Pinsent Masons is set to open in Australia after hiring three partners from Maddocks, including the latter firm’s CEO David Rennick.

With the aim of setting up offices in Melbourne and Sydney later this year, Pinsent Masons is looking to focus on the infrastructure sector initially and also expects to advise clients on in-bound and domestic work in Australia.

Aside from Rennick, Maddocks partners Greg Campbell and Simela Karasavidis are joining Pinsent Masons in Australia, along with Michael Battye, who had his own firm, QED Legal, and Pinsent Masons London partner Andrew Denton, who will relocate.

The Australia offices will be Pinsent Masons’ fifth and sixth in the Asia-Pacific region, after Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore.