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Squire Patton Boggs has hired a six-lawyer team, including three partners, for its data privacy, cybersecurity and digital assets practice, ramping up its global team in an increasingly busy area for advice and litigation.
David Naylor joins in London as a partner and head of practice for the U.K. He previously was a partner at the media, technology and IP firm Wiggin, where he held a similar role heading the firm’s data privacy, information law and cybersecurity team.
While at Wiggin, Naylor served as Tesla’s outside counsel in the company’s formative years, leading the negotiations on its deal with Lotus for the joint development and manufacture of Tesla’s first electric vehicle.
Malcolm Dowden also joins Squire’s London office as a partner. He previously practiced at Womble Bond Dickinson as legal director.
A specialist in compliance with the European Union’s General Data Privacy Regulation, or GDPR, Dowden has advised and trained government bodies around the world through the U.K. Foreign & Commonwealth Office, as well as advising U.K. government departments on significant infrastructure projects.
Bartolomé Martín joins in Madrid as a partner from KPMG Abogados, where he led the intellectual property and technology practice in Spain.
Also a GDPR specialist, Martín brings broad experience including technological agreements and IP, software licensing, e-commerce and entertainment law.
George Wheeler-Carmichael also joins in London as a consultant. He was previously general counsel at Agilisys Ltd., an IT software and business services provider, and before that was a partner at Nabarro and DLA Piper.
Rounding out the arrivals are David Oberly and Christian Brundell, who join the firm as senior associates in Cincinnati and Leeds, respectively.
“As the regulatory environment becomes more complex and rigorous, data protection has become a key priority for clients,” Rosa Barcelo, co-chair of the practice at Squire, said in a statement announcing the arrivals.
“In addition to regulatory issues, we have seen an uptick in demand for due diligence and advisory services due to a significant increase in M&A activity,” she said.
Alan Friel, also co-chair of the practice, added, “We are committed to building the premier global privacy team and the arrival of our new colleagues is a measure of our ambition for the future of our practice.”
The firm’s global privacy practice team now has more than 60 partners and associates.
Squire Patton Boggs has also been hiring in other practice areas in Europe. Last month, the firm bulked up its European white-collar team with four senior hires in London and Paris.