Wake Up Call: Reed Smith Grows in Middle East With Saudi Office

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• Reed Smith has opened an office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, its third in the Middle East, after hiring a partner and two members of his team from a local independent firm. Disputes partner Emad Alshaikhi joins the firm from Saudi independent Mahassni & Co, where he was co-managing partner, along with a senior associate and a government relations officer. (Global Legal Post)
• Defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant rose from relative obscurity to national attention after exposing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s romantic relationship with prosecutor Nathan Wade—a case that ultimately got Willis and her office disqualified from the Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump. Merchant spent months investigating the relationship and filed the motion that derailed one of the most high-profile prosecutions in the country. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• The University of Arkansas at Little Rock fired a law professor for comments she made on social media about the Sept. 10 killing of conservative Charlie Kirk. The professor, Felicia Branch, appears to be the first legal academic to be dismissed for social media posts about Kirk, the Turning Point USA founder. (Reuters)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Kuan Huang rejoined Kirkland & Ellis as a partner in its litigation practice in New York. He joins from Latham & Watkins.
• Ryan Dahl, Natasha Hwangpo, and Benjamin Rhode joined Latham & Watkins as restructuring partners. They join from Ropes & Gray.
• Francesca Crisera Ruiz rejoined Squire Patton Boggs as a partner in its global corporate practice group in San Francisco. She joins from Gunderson Dettmer.
• John Mahon joined Cleary Gottlieb as a partner in its global funds group in Washington. He joins from Proskauer Rose.
• Anthony Cahill joined Paul Hastings as a partner in its private equity practice in New York. He joins from TCV.
• Matthew Podolsky joined Sidley Austin as a partner in its white collar defense and investigations practice in New York.
• Kenneth Nunnenkamp joined Blank Rome as a partner in its international trade practice in Washington. He joins from Morgan Lewis.
• George Stowe joined Honigman as a partner in its private equity group in Chicago. He joins from Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff.
• Daniel Gancz joined FisherBroyles as a partner in its real estate practice in Mexico. He joins from Gancz Abogados.
• Ali Schenkman joined Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough as a partner in its real estate and capital markets team.
• Jeffrey Nestler joined Venable as a partner in its litigation group in Washington. He most recently served as a senior assistant US attorney in the District of Columbia.
• John Curran joined O’Melveny & Myers as a partner in its corporate finance practice in Singapore. He joins from Kirkland & Ellis.
• Bridget Fitzpatrick joined Munger, Tolles & Olson as a partner in its white collar, securities, and civil litigation practices in Washington.
• Robyn Axberg joined Thompson Hine as a partner in its corporate transactions and securities practice in Chicago. She joins from Polsinelli.