The IP STARS research team keeps a close watch on lateral hires, departures and other developments in firms. Below is a roundup of some of the people moves and firm news from across the globe last year.
People moves
| COUNTRY | PRACTITIONER | PREVIOUS FIRM | NEW FIRM | MONTH/YEAR |
| Argentina | Maria Luisa Santa | G Breuer | Berton Moreno + Ojam | Apr 2019 |
| Austria | Michael Horak | Salomonowitz Horak | Binder Grösswang | June 2019 |
| Belgium | Serge Flecijn | FlecijnLaw | Fieldfisher | May 2019 |
| Belgium | Philippe Campolini | Simont Braun | Stibbe | Sept 2019 |
| Canada | Jonathan Cutler | BCF | Fasken | Sept 2019 |
| Czech Republic | Denisa Švecová | Čermák a spol | Bird & Bird | May 2019 |
| Czech Republic | Kateřina Floriánová | Čermák a spol | Bird & Bird | May 2019 |
| Ecuador | Luis Marin Tobar | Pérez Bustamante | Lexvalor Abogados | Nov 2019 |
| Germany | Robin Ellis | Sandoz | Reddie & Grose | July 2019 |
| Germany | Andreas Wietzke | Bals & Vogel | Mathys & Squire | Oct 2019 |
| Germany | Michael Fischer | General Electric | Venner Shipley | Oct 2019 |
| Germna | Yvonne Stone | D Young & Co | Bird & Bird | July 2019 |
| Hong Kong | Doug Clark | Gilt Chambers | Rouse | Nov 2019 |
| Ireland | Victor Timon | Maples | Lewis Silkin | Nov 2019 |
| Italy | Matteo Vizzardi | Luca Santa Maria e Associati | Dentons | Jan 2019 |
| Italy | Daniele Caneva | CREA Avvocati Associati | EY | Apr 2019 |
| Mexico | Manuel Guerra | National Copyright Institute | Basham Ringe y Correa | June 2019 |
| Netherlands | Tjibbe Douma | De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek | Dentons | Feb 2019 |
| Netherlands | Alexander Odle | Nineyards Law | Dentons | Sept 2019 |
| Norway | Knut Sverre Andresen | BAHR | Schjødt | Nov 2019 |
| Norway | Jon Wessel-Aas | Bing Hodneland | Lund & Co DA | Jan 2019 |
| Norway | Lars Erik Steinkjer | Wikborg Rein | PGS Law | June 2019 |
| Romania | Cosmina Simion | NNDKP | Simion & Baciu | June 2019 |
| Romania | Ana-Maria Baciu | NNDKP | Simion & Baciu | June 2019 |
| Romania | Andreea Bende | NNDKP | Simion & Baciu | June 2019 |
| Spain | Mathieu de Rooij | ZBM Patents & Trademark | Bardehle Pagenberg | July 2019 |
| Sweden | Stefan Widmark | Kastell Advokatbyrå | Westerberg & Partners | Nov 2019 |
| Sweden | Bodil Ehlers | Kastell Advokatbyrå | Westerberg & Partners | Nov 2019 |
| Sweden | Ia Modin | Kastell Advokatbyrå | Westerberg & Partners | Nov 2019 |
| Sweden | Sofia Ljungblad | Noréns | Vinge | March 2019 |
| Sweden | Joanna Applequist | Valea | AWA | Oct 2019 |
| Switzerland | Magda Youssef-Streulli | Walder Wyss | Rentsch Partner | Jan 2019 |
| UAE | Mark Hill | Rights Lawyers | Charles Russell Speechlys | March 2019 |
| UAE | Rachel Armstrong | CMS | Gowling WLG | Dec 2019 |
| UK | Leythem Wall | Finnegan | HGF | Jan 2019 |
| UK | Kate O’Rourke | Charles Russell Speechlys | Mewburn Ellis | Apr 2019 |
| UK | Huw Evans | Norton Rose Fulbright | Gowling WLG | June 2019 |
| UK | Jon Ball | Norton Rose Fulbright | Gowling WLG | June 2019 |
| UK | Alastair Da Costa | DLA Piper | HGF | Jan 2019 |
| UK | Daniel Byrne | Gide Loyrette Nouel | AA Thornton | Sept 2019 |
| UK | Simon Spink | Bristows | AA Thornton | Sept 2019 |
| UK | Aaron Wood | Wood IP | Keystone Law | Aug 2019 |
| US | Daniel Huynh | Alston & Bird | Morris Manning & Martin | Apr 2019 |
| US | Krista Schwartz | Jones Day | Hogan Lovells | July 2019 |
| US | Patrick Michael | Jones Day | Hogan Lovells | July 2019 |
| US | Robert Underwood | McDermott Will & Emer | Hogan Lovells | July 2019 |
| US | Kristen Connarn | McDermott Will & Emer | Hogan Lovells | July 2019 |
| US | David I Gindler | Irell & Manella | Milbank | Aug 2019 |
| US | Sonal Mehta | Durie Tangri | WilmerHale | Sept 2019 |
| US | Susan Frohling | Kraft Foods Group Inc | Michael Best | Sept 2019 |
| US | Laura Lamansky | Stafford Rosenbaum | Michael Best | Sept 2019 |
| US | James Cleary | Mintz Levin | Kilpatrick Townsend | Sept 2019 |
| US | Tiffani Otey | Womble Bond Dickinson | Kilpatrick Townsend | Aug 2019 |
| US | Patrick J Kelly | Riverside Law | Stradley Ronon | Oct 2019 |
| US | Felicia Boyd | Barnes & Thornburg | Norton Rose Fulbright | Nov 2019 |
| US | Timothy M Nitsch | Freeborn & Peters | Neal Gerber Eisenberg | Nov 2019 |
| US | Jocelyn Ram | USPTO | Erise IP | Dec 2019 |
| US | Nicola Pisano | Foley & Lardner | Eversheds Sutherland | July 2019 |
| US | Jose Patiño | Foley & Lardner | Eversheds Sutherland | July 2019 |
| US | Christopher Bolten | Foley & Lardner | Eversheds Sutherland | July 2019 |
| US | Allen Baum | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Bashir M Ali | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Eric D Babych | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | William R Boudreaux | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Heidi A Dare | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Amy H Fix | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Mark Jenkins | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Ryan Marshall | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | Joshua E Ney | Brinks Gilson & Lione | Barnes & Thornburg | Dec 2019 |
| US | May Eaton | Kirkland & Ellis | Perkins Coie | Oct 2019 |
Firm news
Partner promotions
| COUNTRY | PRACTITIONER | FIRM | MONTH/YEAR |
| Netherlands | Helen Gornall | De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek | Nov 2019 |
| UK | Steven Baldwin | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| UK | Jin Ooi | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| UK | Julian Crump | Abel & Imray | Sept 2019 |
| UK | Julia Coggins | Abel & Imray | Sept 2019 |
| UK | Tom Turner | Abel & Imray | Sept 2019 |
| UK | Alicia Instone | Cleveland Scott York | Oct 2019 |
| UK | Nick Bennett | Cleveland Scott York | Oct 2019 |
| UK | Colin McCall | Taylor Wessing | Nov 2019 |
| UK | Tasmina Goraya | Taylor Wessing | Nov 2019 |
| US | Jay Emerick | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| US | Brian A Verbus | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| US | Benjamin A Yaghoubian | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| US | Elise Edlin | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| US | Noah Frank | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| US | John Rhine | Kirkland & Ellis | Oct 2019 |
| Venezuela | Mariana Montiel | Antequera Parilli & Rodríguez | May 2019 |
| Venezuela | Dinora Garcia | Antequera Parilli & Rodríguez | May 2019 |
Other news
| COUNTRY | FIRM NEWS | MONTH/YEAR |
| Belgium | Darts-ip announced takeover of Clarivate Analytics | Dec 2019 |
| Belgium | Liesbeth Weynants appointed as new managing partner of Hoyng Rokh Monegier's Brussels office | Dec 2019 |
| China | Rouse announced a new office in Shenzhen, China | Oct 2019 |
| Germany | HGF merged with Patronus IP | March 2019 |
| Kenya | CMS formed a new alliance with Daly & Inamdar Advocates | Oct 2019 |
| Poland | CMS UK relocated its EU trade mark and design practice to Warsaw, Poland | Oct 2019 |
| Russia | Eversheds Sutherland Russia merges with boutique firm Tilling Peters | June 2019 |
| South Africa | CMS formed an alliance with RM Partners | Oct 2019 |
| Sweden | AWA Group acquired IP firm Pronovem (Belgium, Switzerland and Netherlands) | June 2019 |
| Sweden | Rouse acquired IP firm IPQ | July 2019 |
| Sweden | AWA appointed Thor Mosaker as group CEO | Nov 2019 |
| Turkey | Eldib & Co opened a new office in Istanbul | Oct 2019 |
| UK | Haseltine Lake merged with Kempner & Partners | May 2019 |
| UK | Lewis Silkin acquired patent attorney firm Ablett & Stebbing | July 2019 |
| UK | HGF relocated to a new office in Edinburgh, Scotland | Sept 2019 |
| UK | IP firm Secerna has relocated its head office to the city center of York | Dec 2019 |
| Ukraine | Sayenko Kharenko announced merger with IP boutique Yevgeniy Solodko | July 2019 |
| Uruguay | Dentons combined with Jiménez de Aréchaga Viana & Brause | Sept 2019 |
| US | Eversheds Sutherland opened a San Diego office with new three IP litigators | July 2019 |
| US | Barnes & Thornburg launched new offices in North Carolina, Michigan, and Utah | Dec 2019 |
More firm news and people moves
Read our previous coverage here.