Shearman partner takes Asia investigations practice to Steptoe & Johnson in New York

(Reuters) - Brian Burke, who specializes in corporate investigations and compliance counseling, has taken his practice from law firm Shearman & Sterling to Steptoe & Johnson in New York, Steptoe said Tuesday.

The firm said Burke, who has previously practiced in Hong Kong, advises clients with operations in Asia on matters including Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and anti-corruption, economic sanctions, antitrust, anti-money laundering and shareholder litigation.

He joins the firm's investigations and white-collar defense practice as a partner. His clients have included Australia's biggest casino operator Crown Resorts Ltd and Japanese medical equipment maker Olympus Corp, according to his Steptoe biography.

Burke said while he is based in New York, "Asia is my office." He found in Steptoe a firm that had offices in, and an understanding of, Asia.

"To me, just because you have an office somewhere doesn't mean you have an understanding," Burke said. He said he expects to travel frequently to the firm's outposts abroad.

Washington, D.C.-founded Steptoe grew its revenue by 3% to $434.6 million in 2022. Gwen Renigar, Steptoe's chair, in March attributed the growth in part to the firm's government-facing practices. The firm has about 500 lawyers.

A Shearman & Sterling spokesperson said the firm wishes Burke well and that it has a "particularly deep and market-leading global investigations and anti-corruption compliance practice."

New York-founded Shearman has seen a string of partner-level departures in recent months across several U.S. and international locations. It has also hired at least two partners this year.

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Sara Merken reports on privacy and data security, as well as the business of law, including legal innovation and key players in the legal services industry. Reach her at [email protected]