Quentin Lowcay, the former managing partner of the Kensington Swan office in Abu Dhabi, has made the move to Minter Ellison Rudd Watts. Lowcay will be based in Wellington.

Kensington Swan CEP Clayton Kimpton confirmed with ALB that the firm's Abu Dhabi office is now closed. "In the middle of last year, we decided to close our Abu Dhabi office and manage our Middle East practice remotely from our Middle East Desk," he said.  Kensington Swan officially opened the office in April 2010, which means the office was in operation for a little over a year. Other New Zealand firms report that they have observed an increase in lawyers returning from the Middle East with stories of a tough business environment.

Meanwhile, the recruitment of Lowcay is part of a trio of new partners for Minters - litigator Richard Gordon has moved across from Buddle Findlay in Wellington, while construction/ property specialist Janine Stewart is an internal promotion.