Georgia Dawson has been re-elected as senior partner at Freshfields for a second term, the firm announced today (24 July), after a successful first term which saw the firm continue its US expansion.
Dawson, the first woman to make senior partner in the firm’s 300 year history, guided the firm to new financial heights, with revenue crossing the £2bn mark for the first time for the 2023-24 financial year.
‘Dawson’s re-election reflects strong partner support and confidence in her continued leadership to deliver global growth and strategic progress’, the firm said in a statement.
US expansion has been facilitated by shrewd lateral hires under Dawson’s leadership, with the firm recruiting high-profile partners from a raft of top US firms. The firm has recruited aggressively in New York M&A in particular, with notable hires under Dawson’s leadership including Damien Zoubek, who joined from Cravath in 2021 and co-leads Freshfields’ US corporate and M&A practice alongside Ethan Klingsberg, who joined the firm in 2019..
This February, Freshfields launched a new office in Boston with its hire of private capital M&A partner Matthew Goulding from Latham & Watkins.
Dawson said: ‘It’s a privilege to continue serving as Senior Partner and I’m proud of the progress we have made to date.’
Global managing partners Alan Mason and Rick van Aerssen will continue to work with Dawson as part of the firm’s global leadership team, while Rafique Bachour steps back from his leadership responsibilities to focus on his market leading client practice.
‘I’m deeply grateful to Rafique [Bachour] for his leadership and support over the past term – he has been instrumental in helping shape the firm’s direction and commitment to our clients,’ Dawson said in a statement. ‘Alongside Alan and Rick, our ambition remains clear: to be the firm of the future, agile, principled and relentlessly focused on helping our clients succeed.’
Earlier this year Freshfields emerged as the only top 20 global law firm to sign amicus briefs supporting Perkins Coie and other firms targeted by US President Donald Trump in executive orders.
The bold move was personally guided by Dawson, according to reporting in the Financial Times. Last year she appeared on the FT/EMpower’s “Most Influential in European Finance” list.
‘Simply put, Georgia’s leadership is modern, inclusive, and deeply commercial,’ one Freshfields partner previously told Legal Business. ‘It’s reshaping what global excellence in law looks like.’
Dawson’s new term will begin in January 2026.
