Pinsent Masons boosts Funds practice with key hire

David will be located in our Edinburgh and London offices, to augment the firm's expanding funds and financial services capability. David will continue to build our funds and asset management practice, working alongside financial regulation and funds experts David Heffron and Ian Warner.

Advising a broad client base across the financial services sector, David specialises in fund structuring, formation and investment work for investors and fund managers, as well as asset management advisory work including regulation. As well as specific financial services sector expertise, David's experience extends to funds operating in the infrastructure, energy, private equity and real estate sectors.

Alexis Roberts, Partner and Head of the Financial Services sector at Pinsent Masons, said:

"David is at the forefront of the funds industry in the UK and has an enviable reputation in the market. His appointment will provide a boost to our existing funds practice, allow us to grow UK wide expertise and will elevate our financial services and funds practice to the next level. The UK funds market is an active one and is expected to remain so for the foreseeable future, and is an industry in which we have a long-term commitment and will continue to invest."

David joins from Maclay Murray & Spens where he headed up the Financial Services practice in Scotland. He also established and has been the firm's lead partner in the alternative fund practice since 2009. He began his career as a private equity lawyer before focusing purely on the financial services sector. Since specialising in this area, David had worked with leading financial services institutions for many years and has been involved in a wide range of high profile fund launches and transactions.

Michael Watson, Global Group Head of Finance and Projects at Pinsent Masons, said:

"The firm has been developing its funds advisory capability in recent years, particularly in fund formation. David's specialist industry focus, contacts and experience, will enhance our capacity to support our clients in the core sectors we focus on, particularly financial services, infrastructure, real estate and energy where there is increasing demand from investors for specialist fund capability to be married with deep industry knowledge as investors continue to access existing asset classes and increase allocations to alternative and real assets.  This is a further step in our development of a market leading practice."

David is ranked in Chambers & Partners and Legal 500.