Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance appoints Chinwe Odimba-Chapman as Office Managing Partner for London and as Co-Regional Managing Partner for "One Europe"

Global law firm Clifford Chance has today announced the appointment, effective 1 January 2025, of Chinwe Odimba-Chapman as Office Managing Partner for London and together with partner Steve Jacoby, as a Co-Regional Managing Partner for the firm's One Europe region, which combines the UK and Continental Europe businesses.

Chinwe joined the firm in 2002 and was made partner in 2018. She has spent many years advising global clients on a wide range of employment law issues on a cross-border basis. In addition to her client practice, Chinwe is currently the firm’s Global People and Talent Partner. 

Michael Bates, the firm's current Regional Managing Partner for the UK will be stepping down at the end of this calendar year following seven successful years in the role. This move will enable Michael to dedicate more time to his clients in the infrastructure sector, while also managing his ongoing responsibilities as the Global Finance Partner.

Charles Adams, Global Managing Partner of Clifford Chance said: "I would like to congratulate Chinwe on her new role and would like to again thank Michael Bates for successfully leading our UK business for seven years to its current strong and market-leading position.” 

Commenting on the firm's long-term strategy to bring the UK and Continental Europe regions together as a single fully integrated platform, Charles Adams said: “We know Europe like nobody else, with top experts in every key jurisdiction and proven strengths in working on the most complex cross-border mandates where we can have the biggest impact on our clients' success. Our "One Europe" approach ensures that our business and our people work as one team, striving to deliver commercial advantage for our global clients."