva has considerable experience across multiple jurisdictions and has worked on some very high profile cases such as the landmark RBS Coutts v W case on trust and divorce in the Cayman Islands, as well as other high profile cases such as the Lemos litigation and the recent case of AB v MB on equitable compensation.
Ziva is qualified in England & Wales, the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands. Ziva also assists with the structuring of family businesses through the use of trusts, foundations and holding companies across the US, Latin America, the Caribbean, Switzerland, the Channel Islands and the Middle East and the UK.
“Being able to offer the contentious piece to our clients in addition to the trust advisory piece has been a priority for the growth of the team here in London since its formation in 2009”, said Martyn Gowar, Head of the London International Private Client team. “From the outset, our strategic vision was to be a full service team with critical mass in London building from the extraordinary depth and strength of our teams in the U.S. Ziva’s arrival marks the fitting of a further piece of the jigsaw, bringing in that contentious expertise but also with her non-contentious work and expertise particularly in the BVI and the Cayman Islands.”
“It is with great pleasure that we welcome Ziva to the team here in London. The growth of the London International Private Client team has been significant, trebling headcount since the group’s inception and we are delighted that Ziva is part of this growth” added Hugh Nineham, Partner and Head of McDermott’s London office. “The development of the International Private Client practice group in London reflects the growing reality that wealthy families and individuals must increasingly deal with cross-border issues and the arrival of Ziva will be a great asset to providing a holistic service to those families wherever they may be located.”
Ziva received her L.L.B. (Hons) from the London School of Economics, qualified in 1997 and joined Withers in 2009 having previously led Mourant’s Cayman trust litigation practice. Ziva is mentioned in Legal 500 and has written chapters for publications such as Trusts in Prime Jurisdictions and Longrigg & Higgins on Family Breakdown and Trusts.
McDermott is recognised as the leading firm for high net worth individuals, families and closely held businesses for all significant facets of wealth planning around the globe. Its private client team of more than 65 lawyers and 20 non-lawyer professionals is widely known to be the top private client practice in the United States and among the top practices worldwide. Chambers USA has ranked McDermott’s private client practice in the top tier in wealth management every year since Chambers USA has been published.
About McDermott Will & Emery UK LLP in London
McDermott Will & Emery in London is long established and many of our partners are recognised as leaders in their fields. McDermott’s London office complements the Firm’s capabilities in Belgium, France, Italy and Germany. McDermott in Europe has a strong industry focus with clients in sectors such as commodities, energy, healthcare and life sciences, information technology, food and beverage, manufacturing, media, sports and entertainment.
About McDermott Will & Emery
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,100 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Rome, Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C. Extending our reach to Asia, we recently opened an office in Seoul and have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.
